Thomas Ryan's masterfully researched and written study builds upon the pioneering work of Edwin C. Fishel, Stephen W. Sears, and others. Spies, Scouts, and Secrets in the Gettysburg Campaign is destined to become a classic Civil War study.
Edwin C. Bearss, former Chief Historian of the National Park Service and award-winning author of The Petersburg Campaign: Volume 1, The Eastern ... Read moreFront Battles and Volume 2, The Western Front Battles Through an in-depth and insightful examination of Union and Confederate intelligence organizations, personnel, and operations during the 1863 Gettysburg campaign, Thomas Ryan details how George Meade's success in the behind-the-scenes 'intelligence battle' against Robert E. Lee set the stage for Union victory in the three-day engagement. This book is an important and original contribution to our understanding of why Lee lost, why Meade won, and the titanic clash in Pennsylvania.
Dr. William B. Feis, author of Grant's Secret Service: The Intelligence War from Belmont to Appomattox Accurate and timely information is the lifeblood of great generalship. Too often do military historians neglect exploring the flow of information and the effect it has on the decision-making of the great captains. Spies, Scouts, and Secrets in the Gettysburg Campaign, the excellent new book by Thomas Ryan, gives us a new and insightful window into Lee's decisions and the Union effort to counter them and helps us understand why the campaign ended as it did
David A. Powell, award-winning author of The Chickamauga Campaign No one has studied the critical (and largely overlooked) role that intelligence played in the Gettysburg Campaign like Thomas Ryan. The vital information collected by scouts, spies and civilians
and how it was processed and used by the opposing high commands
is told here for the first time in tremendous detail that helps complete the story of how and why the campaign developed as it did, and the battle ended with Lee's defeat.
J. David Petruzzi, award-winning author of The Complete Guide to Gettysburg and The Gettysburg Campaign in Numbers and Losses Show Less