The Maps of Spotsylvania through Cold Harbor by Bradley M. Gottfried

 The Maps of Spotsylvania through Cold Harbor:

An Atlas of the Fighting at Spotsylvania Court House Through Cold Harbor, Including all Cavalry Operations, May 7 through June 3, 1864

by

Bradley M. Gottfried

 If you ask most readers of military history what they find most annoying in some history books the answer will be the lack of maps. However, to me that is not the most annoying. The thing that will set my blood pressure higher than anything is poor unreadable maps. We have all seen it. A book has one to three maps in it that looks like either a Rorschach test or something drawn by a four-year old. If you are going to add maps to your books, please look at them. I cannot believe that these things that pass for maps are just gleefully published by editors. The addition of good maps helps the reader immensely when they are trying to discern not only what happened but also why it happened.

 Savas Beatie has been publishing a group of books that are a complete one-eighty turn from the books I mentioned above. However, some readers take umbrage at books that have 'maps' in the title. They believe that it is really just a picture book for adults and while the maps are done well, they will have to read a second book on the actual battle/campaign to really know the history.

 So, with these books Savas Beastie has hit the perfect middle ground. The maps are gorgeous and give you not only troop placement but also the terrain. You can see exactly why this or that regiment was disorganized when it moved up to its position. You also get the written history to further explain what is actually happening and why.

 One side note about the actual 'wilderness' areas both before and during the Overland campaign that Spotsylvania etc. were part of. These areas were 'new growth' and not older forests. If you go to the battlefield today it is very easy to not understand the problems the troops had compared to what you are walking through. Now you can easily go off trail and walk between the trees etc. In 1864 the trees were all still young with many branches obscuring anything except the man in front or behind you.

 It is hard for us in the 21st century to understand the amount of sheer bloodshed and horror that took place in the areas shown in this book. The casualty figures are absolutely insane for the small amount of ground that is shown and discussed. You can easily drive for only five to ten minutes to get from one part of these maps to another. 

 This is from the author about the other books in the series and the idea behind them:

"I began the overall project with The Maps of Gettysburg in 2007. It continued in 2009 with two more installments: The Maps of Chickamauga (by David Powell and David Friedrichs) and my own The Maps of First Bull Run (2009). I continued the series with The Maps of Antietam (2012), The Maps of Bristoe Station and Mine Run (2013), The Maps of the Wilderness (2016), The Maps of Fredericksburg (2018) and, most recently, The Maps of the Cavalry in the Gettysburg Campaign (2020). All of these titles have been reprinted at least once (and several many times) and all of them remain in print today. 

 This series uses maps and precise facing-page text to visualize the action and thus better explain and understand a military campaign. There is no better way to understand military actions and no book can contain enough maps. Coverage herein is intended to be neutral. As anyone who is familiar with this series will attest, its purpose is to offer a broad and full understanding of the subject matter rather than a micro-history of a particular event or day."

 At least in this book the author has met and exceeded his ideas for the series. It is so much easier to understand military history with well-done maps for you to look at in between reading passages.

 The book itself covers a lot of ground. Not only do you get full maps of the Battle of Spotsylvania, you also get to read and look at the Battles around the North Anna and then end up with the foolish Union attack at Cold Harbor. All of the cavalry engagements that took place during the same time period are also given the full treatment. 

Two of the excellent maps in the book.

 This book, and the entire series, should be a part of any history lover or wargamer's library. I will definitely be picking up The Maps of the Wilderness and a few others. Thank you, Savas Beatie, for allowing me to review this very good book.

Robert

Book: The Maps of Spotsylvania through Cold Harbor

Author: Bradley M. Gottfried

Publisher: Savas Beatie