Title: Over Lincoln's Shoulder
First published: 1998
Description: The Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War generated controversy throughout the war, and its legacy sparks debate even today over whether it invigorated or hampered the Union war effort. In the wake of both critical and sympathetic appraisals, Bruce Tap now offers the first history of the committee's activities, focusing on the nature of its power and influence on military policy in order to show conclusively what the ultimate impact really was.

Tap presents solid evidence, including examples of contact between Congress and the military, to show that the committee produced little good and no small amount of harm. As Tap demonstrates, it was in many ways a serious impediment to the war effort, due not to its fanaticism or vindictiveness, as some historians have suggested, but rather to its members' total ignorance of military matters.
Subjects: Campaigns, Governmental investigations, History, Military leadership, Military policy, United States, United States Civil War, 1861-1865, United States. Congress. Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War, United states, history, civil war, 1861-1865, Lincoln, abraham, 1809-1865, United states, politics and government, 1861-1865
Places: United States
People: Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)
Time periods: 19th century, Civil War, 1861-1865
LC classification: E470 .T2 1998