CHANTILLY, Va., Jan. 12, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- While the Civil War produced a plethora of historic moments and people, many of the war's early heroes have been forgotten. Charles P. Poland, Jr. remembers them and the little-known, four-point invasion of Virginia in his new book, The Glories of War: Small Battle and Early Heroes of 1861 (now available through AuthorHouse).
Poland presents one of the first comprehensive studies of a northern invasion of Virginia in 1861. The Glories of War is a unique depiction of military action and the heroes it created. Poland goes into great detail about the various skirmishes and battles while examining the romantic visions of war that deceived many men.
"These novice warriors assumed that war would be similar to the first couple of days after they volunteered. They had read and thought little about war," Poland writes, "So, according to a Confederate soldier, 'when the first fun had worn away...they became disappointed and disillusioned. Some would write home telling a younger brother to stay at home and not join up, as it was no life for them.'"
Glories of War follows the Yankee forces to various pockets of fighting that took place during the invasion, and includes more than 60 detailed maps of the region. Poland places special emphasis on western Virginia, which is now the state of West Virginia. He uses Union and Confederate newspapers, on-site research and previously untapped sources to construct a telling account of the war's battles and heroes.
An in-depth study of historical and influential events and people, The Glories of War reveals the heroes, heartaches and hell of the Civil War.
Poland is a professor of history at Northern Virginia Community College and director of the NVCC Mobile Civil War Museum. His courses often include field trips to all the battle sites of the eastern theater. A speaker at numerous Civil War roundtables and historical societies, Poland travels extensively with his mobile museum. He is the author of three other books, An Introductory Outline of American History; Dunbarton, Dranesville, Virginia and From Frontier to Suburbia.
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