H. W. (Henry Wager) Halleck

author

H. W. (Henry Wager) Halleck

1815–1872

Best known as the Union Army’s hard-driving administrator nicknamed “Old Brains,” this Civil War general was also a lawyer, engineer, and prolific military writer. His career stretched from West Point classrooms and California state-building to the highest levels of Union command.

1 Audiobook

Elements of Military Art and Science Or, Course Of Instruction In Strategy, Fortification, Tactics Of Battles, &C.; Embracing The Duties Of Staff, Infantry, Cavalry, Artillery, And Engineers; Adapted To The Use Of Volunteers And Militia; Third Edition; With Critical Notes On The Mexican And Crimean Wars.

Elements of Military Art and Science Or, Course Of Instruction In Strategy, Fortification, Tactics Of Battles, &C.; Embracing The Duties Of Staff, Infantry, Cavalry, Artillery, And Engineers; Adapted To The Use Of Volunteers And Militia; Third Edition; With Critical Notes On The Mexican And Crimean Wars.

by H. W. (Henry Wager) Halleck

About the author

Born in Westernville, New York, in 1815, Henry Wager Halleck graduated near the top of his class at West Point and briefly taught engineering there. Early in his career he built a reputation as a serious military thinker, writing on fortifications and military science long before the Civil War made him famous.

Halleck also played an important role in California after the Mexican-American War. He served as a military officer and legal adviser, helped shape the state’s early political and legal framework, and later became a successful lawyer and land developer in San Francisco. That mix of soldier, scholar, and attorney helped earn him the nickname “Old Brains.”

During the Civil War, he rose to prominence as a Union commander in the Western Theater and then served as general-in-chief of the Union armies from 1862 to 1864. Although historians often note that he was far stronger at administration and organization than at battlefield leadership, he remained a central figure in the Union war effort and later served as chief of staff and in postwar commands until his death in 1872.