"Civil War-era officers often referred to Napoleon, who towered over the mid-19th-century military landscape. Timothy B. Smith pairs battles from the Napoleonic wars and the Civil War to offer a compelling examination of how West Point-trained generals compared to the 'Little Corporal' in planning, execution, and outcomes. His conclusions should spark spirited and fruitful debate."-- Gary W. Gallagher , John L. Nau III Professor of History Emeritus, University of Virginia "It was a common assumption in the 1860s and since that the shadow of Napoleon Bonaparte loomed over the generals of the Civil War, an assertion often echoed without much thought. Surprisingly, no one to date has taken a systematic comparative look at the similarities and differences, tactically and strategically, in the engagements of the 'Little Corporal' and commanders in Blue and Gray.

Timothy Smith has conceived the wonderfully novel idea of doing just that in Napoleon's Long Shadow . Whether it be setting Shiloh side-by-side with Waterloo, or Chickamauga with Austerlitz, the similarities and contradictions he finds are eye-opening. Readers interested in the art of command will find much to ponder in this richly researched and elegantly written narrative. And many will be surprised--and some challenged--by Smith's conclusion as to who was the one true Napoleonic commander of the Civil War."-- William C. Davis , Retired Professor of History at Virginia Tech, and editor of Secret History of Confederate Diplomacy Abroad "Timothy Smith's outstanding new book will transform the way military historians think about Civil War generals as well as about Napoleon himself. Readers will be amazed, and persuaded, again and again with new revelations about what was truly the Napoleonic way of war and which Civil War general applied it most consistently."-- Steven E.

Woodworth , professor of history at Texas Christian University, and editor of Grant's Lieutenants: From Cairo to Vicksburg and Grant's Lieutenants: From Chattanooga to Appomattox "With Napoleon's Long Shadow , Tim Smith adds another engaging work to his extensive body of scholarship. Here he draws on his well-known American Civil War expertise to compare campaigns and battles of the American experience with those of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, focusing specifically on the actions and decisions of the great French warrior-emperor himself. Written in Smith's signature style and bolstered by his visits to European battlefields, this book offers intriguing and thoughtful analyses that are sure to attract the attention of scholars and enthusiasts alike."-- John H. Gill , author of The Battle of Znaim: Napoleon, the Hapsburgs and End of the War of 1809 "How influential was the genius of Napoleon Bonaparte upon the battlefields and generals of the American Civil War? That is the question that author Timothy Smith poses in his ground-breaking Napoleon's Long Shadow . Was the French general's influence embryonic or determinative? Smith's stunning conclusion is bound to stir debate and cause historians and serious students of the Civil War to recalculate their long-held views."-- Larry J. Daniel , two-time winner of the Fletcher Pratt Award of the New York Civil War Round Table, and author of Richmond Views the West: Politics and Perceptions in the Confederate Capital.