20 Fateful Decisions at Gettysburg
A former licensed battlefield guide breaks down the critical judgments that decided the titanic engagement’s outcome
Cornfield Fight Hinged on Leadership and Communication
Union possession of the most important ground on the Antietam battlefield came only after critical errors
Vicksburg: Where Grant Learned How to Win the War
An little-discussed factor was the social revolution that preceded Vicksburg's surrender—the destruction of the plantation oligarchy and the liberation of 100,000 slaves
Pickett’s Charge Hit Where It Was Aiming
Lee's orders to Longstreet were to strike the Union line on the open slope of Cemetery Ridge (but Yankee guns interfered)
118 Overlooked Ohio Gunners Made a Difference at Gettysburg
A volunteer battery’s resolve on July 1, 1863, merits more attention. It helped secure the Union victory
Chamberlain and Wise: Enemies to the End
The Maine man's attempts at reconciliation were met with the Virginian's everlasting bitterness
Blundering Underlings Betrayed Burnside at Fredericksburg
Plenty of blame to go around for the defeat that cost the Union army 13,000 casualties
‘For the Quality of Fighting Material, the World Is Our Judge’
An Iron Brigade captain recounts his regiment's epic Gettysburg fight
For Your Civil War Buff’s Bucket List: Centralia, Mo.
When history travel becomes a reality, visit the small town where the border war got seriously ugly
Explore Antietam: A Bucolic Setting for a Bloody Day
A few of our favorite locations on the war's most gory single-day battlefield
The Complex Legacy of Appomattox
The surrender at Appomattox Court House has been remembered—and misremembered—from the day the Army of Northern Virginia laid down its arms.
Eastern Theater Outcasts Battle for Redemption Near Atlanta
Confederate Iverson and Yankee Stoneman each hoped to restore a stained reputation
“Shell Away”—Baldy Smith’s Defiant Response to Rebel Demand That He Surrender Carlisle, Pa.
On July 1, 1863, a Union officer's hard-nosed response kept J.E.B. Stuart away from Lee for six hours
‘This Place Is Called The Wilderness’
Civil War soldiers who fought in the tangled forest west of Fredericksburg created a hellish mythology
The Last Stand: Visit the Five Forks Battlefield and Dinwiddie County, Va.
The war’s closing hours erupted in this southern seat
