Law's Alabama Brigade in the War Between the Union and the Confederacy

J. Gary Laine and Morris M. Penny have produced a compelling story of five Civil War regiments from Alabama known as Law's Brigade. This fighting unit displayed an aggressive fighting spirit, charging the enemy in seven of ten major battles. The authors have uncovered new material, which is reflected in gripping personal stories gleaned from diaries, letters, newspapers, and eyewitness accounts. The five regiments were formed by men from 25 of Alabama's 67 counties. The reader will vicariously accompany the Alabamians as they leave home, believing that one Southern soldier was worth ten Yankees; ride the cars to Virginia; and experience their baptism in battle. In 1863, the dashing young Brigadier General Evander McIver Law, a graduate of the Citadel, became their brigade commander. This story of his brigade follows the Alabamians through their heartbreaking repulse at Gettysburg, the exhilaration of rushing through the Federal line at Chickamauga and its finest hour fighting alone against four Federal divisions at the Wilderness. After 48 battles and skirmishes, the Alabamians surrendered at Appomattox when attrition had reduced their numbers from 6,260 men to 973. The authors document the political conflicts within the brigade, particularly the devastating feud between Law and Longstreet which eventually drew Lee and Davis into the affair. Human interest stories, including a duel fought behind the lines at Suffolk, Virginia, woven into the account tell of the camp life experienced by the men and their views of the war.