ABSTRACT
By the middle of the nineteenth century, U.S. military institutions had proven their worth in the Mexican War. Yet their greatest test would not involve a confl ict with a foreign power. Far more Americans fought and died in the American Civil War of 1861-65 than in all other previous confl icts put together. Its numerous engagements ranged from huge pitched battles with tens of thousands of soldiers on a side, to small skirmishes and raids involving just a few dozen. Irregular operations occurred, particularly in western areas, but campaigns by large conventional armies predominated.
