The Union Cavalry in the Civil War ― From Fort Sumter to Gettysburg, 1861-1863

In the first comprehensive treatment of the subject, Stephen Z. Starr covers in three volumes the dramatic story of the Union cavalry. In this first volume he presents briefly the story of the United States cavalry prior to the Civil War, describing how the Union cavalry was raised, organized, equipped, and trained, and offering detailed descriptions of the campaigns and battles in which the cavalry engaged -- the Peninsula, Shenandoah Valley/Second Bull Run, Lee's invasion of Maryland, Kelly's Ford, Stoneman's May 1863 Raid, Brandy Station (Fleetwood), Aldie-Middleburg-Upperville, and Gettysburg. Starr focuses on the officers and men of the Union cavalry -- who they were; how they lived, fought, behaved; what they thought. Starr tells their story -- drawn from regimental records and histories, memoirs, letters, diaries, and reminiscences -- whenever possible in the words of the troopers themselves.

Stephen Z. Starr, until recently Director of the Cincinnati Historical Society, is the author of Colonel Grenfell's Wars: The Life of a Soldier of Fortune and Jayhawkers: A Civil War Cavalry Regiment and Its Commander. He was a charter member and later president of the Cincinnati Civil War Round Table.