Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!samsung!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!wuarchive!psuvax1!rutgers!att!cbnews!military
From: cognos!geovision!pt@dciem (Paul Tomblin)
Newsgroups: sci.military
Subject: Re: Civil War technology
Keywords: Ironclads, Civil War
Message-ID: <1990Oct11.050851.29295@cbnews.att.com>
Date: 11 Oct 90 05:08:51 GMT
Sender: military-request@att.att.com
Organization: GeoVision Corp., Ottawa, Ontario
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Approved: military@att.att.com



From: cognos!geovision!pt@dciem (Paul Tomblin)
eos!woody@eos.arc.nasa.gov (Wayne Wood) writes:

>also... the ACW was the first prosecution of the concept of
>"Total War"  it wasn't enough to destroy the enemies' armed
>forces, we also had to destroy their ability to make war, hence
>Sherman's march to the sea.

Gwynn Dwyer's TV series about war (I think it was just called "War") 
credits Napoleon with inventing "Total War".  Who's right?  (Actually, I'm 
not even sure about the time scale.  Which came first?)

[mod.note:  Napoleon's campaigns were in the early 1800's (about 1805-1815)
while the American Civil War was fought between 1861 and 1865.  - Bill ]

It was a great series, and had the personal touch too.  He takes you to a
battle field in France where the Royal Newfoundland Regiment took appalling
casualties in a single WWI battle (~90% if I remember correctly).  He remarks
how all Newfoundlanders, himself included, remember that battle, even if the
rest of the world doesn't.

-- 
Paul Tomblin, Department of Redundancy Department.    ! My employer probably 
I'm not fat..... I'm metabolically challenged.        ! does not agree with my
I'm not underpaid... I'm financially challenged.      ! opinions.... 
nrcaer!cognos!geovision!pt or uunet!geovision!pt      ! Me neither.