Professor Gary W. Gallagher of the University of Virginia presents a lecture series designed to help you understand more about the Civil War and deepen your appreciation of the decisions made by Lee and his generals and the implications they had both on and off the battlefield. Whether you are relatively new to exploring this conflict or interested in strategy and tactics, this series offers a balanced outlook.
Robert E. Lee and His High Command
Go into the thick of the fighting with Robert E. Lee and his Army of Northern Virginia in this exciting course by an acclaimed Civil War historian, and discover why Lee's army was so dreaded on the field of battle.
Rated 5 out of
5
by
The Dumper from
I enjoyed this course so much that after watching the dvd version I purchased, a year later I purchased and listened to the digital version. Professor Gary Gallagher is the finest Civil War historian I have read or listened to although Bruce Catton is the best writer of Civil War history. This course spurred me to read all Prof Gallagher books and watch all his Civil War lectures recorded on YouTube. It wasn’t until I listed to Professor Gallagher that I realized the Shelby Foote commentary on Ken Burns Civil War documentary was the myth of the lost cause argument I’ve been taught in school my whole life and is false history. I keep hoping The Great Courses will produce other Civil War lectures by Professor Gallagher.
Date published: 2024-10-21
Rated 5 out of
5
by
Sandy Titus from
EXCELLENT, EXCELLENT, EXCELLENT !!
Excellent course to learn about Lee's Generals and the truth behind their actions, not just what is always taught. The professor is a fantastic speaker and keeps your attention on each different commander and their interactions during the different battles. We need to have a comparative course on Grant and his command to round out the war years. My only wish is that I could have seen the professor lecture
Date published: 2023-11-01
Rated 5 out of
5
by
Zxzxxxvgdchh from
Very good
Excellent. I just wish now I could get Gallagher's Civil War DVD FOR LESS THAN $500!!!
Date published: 2022-09-24
Rated 5 out of
5
by
Macquesta from
Great presentation!
I am learning a great deal about the Civil War effort by the Confederacy that I did not know.
Date published: 2022-07-07
Rated 5 out of
5
by
mccall3362 from
Robert E. Lee and His Generals
So happy to learn more about this Southern general. Professor taught the course very well.
Date published: 2022-04-23
Rated 4 out of
5
by
Willybsr from
Very thorough lectures
I have been listening to Dr. Gallagher's lectures on Lee 's High Command with anticipation. He is certainly expert on the material, but I find myself wishing he were a bit more animated or colorful in his presentation, and a bit less scholarly.
Date published: 2022-03-15
Rated 5 out of
5
by
steve444 from
Excellent course
Professor Gallagher is one of the best professors in a field of stars & superstars featured in the many courses I've taken
His History of the Civil War is a tour de force: this shorter course is a terrific supplement to it or outstanding as a stand alone
Date published: 2022-03-12
Rated 5 out of
5
by
Babybobcat from
Excellent & Comprehensive
Dr Gallagher's work was known to me and I appreciate his candid comprehensive presentation. The Lee course was an exception and illuminated the life of Lee, his subordinates, and lesser officers who rose under the masterr's tutelage. Strongly recommended for anyone genuinely interested in the entire Civil War picture.
Date published: 2021-12-27
Overview
About
Dr. Gary W. Gallagher is the John L. Nau III Professor in the History of the American Civil War at the University of Virginia. He graduated from Adams State College of Colorado and earned his M.A. and Ph.D. in History from The University of Texas at Austin. Prior to teaching at UVA, he was Professor of History at The Pennsylvania State University. Professor Gallagher is one of the leading historians of the Civil War. His books include The Confederate War, Lee and His Generals in War and Memory, and Stephen Dodson Ramseur: Lee's Gallant General. He has coauthored and edited several works on individual battles and campaigns and has published over 100 articles in scholarly journals and popular historical magazines. Professor Gallagher has received many awards for his research and writing, including the Laney Prize for the best book on the Civil War, the William Woods Hassler Award for contributions to Civil War studies, the Lincoln Prize, and the Fletcher Pratt Award for the best nonfiction book on the Civil War. Professor Gallagher was founder and first president of the Association for the Preservation of Civil War Sites and has served on the Board of Directors of the Civil War Trust.
01: Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia
Professor Gary W. Gallagher begins by examining the factors that helped make Lee and his army the most important national institution in the Confederacy long before the end of the war.
33 min
02: The Making of a Confederate General
Robert E. Lee's early military career affords him a range of experiences and highlights disparate talents that will influence his role as the Confederacy's most famous field commander, even though many would not have predicted success.
30 min
03: Lee’s Year of Fabled Victories
Lee's first year in command of the Army of Northern Virginia catapults him to a position of unequaled fame and popularity, cementing a remarkable bond with his soldiers that would endure during the trying times ahead.
