Lincoln and His Admirals [Paperback]

Co-winner of the 2009 Lincoln Prize,Lincoln and His Admirals, provides an original account of how Lincoln managed the men who ran the naval side of the Civil War, and how the activities of the Union Navy affected the course of the war.Abraham Lincoln began his presidency as well as the war with virtually no knowledge of naval affairs, lacking both exposure and interest given his upbringing in the Midwest. Despite his inexperience, he quickly came to preside over the largest national armada of the century, not eclipsed until World War I. Craig L. Symonds demonstrates the larger political and diplomatic impact of naval operations and offers fresh insight into Lincoln's overall strategic vision, showing how it ultimately determined the outcome of the war and the young nation's fate.Abraham Lincoln began his presidency admitting that he knew but little of ships, but he quickly came to preside over the largest national armada to that time, not eclipsed until World War I. Written by naval historian Craig L. Symonds,Lincoln and His Admiralsunveils an aspect of Lincoln's presidency unexamined by historians until now, revealing how he managed the men who ran the naval side of the Civil War, and how the activities of the Union Navy ultimately affected the course of history.Beginning with a gripping account of the attempt to re-supply Fort Sumter--a comedy of errors that shows all too clearly the fledgling president's inexperience--Symonds traces Lincoln's steady growth as a wartime commander-in-chief. Absent a Secretary of Defense, he would eventually become de facto commander of joint operations along the coast and on the rivers. That involved dealing with the men who ran the Navy: the loyal but often cranky Navy Secretary Gideon Welles, the quiet and reliable David G. Farragut, the flamboyant and unpredictable Charles Wilkes, the ambitious ordnance expert John Dahlgren, the well-connected Samuel Phillips Lee, and the self-promoting and gregarious David Dl³o