The galleys of Valley Thunder: The Battle of New Market and the Opening of the Shenandoah Valley Campaign, May 1864 are in and being reviewed. The book looks great and is on schedule for a May 2010 delivery. For a sneak peek, we've included a detailed synopsis below.
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Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, who set in motion the wide-ranging operation to subjugate the South in 1864, intended to attack the Confederacy on multiple fronts so it could no longer "take advantage of interior lines." One of the keys to success in the Eastern Theater was control of the Shenandoah Valley, a strategically important and agriculturally abundant region that helped feed Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. Grant tasked Maj. Gen. Franz Sigel, a German immigrant with a mixed fighting record, and a motley collection of units numbering some 10,000 men to clear the Valley and threaten Lee's left flank. Opposing Sigel was John C. Breckinridge, a former vice president and now Confederate major general who assembled a scratch command to repulse the invading Federals. Included within the ranks of his 4,500-man army were cadets from the Virginia Military Institute under the direction of VMI Commandant of Cadets Lt. Col. Scott Ship, who had marched eighty miles in just four days to fight Sigel.

 

When the two armies faced off at New Market, Breckinridge boldly announced, "I shall advance on him. We can attack and whip them here and we will do it!" As the general rode by the cadets he shouted, "Gentlemen, I trust I will not need your services today; but if I do, I know you will do your duty." The sharp fighting seesawed back and forth during a drenching rainstorm, and was not concluded until the cadets were dramatically inserted into the battle line to repulse a Federal attack and launch one of their own.

 

The Confederate victory drove Union forces from the Valley, but they would return, reinforced and under new leadership, within a month. Before being repulsed, these Federals would march over the field at New Market and capture Staunton, burn VMI in Lexington (partly in retaliation for the cadets' participation at New Market), and very nearly capture Lynchburg. Operations in the Valley on a much larger scale that summer would permanently sweep the Confederates from the "Bread Basket of the Confederacy."

 

Valley Thunder: The Battle of New Market and the Opening of the Shenandoah Valley Campaign, May 1864 is based upon years of primary research and a firsthand appreciation of the battlefield terrain. Knight's balanced and objective approach includes a detailed examination of the complex prelude leading up to the day of battle. His entertaining prose introduces a new generation of readers to a wide array of soldiers, civilians, and politicians who found themselves swept up in one of the war's most gripping engagements.

Reserve your signed or inscribed copy today. No obligation or advance cost required. 

 

At Savas Beatie, we're always looking for ways to improve how we get information to you: our readers. We work hard to give you the best product possible, but we are always open to new ideas, so here's your chance to tell us what you would like to see in upcoming issues of our newsletter. To reward you for your feedback, everyone who submits a response will be entered into a drawing to receive a free Savas Beatie book of your choice including shipping.

 

Answer these three questions and send your responses to veronica@savasbeatie.com by March 31, 2010 for your chance to win a free book.

 

1.  What do you like most about the Savas Beatie newsletter?

 

2.  What do you like least about the Savas Beatie newsletter?

 

3.  What could we include in our newsletter that would make you look forward to reading it?

 

Thank you for your help!

  

 

 

 

  

 

If you can't make it to any of these events, but would still like a personalized copy of any book mentioned, click here to place your order today and enjoy 10% off and free shipping if you order by March 31, 2010. Use code EVENT.

Sickles at Gettysburg by Jim Hessler and The US Army's First, Last, and Only All-Black Rangers by Edward L. Posey have been nominated as finalists for the Army Historical Foundation's Distinguished Writing Award. The awards committee will select a winner this June.

 

Last year, the same award went to Those Damned Black Hats: The Iron Brigade at Gettysburg by Lance J. Herdegen and included nominations for Saratoga by John Luzader and Major General Robert E. Rodes by Darrell L. Collins. 

 

Best of luck to our 2010 finalists. 

 

Place your order today for any one of these titles and receive 10% off and free shipping until March 31, 2010. Each book ships with a signed bookplate from the author. Use code AWARD. 

 

 

Even though it's been a rough winter in many parts of the country, and the snow and cold may still be hanging around, March 20th is the first day of Spring and that means one thing: baseball!

 

Here in CA, we start little league practices on March 1 and MLB spring training schedules have already been posted. Spring training is almost as old as baseball itself. The best evidence points to spring training first taking place in 1870, when the Cincinnati Red Stockings and the Chicago White Stockings held organized baseball camps in New Orleans. Other baseball historians argue that the Washington Capitals of the National League pioneered spring training in 1888, holding a four-day camp in Jacksonville.

 

The specific origins really don't matter. By 1900, spring-training was firmly established as a baseball ritual, with most American and National League teams heading out of town so players could train and managers could evaluate.