I have the good fortune to be reading a proof copy of Earl J. Hess’s upcoming book, “In the Trenches at Petersburg: Field Fortifications and Confederate Defeat.” I will be interviewing Mr. Hess later this month, to discuss this book, scheduled to be released in July. I will say this about the book – it is wonderfully written and will be a must read for serious Civil War students, and scholars.
While reading the book, over the weekend, I ran across a quote from US Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant, regarding the Confederate fortifications at Petersburg. To my knowledge, I have not seen this quote before, and I was wondering if anyone else had heard of this? It was in a note written to Army of the Potomac commander, US Major General George G. Meade. Grant stated, “Our experience of to-day proves that fortifications come near holding themselves without troops. With a reasonable amount of artillery and one infantryman to six feet I am confident either party could hold their lines against a direct attack of the other.”(i) This was written on August 1, 1864, two days after the bloody repulse of US Major General Ambrose Burnside’s IX Corps at the Battle of the Crater. While written somewhat tongue-in-cheek, it appears that he was also being realistic about the possibilities of directly carrying CS General Robert E. Lee’s fortifications.
Let me know your thoughts on this. Watch for the interview with Earl J. Hess in late June.
(i) Hess, Earl J., In the Trenches at Petersburg: Field Fortifications and Confederate Defeat, published by University of North Carolina Press 2009, Pg. 105*.
*Please note that the page number may in fact change in the published book.
