The Siege of Washington

Reviews / Votes

The Siege of Washington is a thrilling story brilliantly told. In April 1861, the fate of the nation's capital - surrounded, isolated, and vulnerable--hung in the balance while dread, spies, and conspirators filled its streets. Who would arrive in Washington first? Union troops to save it? Or the rebel army to sack it? The Lockwoods possess an unerring eye for the human drama and illuminating details that make great history."--James L. Swanson, author
of the New York Times best-sellers Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer and Bloody Crimes: The Chase for Jefferson Davis and the Death Pageant for Lincoln's Corpse
"An exciting blow-by-blow history of a tense, historically significant fortnight."--Kirkus Reviews
"[An] absorbing history...The authors' well-paced narrative captures the suspense of the ordeal and the Union's achievement in improvising a defense from scratch. This vivid portrait of a weak and jittery Washington turns into a story of how Northern vigor and organization trumped Southern elan, presaging the larger war."--Publishers Weekly
"The Lockwoods have filled a surprising gap in Civil War literature by describing the 12 days in April 1861 from the 'first shot' of the Civil War at Fort Sumter to the relief of the federal capital by Union troops...This day-by-day accounting captures all the confusion and fear that reigned in the first days of the war and shows how luck as much as decision determined the fate of the Union."--Library Journal
"This book by two brothers goes day by day, capturing the drama at every turn...[A]n entertaining glimpse of a key early moment in the struggle for this nation's soul."--Huffington Post
"The Lockwoods' account of the first days of the Civil War is a tale well told, full of intrigue and real peril."--Daily Hampshire Gazette
"[T]his is a much-needed title, well-written, and certainly worthy of inclusion on the shelves of your Civil War library."--48thPennsylvania.com
"[A] detail-laden treasure...The Siege of Washington adds to our sum of knowledge about the war by putting those earliest days on a well-lighted stage and focuses our attention on just the right actors."--Roll Call
"[A] remarkable look at a rarely told bit of our history."--Lincoln Star
"[A] lively and thoroughly researched account of how local residents, government leaders and military officers reacted to events--real and imagined--occurring around them. Their narrative, sprinkled with colorful and mostly little-known anecdotes, adroitly captures the uncertainty and tension pervading President Lincoln's capital."--America's Civil War
"[A] fascinating work of micro-history."--Atlanta Journal Constitution
"This book is an almost minute-by-minute account of the stressful days between the fall of Fort Sumter at the beginning of the US Civil War and the arrival of Union regiments 12 days later to protect Washington, DC, from Confederate attack...Recommended."--CHOICE