Interesting info gleaned from O'Reilly's "Killing Lincoln".

[ironglows]

  Some things seemingly never change with the military..  Stinky stuff flows downhill, while the credit for good things flows uphill..
  In other words, RHIP (rank has it's privileges)... it takes credit for good things, while blaming lesser ranks when they themselves mess up!  But that is also just as  true in politics or business.

  Probably the greatest single act of generalship during the civil War, has rarely been heard of.

   Whoever heard of Major General Horatio Wright?  Wright was a West Point trained engineer, who after the war, had a hand in building the Brooklyn Bridge and the Washington monument.
   However, the move we hear little of, was brilliant, and not duplicated in daring initiative anywhere else during that conflict.
  It was at the siege of Petersburg.  Wright had been a very keen observer of the details of the situation..scrutinized and studied intensely for weeks, just how to attack the Confederate lines.
  Given the 'go ahead', Wright employed a revolutionary wedge shaped attack column, he shatters Lee's left flank, then spins around to obliterate A.P. Hill's third corps.  He then executes a U-turn and marches on Petersburg...all accomplished within 2 hours.  A stroke of uniquely brilliant generalship...and one we never hear of.

  Many of the opposing generals in the Civil War were either classmates at West Point, or graduated from the
  "Point", within a very few years of one another.  Most served in the war with Mexico, and were friends, made fast by many shared experiences.  In fact, Longstreet was best man at Grant's wedding

  Lee and Grant however, in the Mexican war, became 'less than friends'.  Lee was already a decorated combat veteran, while grant was in quartermaster.  While Lee perfected his combat skills, Grant was deeply involved in, a what Gen Longstreet explained as logistics.... "getting there firstest, with the mostest" !  Grant also learned well how to go about the countryside "scrounging" enough vittles for the troops, when supplies were late in arriving, or didn't arrive at all.
  It seems that Grant had been out with tropps, successfully scrounging for grub and arrived back at base, looking personally unkempt and slovenly, as was his nature.  Lee, being the patrician gentleman that he was, used the occasion to dress Grant down over his appearance.
    Being as big an ego as any future or present general..Grant took extreme offense.

  As I have often said, Lee was perhaps the best example of a fine, Christian gentleman, among all the generals on both sides..and a brilliant tactician.
  However, as unkempt in dress and personal life he was, Grant had one great asset, which he learned through experience...and that was LOGISTICS !
  It is said when speaking of military strategy and tactics, that "Amateurs talk  tactics, while professionals talk logistics"..
  A hard lesson, learned over the centuries.. no army can function worth spit, with empty bellies and empty ammo magazines..

  Lee was so brilliant that Lincoln for years, could not find a general, who could wisely use Lee's lack of supplies and manufacturing resources as a way to victory...until he found one who was so well versed in logistics..
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`

  Our Civil War, where we fought our toughest foe...that being ourselves...

[BUGEYE]

My middle name is Grant and I too have been accused of being unkempt and slovenly.
By my wife who’s middle name is Lee.

It’s interesting to read of situations like Grant and Lee.
I had forgotten so much history that I never thought of them being acquainted.
It’s nice to get a sorta history booster shot occasionally.

[Bob Riebe]

For what it is worth I had heard of Gen. Horatio Wright.

[mcbammer]

    The Confederate Generals hated each other more than they did the Yanks .

[ironglows]

For what it is worth I had heard of Gen. Horatio Wright.

  Surprising, but good to hear.  Grant used his experience with logistics to turn the war.  Lee's troops were already hungry, tired and wearing worn out clothes.  Many of lee's troops, despite warnings elsewise, were wearing blue coats, taken from some of the union dead.  I suppose they figured that taking a chance on being shot by their own side, was less likely than dying of hypothermia.
  No rations available in Petersburg, Lee had to press on with the promise of a trainload of foodstuffs, already parked in Amelia courthouse, some 40 miles away.  This required an all night forced march on already empty stomachs, and raggedy shoes for those who had shoes.  Imagine the frustration of all involved, when upon arriving in Amelia Courthouse and opening the train cars, there was much supplies of the quartermaster type...but NO FOOD!  By this time in the conflict, everybody in Virginia was hungry...so civilians had looted the food before the troops had a shot at it !
  So, the forced march continued, heading toward Farmville, and the promise of more food.  It was on the 27 miles between Amelia Courthouse and Farmville, that Lee's troops started to melt away into the woods.    So, long before he would have reached Farmville, he had only about half his army left.
   In this case. the logistics weapon was more powerful than artillery !

