Here, seen through the eyes of the men themselves, is the story of the Confederacy’s legendary Stonewall Brigade. Most Civil War accounts treat of battles and armies. The focus of this exciting account is sharper, narrower: a single brigade, the basic unit of attack of one of those armies. The Stonewall Brigade and its first commander, Thomas J. Jackson, won their nickname at the bloody baptism of First Manassas. Over the next four years "Jackson’s foot cavalry" achieved fame and sustained losses matched by few American military units before or since. There were some 2,600 men serving in the brigade at the start of the war. At Appomattox-thirty-nine engagements later-only 210 remained, none above the rank of captain. But these men from out of the Valley of Virginia had written their names upon the pages of history. In The Stonewall Brigade the author, a distinguished scholar of the Civil War, has given equal billing with the immortal Jackson to such soldiers as Lieutenant David Barton, Captain Kyd Douglas, and Private John Casler. He has attempted to capture the camp life, the marches, the personal experiences in battle rather than concentrate on well-known strategy and familiar Confederate leaders. Similarly, descriptions of battles are written from within the ranks rather than from command posts. The result is a vivid and often moving account of courage and cowardice, triumph and heartbreak-and endurance perhaps without parallel.

This unusual and moving chronicle covers some of the most important battles of the Civil War—Sharpsburg (Antietam), Gettysburg, and Chancellorsville—through the stories of the two brigades who confronted each other on the bloody fields of battle. Drawing on original source material, Jeffry Wert reconstructs the drama and terrors of war through the eyes of the ordinary men who became members of two of the most respected fighting units of their respective armies, the Stonewall Brigade of the Confederacy and the Iron Brigade of the Union. There are tales of grueling marches and almost unbearable deprivations; eyewitness accounts of ferocious fighting and devastating losses on both sides; and portraits of acts of courage and valor performed by soldiers and officers who, despite the difficulties they faced, remained dedicated to the cause for which they were fighting.

"There are many collections of letters and Civil War memoirs available today, but very few offer in-depth information about the medical treatment of wounded soldiers. In Repairing the "March of Mars": The Civil War Diaries of John Samuel Apperson, Hospital Steward in the Stonewall Brigade, 1861-1865, editor John Herbert Roper provides an important supplement to this largely ignored aspect of the Civil War." "Apperson's diary is a sensitive and painstaking observation of the details of medical treatment during and after battle. For all periods of the war, his detailed personal records supplement and correct official army hospital records, and for certain periods, his diary provides the only medical information available. For example, Apperson was present at the amputation of Stonewall Jackson's arm, and his diary shows that Jackson died of postoperative pneumonia, and not of a botched surgery."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved

'Look!' There is Jackson standing like a stone wall. Rally behind the Virginians!' With these words General Bee ensured the reputation of Thomas Jackson and his troops who were fighting alongside him at the battle of the the First Bull Run. This reputation was enhanced during Jackson's Shenandoah Valley campaign and other operations where the Stonewall Brigade's actions gained the praise of their Confederate compatriots and the respect of their enemies. This book examines the uniforms, equipment, history and organization of the Brigade and its combat experience during the American Civil War. Detailed maps and contemporary illustrations accompany this account of their major engagements.