| Book Review | The Journal of American History, 92.2

You have not been recognized as a subscriber to JAH online. About 184 words from this article are provided below; about 318 words remain.

If you are a individual member of the Organization of American Historians, you may:: • login here if you have already registered for online access.; • Or if you're already logged in register your subscription.
• Set up your online account for the first time.
If you are not a member of the Organization of American Historians, you can:: • Join the OAH and receive many member benefits including print and electronic issues of the Journal of American History.
• Purchase a research pass to gain two-hour access to the entire History Cooperative web site. You will have full access to current issues of the Journal of American History (86.1-present). Note: the Research Pass does not provide access to JSTOR's holdings of the Journal of American History.
Instititutions can:: • Subscribe to this journal and receive print and electronic issues.
• Activate your existing subscription so that we recognize your IP number ranges.

| Book Review | The Journal of American History, 92.2 | The History Cooperative

Book Review

Confederate General R. S. Ewell: Robert E. Lee's Hesitant Commander. By Paul D. Casdorph. (Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 2004. xii, 474 pp. $39.95, ISBN 0-8131-2305-4.)

Largely due to his inability to carry Cemetery Hill on the first day at Gettysburg, Richard Stoddert Ewell generally has been considered a failure as a field commander. As a dragoon officer in the pre–Civil War U.S. Army and, in 1861–1862, as a Confederate brigadier and major general, he enjoyed a modicum of success. He appeared effective, however, only when closely supervised by astute superiors, especially Thomas Jonathan ("Stonewall") Jackson. Following the latter's mortal wounding at Chancellorsville in May 1863, Ewell rose to lieutenant general and gained command of Jackson's Second Corps, Army of Northern Virginia. At the outset of Robert E. Lee's subsequent invasion of the North, Ewell appeared to validate his promotion by capturing strategic Winchester, Virginia. At Gettysburg, however, "Old Bald Head" performed erratically, crippled by irresolution born of self-doubt. His failure to take Cemetery Hill and to hold equally strategic Culp's Hill sullied his reputation and cost him Lee's confidence.

. . .

There are about 318 more words in this article. Please log in (or, if you are not yet an authorized user, please go to the User Setup page) to gain full access rights. Or if you're already logged in register your subscription.