Revisiting The Civil War with Dr. Alexander Rossino

Today, The Two Mikes spoke with Alexander
Rossino, who holds a PH.D in history from Syracuse
University, and is the author of Their Maryland: The Army
of Northern Virginia from the Potomac Crossing to Sharpsburg in
September 1862.
 
Dr. Rossino's book seeks to supply answers to a number of questions
that still surround the whys and wherefores of the
Sharpsburg/Antietam Battle. One of these questions is why did
General Lee take his army into Maryland? One traditionally offered
reason still stands true, Lee wanted to take the war out of
Virginia to allow the state's farmers to harvest their crops. More
important, though, Lee's decision for Maryland focused on a major
political aspect of the war, expanding the Confederacy.

Lee brought his army into Maryland in an attempt to exploit what
was thought to be the ardor of many Marylanders to join the
Confederate States of America. In essence, Dr. Rossino explains,
the army carried a message from Richmond that amounted to "we have
come to welcome you into our new nation, if you so choose, and we
are ready to spill the army's blood to protect you if you choose to
join." 

As things worked out, relatively few Confederates rallied to the
offer from Lee and the Confederacy. Indeed, after some of the
bloodiest fighting in U.S. history, Lee's army fought the Army of
the Potomac to a draw, and was able to withdraw back across the
Potomac to safety in Virginia. 

Another question that always arises about Lee's actions is why did
Lee and his army go into western Maryland rather than eastern
Maryland along the Atlantic shore? This area, after all, was known
to have strong supporters of the Confederacy and most of the
state's slaves. Lee's motivation on this score was pretty clear
cut, had he moved east he would have cleared a path for Union
forces to sweep into the heart of Virginia. There is of course much
more to answering both of these questions, and Dr. Rossino's book
tells a fuller and more detailed story for each of them, as well as
for several of the other major questions that are still asked
about Lee's invasion of Maryland. 

Dr. Rossino is an excellent speaker and tells his story in very
clear and concise terms. It was our pleasure to speak with and
learn from him. 

Dr. Rossino's other Civil War-era books include: Calamity
at Frederick; The Tale Untwisted: George McClellan and
the Discovery of Lee's lost Order (co-author Gene M.
Thorp); Six Days in September, A Novel of Lee's Army in
Maryland; and the forthcoming, The Guns of September,
McClelland's Army in Maryland,1862. All of the books are
published by and available from America's top Civil War publishing
house, Savas Beattie, as well as
from Amazon and many other booksellers.


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