“You will have to fight like the devil to hold your own. . . .”
— Maj. Gen. John Buford

Fight Like the Devil: The First Day at Gettysburg, July 1, 1863
by Chris Mackowski, Kristopher D. White, and Daniel T. Davis

Savas Beatie, 2015
192 pp.; 212 images, 9 maps
ISBN: 978-1-61121-227-3
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About the Book: Do not bring on a general engagement, Confederate General Robert E. Lee warned his commanders. The Army of Northern Virginia, slicing its way through south-central Pennsylvania, was too spread out, too vulnerable, for a full-scale engagement with its old nemesis, the Army of the Potomac. Too much was riding on this latest Confederate invasion of the North. Too much was at stake.

As Confederate forces groped their way through the mountain passes, a chance encounter with Federal cavalry on the outskirts of a small Pennsylvania crossroads town triggered a series of events that quickly escalated beyond Lee’s—or anyone’s—control. Waves of soldiers materialized on both sides in a constantly shifting jigsaw of combat. “You will have to fight like the devil . . .” one Union cavalryman predicted.

The costliest battle in the history of the North American continent had begun.

July 1, 1863 remains the most overlooked phase of the battle of Gettysburg, yet it set the stage for all the fateful events that followed.

Bringing decades of familiarity to the discussion—Gettysburg is the battlefield both men grew up with—historians Chris Mackowski, Kristopher D. White and Daniel T. Davis, in their always-engaging style, recount the action of that first day of battle and explore the profound implications.

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Fight Like the Devil also includes:

• A foreword by Mark H. Dunkelman
• Appendix A: “Where Was Jeb Stuart?” by Eric J. Wittenberg
• Appendix B: “Shoes or No Shoes?” by Matt Atkinson
• Appendix C: “The Most Second-Guessed Decision of the War” by Chris Mackowski and Kristopher D. White
• Appendix D: “Reynolds Reconsidered” by Kristopher D. White
• Appendix E: “The Harvest of Death” by John F. Cummings III
• Appendix F: “Amos Humiston and the Children of the Battlefield” by Meg Thompson
• Appendix G: “Pipe Creek” by Ryan Quint
• Appendix H: “The Peace Light Memorial” by Dan Welch
• Order of Battle
• Suggested Reading

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Read More About the Book:

Emerging Civil War Correspondent Pat Tintle previewed the book on April 24, 2015: “ECW Series is Ready to ‘Fight Like the Devil’“

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About the Authors: Chris Mackowski and Kristopher D. White are co-founders of Emerging Civil War and Daniel T. Davis is chief historian. Between them, they have authored more than a dozen books and have penned articles for Civil War Times, America’s Civil War, Hallowed Ground and Blue & Gray. Chris is a writing professor at St. Bonaventure University in Allegany, NY, and historian-in-residence at Stevenson Ridge, a historic property on the Spotsylvania battlefield. Kris is a historian for the Penn-Trafford Recreation Board and a continuing education instructor for the Community College of Allegheny County near Pittsburgh; he is also a former Licensed Battlefield Guide. Daniel is a graduate of Longwood University with a B.A. in public history and has worked as a historian at Appomattox Court House National Historic Site. All have worked as historians at Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park.