Narrative of Military Operations First Edition - Joseph E. Johnston - Bauman Rare Books

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Bauman Rare Books

Narrative of Military Operations

Joseph E. JOHNSTON

Item#: 83595 We're sorry, this item has been sold

Narrative of Military Operations

“ONE OF THE FIRST NARRATIVES BY A MAJOR CONFEDERATE” GENERAL: FIRST EDITION OF JOHNSTON’S NARRATIVE OF MILITARY OPERATIONS

(CIVIL WAR) JOHNSTON, Joseph E. Narrative of Military Operations. New York: D. Appleton, 1874. Thick octavo, original black- and gilt-stamped brown cloth.

First edition of “one of the early classic narratives by a senior commanding general of the Confederate armies,” illustrated with six engraved maps (one folding) and 15 engraved portraits, including frontispiece portrait of Johnston.

General Johnston remains one of the Confederacy’s most controversial figures. He assumed command immediately after secession and continued in one capacity or another until the very end, when he surrendered to Sherman in April 1865. It was Johnston who sought a fighting withdrawal against Sherman during the infamous March to the Sea; the Confederacy’s refusal to implement this strategy led to Hood’s disastrous defeat at Atlanta. Johnston’s fiery relationship with Jefferson Davis and others led him, at war’s end, to engage in a “‘battle of the books’ with those who had criticized his leadership” (ANB). Johnston’s Narrative “was one of the first narratives by a major Confederate military figure. It is a vigorous defense of his own actions and necessarily, therefore, a hard-hitting attack on others, particularly on President Davis” (In Tall Cotton 101). “This is one of the early classic narratives by a senior commanding general of the Confederate armies” (Eicher 257). With three leaves of publisher’s ads at rear. Howes J167. Nevins II:68. Dornbusch III:1399. Contemporary owner inscription dated “May 12th, 1881.” Embossed owner stamp to title page of George H. Olmsted, Jr., whose distinguished military career emulated that of his father, WWII General Olmsted.

Text and plates fresh with light scattered foxing, minor edge-wear, faint rubbing to bright gilt-stamped cloth. A near-fine copy.

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Aquatint Copperplate process by which the plate is “bitten” by exposure to acid. By changing the areas of the plate that are exposed and the length of time the plate is submerged in the acid bath, the engraver can obtain fine and varying shades of gray that closely resemble watercolor washes. Although the name contains the word “tint”, this is a black-and-white printing process; aquatint plates can often be hand colored, however.
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