31 min
04: Lee From Gettysburg to Appomattox
Lee and his army continue to carry the hopes of the Confederacy on their bayonets through the remainder of the war. His surrender to Grant represents the practical end of the war.
31 min
05: Was Lee an Old-Fashioned General?
This lecture examines one of the most common portrayals of Lee—as a throwback to an earlier style of warfare, far different from the modern approach attributed to the Union's Ulysses S. Grant and William Tecumseh Sherman.
31 min
06: The Making of the Mighty “Stonewall” Jackson
With this lecture, focus shifts to Lee's most famous subordinate, a once-obscure military instructor whose battlefield record won him renown as Lee's "right arm."
31 min
07: Stonewall Jackson as Lee’s “Right Arm”
Lee and Jackson form a legendary partnership, with Lee developing strategic plans that often place Jackson in the role of a semi-independent commander.
31 min
08: James Longstreet’s Road to Prominence
James Longstreet stands next to Jackson as one of Lee's two premier lieutenants. With the loss of Jackson at the war's midpoint, he stands unchallenged as Lee's most important subordinate and the Confederacy's best corps commander.
31 min
09: Longstreet’s Later Confederate Career
The last two years of Longstreet's Confederate career include more negative than positive experiences, though at the time of surrender, none of Lee's senior subordinates stand higher in his estimation.
30 min
10: The Rise of Jubal Anderson Early
Experienced as a lawyer rather than a soldier, this West Point graduate's ability to function in a semiautonomous manner impresses Lee and sets him apart from most of his peers in the army.
30 min
11: Early’s Path to Defeat
This lecture examines operations in 1864 and 1865, during which Early justifies Lee's confidence in his abilities yet suffers a series of defeats that eventually brings his removal from command.
31 min
12: “Jeb” Stuart as Soldier and Showman
The gaudy trappings affected by this superb officer cannot obscure his superior record as a cavalryman whose skills at reconnaissance and screening - the crucial tasks of Civil War cavalry forces are unexcelled on either side.
30 min
13: One Promotion Too Many—A. P. Hill
We shift our focus to the first of two famous commanders who never fulfilled their early promise and stand as examples of soldiers promoted beyond their levels of competence.
30 min
14: Forced from Center Stage—Richard S. Ewell
Richard Stoddert Ewell's record, like that of A. P. Hill, marks him as one who cannot make the transition from division to corps command.
30 min
15: A Straight-Ahead Fighter—John Bell Hood
Though few so personify the type of offensive spirit Lee seeks in his officer corps, John Bell Hood's lack of the administrative and political skills needed for high command make failure the dominant feature of his record.
31 min
16: Could Robert E. Lee Make Hard Decisions?
Though both historians and Lee's own contemporaries have accused him of being too much of a gentleman to make hard personnel decisions, the historical record suggests otherwise.
30 min
17: The Problem of Attrition
With battlefield attrition among generals sometimes exceeding 25-30 percent in a single campaign, Lee's efforts to replace officers wounded or killed forms a leitmotif throughout the history of his army.
30 min
18: Younger Officers I—Robert Emmett Rodes
This is the first of four lectures examining a group of talented junior commanders who climb rapidly to positions of considerable authority and directly control much of the most successful fighting in the army's history.
30 min
19: Younger Officers II—Stephen Dodson Ramseur
Stephen Dodson Ramseur shares a number of characteristics with Rodes and other successful young officers, including aggressiveness on the battlefield, conspicuous bravery that inspires his soldiers, and a habit of getting wounded that ultimately costs him his life.
30 min
20: Younger Officers III—John Brown Gordon
Though entering Confederate service with no formal military training, John Brown Gordon's record compares favorably to those of all but a handful of the most accomplished Confederate generals in the eastern theater.
30 min
21: Younger Officers IV—Edward Porter Alexander
"One of a very few whom General Lee would not give to anybody," this young artillerist's eye for ground, grasp of artillery tactics, and overall brilliance places him in a position to affect the battles of Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, and Gettysburg.
30 min
22: Gifted but Flawed—J. E. Johnston and Beauregard
Though they consider themselves Lee's peers "if not his superiors" as field commanders, the records of Joseph E. Johnston and P. G. T. Beauregard reveal an absence of the key attributes that helped fuel Lee's accomplishments.
31 min
23: Drama and Failure—Magruder and Pickett
The careers of both John Bankhead Magruder and George Edward Pickett reveal much about what Lee required in his senior leadership.
31 min
24: Before the Bar of History—The Lost Cause
This final lecture critically examines an interpretation of the war that remained influential for many decades afterward and continues to be evident in popular conceptions of the war.
31 min
