APPOMATTOX COMMANDER - The Story of General E.O.C. Ord by Cresap, Bernard

San Diego, 1981, A.S. Barnes Co, US First edition, 6 1/4 x 9 1/2, VG/VG condition,( dj price clipped) xiv, 418 pages, illus & maps, notes, bibliog, index. ---------------------------------------A critical gap in the fabric of Civil War history is filled by this definitive biography of General E.O.C. Ord. Although General Ord played a significant role in the war and Reconstruction, Bernarr Cresap is the first scholar to provide such a comprehensive and interesting examination of Ord's life and career.General Ord was, indeed, the "Appomattox commander," for as senior officer of the left wing of Grant's armies, he commanded a mighty force of some 30,000 infantry and cavalry in the pursuit of General Robert E. Lee to Appomattox. By an all-night march of forty miles, which can only be described as a classic in the annals of warfare, Ord placed two corps of infantry in front of Lee, blocking his escape route and compelling the Confederate commander to send out the white flag of surrender.The story of General Ord's life is more than just a Civil War biography. Ord had a fascinating military career spanning the forty-five years from his entry into West Point in 1835 to his retirement in 1880. He traveled widely and had varied experiences, many of them recounted vividly in his own words in this engaging book. He served in California during the Mexican War wind fought hostile Indians in Florida and in Oregon and Washington territories. He achieved the rank of major general of volunteers early in the Civil War and rose to command an army and a military department, brilliantly climaxing his services at Appomattox Court House.