Friday, February 16, 2018

In The Review Queue: Silent Witness


By Ron Field

The Civil War changed America forever. It shaped its future and determined its place in history. For the first time in military history, the camera was there to record these seismic events, from innovations in military and naval warfare, to the battles themselves; from commanders at critical moments in the battle, to the ordinary soldier tentatively posing for his first ever portrait on the eve of battle.

Displaying many rare images unearthed by the author, an acclaimed Civil War historian, this beautiful volume explores how the camera bore witness to the dramatic events of the Civil War. It reveals not only how the first photographers plied their trade, but also how photography helped shape the outcome of the war and how it was reported to anxious families across the North and South.

About the Author

Ron Field is an internationally acknowledged expert on US military history. Awarded a Fulbright Scholarship in 1982, he taught History at Piedmont High School in California in 1982–83, and was Head of History at the Cotswold School in Bourton-on-the-Water in the UK until his retirement in 2007. In 2005 he was elected a Fellow of the Company of Military Historians, based in Washington, DC, and was awarded its Emerson Writing Award in 2013. In 2015 he became senior editor of Military Images magazine, devoted to the American military image of the nineteenth century. In 2014–2015 he also advised on the Confederate uniforms worn in the Civil War film Free State of Jones. He lives in the UK.

ISBN 978-1472822765, Osprey Publishing, © 2017, Hardcover, 328 pages, Maps, Photographs & Illustrations, Glossary, Notes & Bibliography, Index. $35.00.  To purchase this book click HERE.

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