"In most standard texts on the Civil War, Mobile appears only in reference to the famous Battle of Mobile Bay. It is thus refreshing to find a work that illuminates the complete war years of this major southern city.... Confederate Mobile is an indispensable and thoroughly researched volume on Mobile's role in the Confederacy.... It will prove an invaluable guide to anyone wishing to understand wartime Mobile and the military maneuvers involved in defending the important southern port." -- Florida Historical Quarterly "Bergeron's depiction of this colorful port city and how it reacted to the throes of war is a landmark in Civil War history." -- History Book Club Review

Faced with overwhelming odds, diehard Rebels refused to surrender, and - even with the end of the war clearly at hand - Federal soldiers remained willing to fight and die to capture the last enemy stronghold. O'Brien explores the battle and the driving forces behind it in the first comprehensive treatment of the campaign in over 130 years."--BOOK JACKET.

"In most standard texts on the Civil War, Mobile appears only in reference to the famous Battle of Mobile Bay. It is thus refreshing to find a work that illuminates the complete war years of this major southern city.... Confederate Mobile is an indispensable and thoroughly researched volume on Mobile's role in the Confederacy.... It will prove an invaluable guide to anyone wishing to understand wartime Mobile and the military maneuvers involved in defending the important southern port." -- Florida Historical Quarterly "Bergeron's depiction of this colorful port city and how it reacted to the throes of war is a landmark in Civil War history." -- History Book Club Review

In the Civil War, both sides understood that closing the South's ports would halt the introduction of war materiel to the industrially weak region. Though the North captured New Orleans in 1862, they did not attack the Confederate navy in Mobile Bay or the city of Mobile, Alabama, until 1864. The two-year delay allowed much needed supplies to enter the Confederacy and changed the face of the ensuing Mobile Campaign, as technological advances in ships submarines, mines and fortification made a striking difference in the fighting. This book examines the politics, preparations, leaders, and battles that made the Mobile Campaign a microcosm of the overall conduct of the Civil War.

An in-depth history of the Confederate Army’s last stand in Mobile, Alabama, a month after Gen. Lee’s surrender at Appomattox Court House. It has long been acknowledged that Gen. Robert E. Lee’s surrender at the Battle of Appomattox ended the civil war in Virginia in April of 1865. However, the last siege of the war was the Mobile campaign, an often-overlooked battle that was nevertheless crucial to securing a complete victory. Indeed, the final surrender of Confederate forces happened in Alabama. The Last Siege explores the events surrounding the Union Army’s capture of Mobile and offers a new perspective on its strategic importance, including access to vital rail lines and two major river systems. Included here are the most detailed accounts ever written on Union and Confederate camp life in the weeks prior to the invasion, cavalry operations of both sides during the expedition, the Federal feint movement at Cedar Point, the crippling effect of torpedoes on US naval operations in Mobile Bay, the treadway escape from Spanish Fort, and the evacuation of Mobile. Evidence is presented that contradicts the popular notion that Mobile welcomed the Federals as a pro-Union town. Using primary sources, this book highlights the actions of Confederate soldiers who fought to the last with sophisticated military tactics in the Confederacy’s last campaign, which led to the final surrender at Citronelle, Alabama, in May.