One very fascinating character. Very complex individual. A different person with different people. Something of a chameleon, intelligent, but at the same time remarkably stupid. I mean, to make some of the mistakes he made shows the level of incompetence. Dont you think he thought he had immunity . Well, he does. Legally he was living in a bubble. The president. No one is going to challenge him. And so its starts in a sense with the tapes, the arrogance of the tapes. You think you can do this. This was not just done to you and his aide. All of the four leaders. Anyone who went into the oval office. He was just kind of saying, the confidence that people expect when they come see the president. We are not going to care about that. It is in my interest to do this taping. When it was disposed the idea that no one is ever going he is troubled by that very fact himself in a couple of those conversations. He tells some, i dont feel comfortable doing this. He does not pull the plug. And you know what is amazing about these books in a sense, its kind of seals the conclusion about nixon. And what you have done is brought the microscope as close to this presidency as anyone could. For that it is a public service. At the same time, all of the detail for somebody who wants to relive and relive in technicolor and for many, many hours, this will tell the story. The review was interesting. It is not an easy read. Not an easy read because it is a painful read because it reminds us of those times. I did not you were not my audience. I dont know if when you write a book you have an audience. People who dont know watergate well to have a smattering of knowledge about it. Not at the level that would work to do. So those are the people. The reason i did not do transcripts is because i find transgress tenuous to read. Also said why didnt he publishes transcripts . Nav 23 volumes of 3inch no books. Almost 4 million words. This is huge. It would fill all of these shelves. Thirtynine years. The National Stage on television you have returned. I am sure in the minds of many people, in the minds of some. Thank you so much. Thank you, bob. [silence] others familiar with their material. Airing every weekend on book tv at 10 00 p. M. On saturday, 12 and 9 00 p. M. On sunday, 12 00 a. M. On monday. You can also watch online. Go to booktv. Org and click on afterwards and that book tv series and topics list on the upper right side of the page next on book tv Joseph Wheelan talks about the final days of the confederacy. [inaudible conversations] good evening this evening we are honored to have with us the other Joseph Wheelan. Written extensively. Before he began fulltime writing he was an editor. His writings have received critical acclaim it is getting more rave reviews already. Well researched and argued. Please welcome. [applause] thank you for inviting me. And what ive really appreciate it. I hope you are all doing well tonight provided thank you for coming. I am here to talk about my latest book which is the campaign that sealed the fate of the confederacy. Some of the Union Campaign in virginia that i described in the bloody spring spends six weeks. May and june of 1864 petallides. [roll call] hundred 50 years ago. In my book and make the case that the chain of battles fought by hillises s. Grant army with the sole source major turning point. Excellent pokes about the campaigns major battles, but usually this campaign is part of a larger history of the war. Surprisingly few 1volume books attempt to tell the story of the overland campaign. I decided to write one. The names of the major battles are not especially well known and not resonate like shiloh and antietam, vicksburg, gettysburg. But for more than 40 days the army of the potomac and are ready lees army in Northern Virginia were in nearly continual contact as grant marched from their rapid and river in Northern Virginia to the gates of petersburg spots. Men were killed every day sometimes in great numbers. This type of warfare was new to north america. As one general said, the carnage became such that the loss of a thousand men in a day was considered no great matter. By romantic chivalry with which the war began and vanished. During the spring of 1864 grant would prosecute war as no other Union General and. He would ruthlessly press is great advantages of numbers, logistics, firepower against lees army. During his campaign the combatants slaughtered one another in shocking numbers. Both armies made mistakes, but mainly both armies pleded the bid together they lost a hundred thousand men killed, wounded, were captured in over six weeks. Despite krantz lack of victories , campaign shifted the initiative permanently to the union and pentathletes of petersburg and richmond. Lee was never able to watch another major offensive president Abraham Lincoln needed a military victory in the east if he hoped to win reelection in the fall of 1864. He was not optimistic about being reelected. His defeat would mean peace, and the confederacys survival as a sovereign nation. Lincoln was frustrated by it and eastern armies joe years over the past few years despite its huge advantages of manpower and resources. His eastern general had been timid and slow. When they did fight they typically withdrew after one defeat. Twice they allowed lees army to escape over the potomac into virginia. The list of failed union charles was long and included george mcclellan, john pope, burnside and hunker. Lincoln and all of this hope of all western general, grant, and made in general chief of the union armies in march 86 teefor. Never before bestowed on a Union General. Grant was a quiet and passive man who won battles while chain smoking cigars. He had a reputation as a strategist and never gave up. The grants 1863 victories at vicksburg and chattanooga had made in venice. When grant came to washington in march it to 64 wing kin and were secretary Edward Stanton for the first time he was the object of intense curiosity. Granted