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Volunteering To Lead: Combat Affairs That Shaped The Command Philosophy Of Major Rufus R. Dawes, U.S.A. And Captain James Cooper Nisbet, C.S.A. (1861-1862), Trace Brusco

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

The frequently disorganized command structure which dictated American Civil War battles often resulted in direction of military strategy being passed over into the junior officer ranks. These volunteer leaders fought directly with the regular volunteer soldier that filled the ranks of both Union and Confederate armies. In exchange for their position amongst the common volunteer, the junior officers shared the same dangers in combat as their subordinates. In this study, junior officers Rufus Dawes and James Cooper Nisbet serve as the focus of a study that reveals what attributes contributed to the success and failures of command. Dawes, who served …