The Confederate Surrender at Greensboro: The Final Days of the Army of Tennessee, April 1865, by Robert M. Dunkerly

Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 2013. Pp. vi, 226. Illus., maps, appends., notes, biblio., index. $35.00 paper. ISBN: 0786473622.

The Last Days of the Other Great Confederate Army

In this interesting work, Dunkerly, a ranger at the Richmond National Battlefield Park, reminds us that even after Robert E. Lee surrendered at Appomattox Confederate forces still remained in the field, most notably to Army of Tennessee, under Joseph Johnston.   Although recently defeated by Sherman’s armies at Bentonville (March 19-21, 1865) and beset by desertion and shortages of food and munitions, Johnston’s army was still a coherent fighting force when it surrendered on April 26, 1865. In

Drawing upon hundreds of personal accounts Dunkerly gives us a look at the final days of the Army of Tennessee. We get the observations and opinions of generals and privates, soldiers, politicians, civilians, journalists, and others, mostly Confederates, but also some Union personnel as well. Moreover, as he follows the final movements of the army, Dunkerly notes how these have been memorialized, albeit poorly compared with the final days of Lee’s army. 

This is a good read for anyone interested in the days of the Civil War, covering events largely left untreated in most accounts.

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