not look the part of a great general. He was medium height, medium weight. He wore a private some nondescript blue uniform with his general stars and some on the shoulders. One man said that he was an ordinary, scrubbing looking man with a slightly seedy look. Someone else had Something Different to say. The look of a man determined to drive his head through a brick wall. Disliking washington and its show business, as he called it, grant chose to direct all the armies on the field with the army of the potomac. With the exception of a great victory at gettysburg a hard luck army who was well equipped, large, and slow. The armys sprawling winter camp in northern and virginia rant but in every available eastern unit until he had over a hundred thousand men. Across the river was the army of Northern Virginia. Weaponry. His army thought superbly and moved past. 42 miles away. Instead of clearing wilderness his army stopped there that night to secure the wagon train. He will it was a mistake. A glittering opportunity that he did not waste. When may 5th ghandi is Second Quarter suddenly appeared on the turnpike. The unions fifth quarter advanced on the rebels fighting exploded along road and into the woods. His men repeled all of the union attacks. Fighting spread when the Third Quarter arrived. And all that initially stood between the rebels and the road which is cut would have led to his offensive at the very beginning was a single regiment. The fifth new york cavalry fought brilliantly. The Infantry Division stop to the troops in a bloody battle and left the woods and flames. The second corps was the largest most famous, hardest fighting core in the army of the potomac. Handcar, the migrants most reliable general commanded it. Grand would turn to hancock and the Second Quarter again and again. The Third Quarter and added the general like visitation and thick smoke made it impossible. More than a dozen pieces and. That is until seats of enemy fire blew up the woods and then fell dead or wounded. Would go of the 46 North Carolina called it perjury purine simple. Someone else is providing as blind as midnight. In a cavalry were all but useless. Those outside the words cannot see the actual fighting, just as real affect a rewarded streaming out on bloodstain structures. Fresh troops pouring in. When the fighting ended on may may 5th the 15,000 men have fought toto for up to 40,000 yankees for three hours. Repulsing repeated attacks. Lee was sure however that and cardboard attack in the morning. The third corps was to better to realist to prolong. They expected the First Quarter to arrive during the night requires the exhausted food core to dig in the. In the second corps had attacked the yankees on the turnpike. The fifth corps repelled the attacks. Comparatively little occurred the rest of the dead at 5 00 a. M. And cards 40,000 men surged west toward a peals jumble brigade. Large tree was not there. Hancocks man oval on the confederates and there were driven back. The men streamed to the rear. We tried to rally them, but he could not. Lee and hell knew if hancock was not stopped the army of Northern Virginia is destruction was and the situation is most critical for the confederates lost trees first course on the recent battlefield. Starting the last 2 miles after marginal might agree it was one of the most dramatic moments of the war. Hills men went wild with excitement. The regiments swept aside. Nearly down to two. The texas brigade reached headquarters first. He saw that texans come up. Faced with in motion. Texas always move. Texans roared their approval the traveler up to the tax is front line as they began to advance on the yankees. They saw how badly attended intended to attack. They refused to continue unless you want to rewrite one indispensable man in the Confederate Army. He was up and he was not listening. Travelers by the way. Finally persuaded him to move further to the rear the counterattack sent the yankees reeling. The monster is surprise flanking attack along in an Unfinished Railroad and forced the yankees back to the starting point. Preparing to launch a second of flank attack when disaster struck. The riders were passing between two rebel regiments when they were hit by friendly fire. Sean and a knack reminded the robo of stonewall jacksons accident three days earlier just a few miles away a chance as well. Lis eight Lieutenant ColonelWalter Taylor wrote the straits fatality really call off the flank attack. Several hours later he instead, he to have launched a massive fraudulent tac on hancocks while entranced man. It was a fair year. It turned out to be lees last major attack of the war. As both armies lost heavily. Grants army 17,600 killed wonder there captured. The army of Northern Virginia. Some units were nearly wiped out the second vermont lost twothirds of his men on may 5th and help stop to the core from capturing. The taxes brigade lost 550 of its 800 men who turn oxters counter atakapa. The question now was what would grant to next . Of the Union Army Generals expected him to emulate his predecessors and go into camp. Lee however never really believed grant would withdraw. Grant was sometimes uncannily alike and strategic thinking. Thinking that he would push off. A major crossroads here is what lee would have done. Exactly what granted. Grants army began moving the night of may 7th and 8th when the yankees realize theyre returning south to recross. They cheered and shouted thrilled with his message, i propose to fight it out on this line if it takes all summer. Go ahead. Longstreet with all of the war had warned his fellow officers not to underestimate grant. He told them we must make up our minds to get in a battle and to stay there. That man will fight us every day and every hour until the end of the war lisa faster moving army got to this pennsylvania first, although just barely. Part of the path of the army of the potomac this side of this obscure town, lees army built the most formidable