Lincoln as Commander in Chief

[Mike B.]

I kind of think there is a book waiting to look at Lincoln's tactical decisions at Commander-in-Chief because he made some bad ones.

I think "On to Richmond" was actually a proper strategy. If the Army of Northern Viriginia could have been cooped up in Richmond in a siege it would have had to surrender in mass.

The great victories of the Civil War where when Confederate armies were forced to defend a specific piece of land and were trapped. (i.e. Fort Donnelson, Vicksburg, etc.)

The armies were just too evenly matched to destroy each other in the open field.