James Longstreet: The Civil War's Modern General

Confederate Gen. James Longstreet made overlooked but profound modern contributions to the art of war.  Retired Lt. Col. Harold M. Knudsen explains what Longstreet did and how he did it in James Longstreet and the American Civil War: The Confederate General Who Fought the Next War. A careful comparison of Longstreet’s body of work in the field to modern military doctrine reveals several large-scale innovations. Longstreet understood early that the tactical defense was generally dominant over the offense, which was something few grasped in 1862. Longstreet was not the sole agent of modern change away from the Napoleonic method, but his contributions were significant and executed on a large scale. They demonstrated that he was a modern thinker unparalleled in the Confederate Army.

About the Speaker

LTC Knudsen’s Army career spanned twenty five years of active duty service. He spent nine years in Germany training offensive armoured warfare, as well as peace-keeping and counter-insurgency training. A combat veteran of Desert Storm, he performed extensive artillery fire planning and execution in support of the US breakthrough of the Iraqi line and penetration into Iraq. Later, he also served in the Iraq Campaign at MNC-I in Baghdad. His years of staff work at the Corps, Army, and Pentagon levels give him a strong understanding of army operations from the lowest to highest levels. His new book on General Longstreet draws heavily from 20th Century Army doctrine, field training, staff planning, command, and combat experience.