The Tale Untwisted: General George B. McClellan, the Maryland Campaign, and the Discovery of Lees Lost Orders [Paperback]

The discovery of Robert E. Lees Special Orders No. 191 outside of Frederick, Maryland, on September 13, 1862, is one of the most important and hotly disputed events of the American Civil War. For more than 150 years, historians have debated if George McClellan, commander of the Union Army of the Potomac, dawdled after receiving a copy of the orders before warily advancing to challenge Lees forces atop South Mountain.In The Tale Untwisted, authors Gene Thorp and Alexander Rossino document in exhaustive fashion how Little Mac in fact moved with uncharacteristic energy to counter the Confederate threat and take advantage of Lees divided forces, seizing the initiative and striking a blow in the process that wrecked Lees plans and sent his army reeling back toward Virginia.This study is a beautifully woven tour de force of primary research that may well be the final word on the debate over the fate and impact of the Lost Orders on the history of the 1862 Maryland Campaign.The discovery of Robert E. Lees Special Orders No. 191 outside of Frederick, Maryland, on September 13, 1862, is one of the most important and hotly disputed events of the American Civil War. This work proposes a rich, new interpretation of the fate and impact of the Lost Orders on the history of the 1862 Maryland Campaign.Thorp and Rossino make a very persuasive case for McClellan having received the Lost Orders in mid-afternoon and sending his dispatch to Lincoln at midnight on September 13, 1862. If I were writing my Antietam book today, I would follow their account.This well-documented and logical explanation of the controversial Lees Lost Orders debate finally puts the actions of General George McClellan in a proper context. Before a single Union soldier took a step in response to any order based on finding S.O. 191, Lee remarked that he found the Union army advancing more rapidly than convenient. Now we know why.A clear, extremely well-researched study exploring when Lees famous l³›