Crestcom bank center for military studies. Graggs work on battle of gettysburg won an award for best civil war book that year and his history of fort fisher earned a prestigious fletcher pride award for Civil War History is thats given out yearly from the new york city civil war roundtable. Lets give rod gragg a warm welcome. [ applause ] thank you. Thank you. Pleasure for me to be in a room full of historians and i say that seriously because i have learned, i may write a lot but the folks who really know the civil war are those of you who read a lot. And i appreciate that. Before i begin, if you dont mind i would like to tell you the story about the young history major who decided after he got a bachelors degree in history that probably ought to go get a masters degree in business so he could earn a living. [ laughter ] so he was accepted and enrolled in a distant Prestigious School of business. And wondered soon after he got there if he made the right decision because he failed his f
Our speaker today is james mo morgan, an longtime civil war enthusiast and host of the civil war roundtable in charleston and recently joined the board of the ft. Sumter ft. Mulldray Historical Trust and his tactical stuff balls bluff a little short of bluffs, is widely considered to be the definitive work on that subject. So, lets welcome james morgan. [ applause ] good morning, everyone. Everybody hear me okay . Im going to be moving around, so ill be using this microphone. So, were good on sound back there . Okay. First of all, our topic, our theme really is small battles and large results, and balls bluff certainly meets those criteria. Small battle, 1,700 men on each side. Numbers were almost dead even, 1,709 confederates, 1,720 federals. It makes it amusing to read the officers afteraction reports because on both sides, they insists they were terribly outnumbered by the other side. Numbers were dead even, okay . Not only the total number, but also at every point of contact during
Chairman of the friends of falls bluff, his tactical study is widely considered to be the definitive work on that subject. Lets welcome james morgan. applause good morning everyone can everyone hear me ok . I will be moving around, so this microphone can i get sound back there do you have sound back there . First of all our topic, our theme a small battles and big results. And balls bluffs meets this criteria. 1700 men on each side the numbers were almost dead even. 1709 confederate, 1700 federals. Makes him using to read the officers after actions report because on both sides they insist they were terribly outnumbered by the other side. The numbers were dead even. Not only a total number but also at every point of contact during the day as those numbers are increasing up to the ultimate 1700 or so. Every point of contact the numbers are fairly close. That is just kind of fun to read the after action reports. Small battle general charles stone, Union Division commander after the war, w
[applause] in uniform, at the back of the room. And this lecture series which is , about great military events, great commanders and sometimes great controversies in the art of war, has been ongoing since almost the beginning of my tenure 15 years ago. It has been our great series on the library. This is probably my last introduction, because i have been drafted by the president , so if you can identify with that, to go to washington to save the republic, which you know, needs saving. But as i always like to say, the command school is the intellectual center of the army. It is selfcritical, selfaware, it plays no favorites and is the best place to learn from the experience and history of the battlefield and with extraordinary teaching and technology, to learn from todays battlefields and commanders. It is also a school for our allies and partners and the future military leaders from around the world, a place where a future chief of staff of the Pakistani Army might rub shoulders with a
Nonfiction become award from the mississippi utah letters. S and he has a book out and you can our bookstore at battlefield center. Introduce to dr. Timothy smith. [applause] i appreciate the opportunity to here. I have always heard about the time. And this is my first i heard how nice it was and im a believer now. A great place here and i appreciate the invitation to here. We will truck about the western talk about ing to vicksburg, Champion Hill. To vicksburg . Been how many to Champion Hill . Not as many. A good number. Champion hill is one of those fields and watching the news and listen to the Civil War Trust they tlefield are doing a lot of work there. The state of mississippi just several Hundred Acres to the National Park a unit of the Vicksburg National Military Park going on this at Champion Hill. We will talk about that battle the larger r, Vicksburg Campaign just a little bit. A power point either. Im a little bit old fashioned. Do have a map of Champion Hill that we will t