Shares new perspectives into Sherman's epic March to the Sea, profiling the heated divides of the antebellum years and how the march forced the nation to reckon with a century of injustice.

"Antebellum America was a deeply troubled country, divided by partisan gridlock and ideological warfare. There were angry voices in the streets and the statehouses, and furious clashes over race and immigration, coupled with a growing chasm between immense wealth and desperate poverty. The Civil War that followed brought America to the brink of self-destruction. But it also created a new country from the ruins of the old one, bolder and stronger than ever. No campaign in the war was more destructive--or more important--than William Sherman's legendary march through Georgia and the Carolinas. It would cripple the heart of the South's economy, free thousands of slaves, and mark the beginning of a new era. This invasion not only quelled the Confederate forces, but transformed America, forcing it to reckon with a century of injustice. In this timely, narrative social history, Dickey reveals the story of women actively involved in the military campaign, and later in civilian networks, one of whom was so vital, even Sherman himself would call her 'General.' African Americans also took active roles as soldiers, builders, and activists, despite the hesitation on the part of some, though not all, Union officers to integrate the ranks. Rich with despair and hope, brutality and compassion, Rising in Flames tells the dramatic story of the Union's invasion of the Confederacy. Dickey brilliantly examines how this colossal struggle provided a radiant and violent rebirth for a nation on the edge of collapse-and helped create a vigorous new country from the embers of the Old South."--Dust jacket.