The Confederacy's Last Hurrah: Spring Hill, Franklin, and Nashville

The Confederacy's Last Hurrah examines the rise of Confederate general John Bell Hood and his command of the Army of Tennessee during the final stages of the Civil War. Despite nearly being expelled from West Point, Hood advanced rapidly through Confederate ranks, earning the favor of President Jefferson Davis through bold leadership at Gaines' Mill and Antietam. After Atlanta fell, Hood marched his army north to draw Union general William T. Sherman away from his "March to the Sea." The strategy failed catastrophically. Hood's poor command decisions and reckless pride led to successive disasters: at Spring Hill, where the Confederates squandered an advantage; at Franklin, the neighboring town where the resulting battle became known as the "Gettysburg of the West"; and finally at Nashville, where his weakened troops suffered the war's worst defeat. Wiley Sword's account chronicles the destruction of the South's second largest army through these final campaigns. The work won the Fletcher Pratt Award for best nonfiction about the Civil War.