[ironglows]

Think of it..logistics have probably turned more battles than weapons or deployment of same.

  For instance, the Germans had accomplished a great feat when they surprised our Army in the Ardenes, to instigate the "Battle of the Bulge".  They were finding quite quite a bit of success, until they started running out of supplies, chiefly gasoline.

  In the Battle of Bunker Hill (Breeds Hill) continental forces had to quit the field as they ran out of ammo, so on the surface they lost the field in that battle, although they technically won, when the "body count" is considered.
 
  Somewhat the same situation on Corregidor, at the start of WW2 !  For the same reason, the Japanese were kicked out of Attu, and Kiska...during WW2..the only actual part of the US they occupied, even if only temporarily.

[ironglows]

   Gen Lee and his army pressed on toward Farmville, in an effort to get to the high bridge in Sayler's Creek (Sailor's?) before the union forces got there,.  However part of the Union cavalry met them there at Sayler's creek.  Skirmishes..until the Union infantry arrived, when the CSA army where they fought unusually bravely on empty stomachs, inflicting great losses on one stand, cutting down nearly all of a Union front line, before being routed.
  ..But it was a hungry, ragged retreat...hungry until they arrived at Appomattox CH !  Grant savored his small rectitude for Lee's slight during the Mexican war, but beyond that was munificent in the surrender terms.
  Gen Lee did not have to surrender his Ivory handled, gold plated ceremonial sword, and according to Pres Lincoln's directive, his soldiers were allowed to take their horses & mules home with them..since they would be needing them.
  The ink on the surrender document was not dry, before much of Grant's staff requested and escort through the lines, to visit old friends in Lee's forces.  Soon, these old friends were chatting and sharing memories of West point and past campaigns.
  Meanwhile..out in the field, with the everyday soldier, th eone who does most of the "heavy lifting'...  When Billy Yank saw the depleted clothing and the great  hunger of Johnny Reb, he started sharing what rations he may have with him..  Gen Sherman was right.."war is hell"! 

  Much of the ensuing bitterness it appears, was brought on by northern carpet baggers and southern scalawags, both of whom treated the local people in the south, with much ugliness.
  Add to that a few who greatly resented being on the "losing side', much as we see after sporting events today. 
   Of course for many, that bitterness I am sure, was exacerbated by the loss of near kin , during the conflict.   Naturally, that complaint was likely justified on both sides, but some folks tend to hold grudges for a longer duration.
  Of course, there was more tangible damage of war, done to the south, than was inflicted on .  Not so many homes destroyed, rails disrupted or cities burned.

  Remember......  "Amateurs think tactics, professionals think logistics"

  ....That is why the congress cutting off funds to our troops in Vietnam was especially egregious.  Our troops never lost a pitched battle there...that war was lost by idiots running in the streets here (much like Antifa & BLM)..and in the halls of a cowardly congress!  Too bad we didn't have people of the strong character of a Lee or a Grant, to guide events at that time!

  ....Or was Vietnam just another "money making" war for some politicians..a war they never intended to "win"?

[BUGEYE]

I would be interested to know how the revolutionary war and the civil war would be different if all the troops on both sides actually took cover behind a tree, or dirt bank, or big rock.
Facing each other like they were playing dodge ball seems to me, to be bad juju.

And how would the civil war be different if the rebs were well supplied??

[ironglows]

  Obviously, the Continental Army, taking a clue from the native Americans, somewhat multiplied their force by utilizing camoflage and concealment, as well as cover and protection from trees, rocks etc.
   ..But we were well aware of this earlier than the Revolutionary War, when we read about Braddock's defeat just a few miles above FT Duquesne, by a force of French troops aided by Indians. G Washington was there, high up in the command, and he tried to warn Gen. Braddock, but   Braddock wouldn't take advice from a "colonial"!