field fortifications seen until that time in the war. They cover 5 miles their roles calzones in front of the position. They installed pennant like abbott terms to entanglement attackers. They dug trenches topped by headlocks that shielded the defenders. The components are nothing new. The combinations were ingenious. From this point forward fortifications became the worlds major on the eastern front. They enabled the confederates to fight a much larger army on nearly equal terms commute an anomaly. About twothirds of a mile wide, threequarters of a mile deep the rebels called it the kneele shield. Yankees referred to it. Became better known may 8th through the 11th his kortrijk flanking attacks as well as from to attacks. The lost thousands of men. Nothing succeeded. On may 12th at 4 35 a. M. The yankees unleashed a massive attack. Hancocks Second Quarter shock troops led the attack could be 20,000 men striking an area no wider than a quarter mile. Lee immediately organized a counterattack. At great cost a confederate brigades drove the enemy back. There the fighting became close quarters. Grants on one side and rebels on the other. Union troops continued to end so 40,000 were crammed into a small area. Sometimes drove deeper and more. The close quarters fighting was the most savage of the war. In the pouring rain combatants fire their weapons in each others faces, stabbed or another with bayonets and hurled their bayoneted muskets like javelins him. Ditches on both sides of the entrenchments filled up with bodies. The Union Battery blessed the enemy at close range and lost all but two of the 23 officers and men in just minutes. For 20 hours a frenzied fighting went on without pause. The wounded were trampled down the confederate wrote that the bullets flew in sheets. Today resigns. The intensive musket fire toward the dead and wounded to pieces. Around midnight the fighting finally ended. During the night the rebels slipped late to the position they had dug threequarters of a mile behind. The exhausted yankees did not know that they were gone until the next morning. The scene of horror greeted them bodies lay 60 in places paid also bullet riddled that they have become more like jelly. And New York Times correspondent described it as one 80th stuff about. Even in losses that date total 9,000. The confederate slauson 7200. In the days ahead the maneuvers in the tax failed to gain him in the ground one of lees greatest triumphs. Some are becoming troubled by his seemingly inexhaustible manpower. They said killing yankees was like telling mosquitos. Suits came for every one killed. Union losses were staggering 18,400. In 15 days of campaigning grants army lost 30,000 men. The army of 120,000. Hancock suffered 11,500. The still losses, 12,600 to 323,700 total. They cut deeper. During the night of may 20th to 21st, the union army slipped away to the southeast. Grant again hoped to get between lee and richmond and force a climactic battle. Again, lees army traveling the inside route was quicker. On the south banks of the North Anna River lees chief engineer general martin smith devised a brilliant defense of alignment resembling an inverted v, apex and at the river. The rebels could annihilate anyone. The river and the swamping anchored is too lax meaning les line could not be fine to. But even better grants brigades, crossed to the right and left of the apex pitch to wings were separated by les defenses. In order for one wing to reinforce the other there would have to cross the river twice. The confederates could quickly shuttle troops from one side to the other the heated would also enable the to suddenly shift manpower to one side of the attack. However, lee was incapable of doing this with longstreet wounded and temporarily sidelined by his chronic prostatitis lee was working harder than ever. He typically grows at 3 00 a. M. After just a few hours sleep. With his small staff all of the armys strategic tactical and logistical needs. Long days in the saddle, stress and tasty meals had taken a toll on his 57 yearold body. A year earlier lee had suffered a minor architect. His hair i am right when the war began had turned silver white. His trouble now is dysentery. He was unable to leave his tent. There was no one to take his place. Lee was 26 to utilize the formation to attack granted. No stonewall jackson, no longstreet, nudge of stuart. When union probes revealed the contours of the rebel offensive formation granted elected not to attack bill he maneuvered again to the southeast to try to get between lee and richmond fed tabret may 27 to can the Veterans Council reported the union entrenched and was empty. The two armies jockeyed northeast of richmond and gravitated a place. Familiar to the veterans of both armies to had thought in 1862. In fact, they reoccupied the old fortification and the positions were reversed. On may 301st engine first the armies fought the engagements for position a massive attack on the rebel right wing. If not he could maneuver again to the southeast. He scheduled the gasol for june june 2nd. Is troops or not ready. Postponed until the next morning and he does series of cunning differences over the varied terrain. When they were done there were trenches that covered all the likely attack crops did not attack at all union captain james mcginnis, lead and iron filled the air as the Snowflakes Private nelson said the army seemed to melt away whack of frosts in july. Alabama brigade want, the infantry simply tour the yankees to pieces confederate general said it was not work. It was murdered. After a few hours the attacks were suspended. The union lost about 5,000 men and one hour heavy artillery lost more than 400 men in 20 minutes rebel losses were small. Days afterward they found a bloodstained diary. The diaries final entry read june 3rd. I was killed attempted no further attacks. The armys settled into a 10mile front incessant artillery and sniper fire eerily for shattered. Killed or wounded d