ABSTRACT
During the mid-ninetenth century, commanders on both sides of the Atlantic had to contend with the difficulty of maintaining command over their larger units under conditions of greater tactical dispersion. Under these circumstances, perhaps the most important instrument a commander had at his disposal was his staff. In the U.S. Civil War, no commander on either side had as good a staff as James Longstreet. This article compares how Longstreet organized and employed his staff with the staff practices developed by the Prussian Army under Moltke. While there are some obvious differences, one can also note a surprising number of similarities.