   In Braddock
s force were a couple fellows serving as a guide and a wagoner..who would go on to become figures of history.
 They were Daniel Boone and Daniel Morgan...  Morgan led the very effective Morgan's rifles, sharp shootewrs who were effective way beyond their numbers!
  The Battle of Kings Mountain, illustrated how effective the "Indian style" fighting was for the Continental Army.  Then too, don't rule out that God likely had plans for a new nation..plans that have been squandered over the last 50 years or so.

  The Civil War...
  The South was perhaps more strongly motivated at the start of the war, since they had their reasons, in that northern bankers were taking advantage of them.  One item that precipitated the war, was that northern bankers would buy southern cotton, and sell it for a comfortably higher price to England and Europe.  The north being the industrial heart of the country, then sold the south machinery, at what the south considered inflated prices.
   So, the south decided to sell directly to foreign markets..and buy their machinery from them.  Now we can see why Charleston was blockaded..bringing about the firing upon of FT Sumpter.

  IMO..The south driven by frustration, made a poor choice!  The north had the edge in population, industry, capital and a powerful Navy.  The south had to import manufactured goods..but the powerful Navy sealed the ports.  The larger population, meant a larger pool of replacements.  Without the listed advantages and having their ports closed, it was just a matter of time and the grinding down process.  We can say it may have been very different, but barring a miracle, it wasn't likely to be that way...again; logistics !

   At the beginning of the conflict, the south had the superior cavalry, while the north had the superior artillery.  As the war ran on, the north learned (too .often the hard way) and with more and newer equipment, to be about as effective cavalry as the south.  However, due to the industrial differences and despite their courage, the south was not able to compete with the northern artillery!

 

[Dee]

    The Confederate Generals hated each other more than they did the Yanks .

Got any links to that info? I love Confederate history and never read that. Always looking for new material.

[ironglows]

  While far be it from me to say it didn't happen, I am not apprised of that, although there is often "professional rivalry" in many occupations.
  I would suspect that, since the field grade officer of both sides were often classmates at west point, just as sure as there were old friends on either side, there could as well have been old "enemies" too !
 
  Some of the officer corps for the Confederacy, did not attend West point, but rather attended VMI !

[BUGEYE]

I’ve been in Georgia more than 51 years and to many folks here I’m still a damn yankee.
Even though I was eating soul food and living by my country roots before most of them were born.
C’est La Vie

[Dee]

I’ve been in Georgia more than 51 years and to many folks here I’m still a damn yankee.
Even though I was eating soul food and living by my country roots before most of them were born.
C’est La Vie

Its the accent Bugsy. Your gonna have to work harder on the "ya'll, and sho-nuff". The accent is a dead give away.
Oh! Try eatin more grits to. It may not help, but grits is good fer ya.

[BUGEYE]

I’ve been in Georgia more than 51 years and to many folks here I’m still a damn yankee.
Even though I was eating soul food and living by my country roots before most of them were born.
C’est La Vie

Its the accent Bugsy. Your gonna have to work harder on the "ya'll, and sho-nuff". The accent is a dead give away.
Oh! Try eatin more grits to. It may not help, but grits is good fer ya.

Well I’ve always had a slow southern accent.
When I transferred from Chicago to Atlanta my coworkers thought I was from Alabama.
I had to show my Illinois drivers license before they would believe me.

And I grew up eating grits and red eye gravy.

[ironglows]

Having been born and raised in the north, but spending some years in the south (mostly Texas), I learned to appreciate the southern culture.
  Dead giveaway of my roots to them, was my rapidity of speech.  Too often I heard.."hey, slow down for just a New York minute"!   ..But unlike some, I realized it was I who had to adapt..and so I did..

  Surely, if I moved back there, i would have to readapt. It is not because of slower thought patterns that they speak that way, since they are just as smart as those dwelling in colder climes.  It is more of a "speech custom"..as I see it.

  Besides, perhaps there is some wisdom in such a habit, and perhaps there would be less people explaining.."what I meant to say, was".

  I am afraid however, that with our mass communication, TV, internet and etc., we are losing some of the unique southern accents and colloquialisms.  I for one would miss them, since some of them have been with us from Elizabethan times.