An Honorable Defeat, William C. Davis
An Honorable Defeat, William C. Davis
List: $19.95 | Sale: $13.97
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An Honorable Defeat
The Last Days of the Confederate Government

Author: William C. Davis

Narrator: John Lescault

Unabridged: 11 hr 32 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 03/16/2021


Synopsis

In February 1865, the end was clearly in sight for the Confederate government. Lee’s defeat at Gettysburg had dashed the hopes of the Confederate army, and Grant’s victory at Vicksburg had cut the South in two. An Honorable Defeat is the story of the four months that saw the surrender of the South and the assassination of Lincoln by Southern partisans. It is also the story of two men, antagonists yet political partners, who struggled during this time to achieve their own differing visions for the South: Jefferson Davis, the autocratic president of the Confederate States, who vowed never to surrender whatever the cost; and the practical and warm General John C. Breckinridge, Secretary of War, who hoped pragmatism would save the shattered remnants of the land he loved so dearly.Pulitzer Prize nominee William C. Davis traces the astounding flight of these men, and the entire Confederate cabinet, as they flee south from Richmond by train, then by mule, then on foot. Using original research, he narrates, with dramatic style and clear historical accuracy, the futile quarrels of Davis and Breckinridge as they try to evade bands of Northern pursuers and describes their eventual—and separate—captures. The result is a rich canvas of a time of despair and defeat, a charged tale full of physical adventure and political battle that sweeps from the marble halls of Richmond to a dingy room in a Havana hotel.

About William C. Davis

William Charles “Jack” Davis is a retired history professor who taught at Virginia Tech. An acclaimed expert on the Civil War, he has served on a number of advisory boards, including the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission, the Civil War Preservation Trust, the Museum of the Civil War Soldier in Petersburg, Virginia, the National Park Service, as well as on the Lincoln Prize and Pulitzer Prize nominating juries.

About John Lescault

Patrick Cullen, a native of Massachusetts, is a graduate of the Catholic University of America. He lives in Washington, DC, where he works in theater.


Reviews

An honorable defeat is a very well researched book about the last weeks of the confederate government. There are some rash people that feel put off by the title for political reasons or just as a matter of general disagreement. It is rather sad that so many people these days seem not to have the pat......more

Goodreads review by Jerry

A decent book describing the dissolution of the Confederate government as it fled south in a desperate attempt to escape and possibly fight another day. While the reader of this book will get a good sense of Jefferson Davis and John C Breckinridge, I think that some of the other players in this stor......more

Goodreads review by Glenn

The last remaining months of the Confederacy is a fascinating time. This is a wonderful book that brings to life the turmoil, the politics, the larger than life characters and the complete average people that dealt with the last few months of Richmond and then the months on the run. I learned a grea......more

Goodreads review by Tom

A solid book that covers the last months of the Confederate government and how it met it's rather non-glorious end. Beginning at the start of 1865, when Grant's Union army is slowly surrounding Lee's army at Petersburg, it covers the governments final attempts to help the situation. When Lee abandon......more


Quotes

“The latest book by Davis, a fine and prolific author on many Confederate topics, is as dramatic as his story of the Confederacy’s establishment, A Government of Our Own.” Booklist

“Readers who enjoy romantic renderings of the Civil War era will enjoy this portrait of defeat.” Publishers Weekly