Dubbed "Stonewall" after the battle of First Manassas in July 1861, Thomas Jackson has long been revered as a brilliant military leader and tactician and one of the most adroit Confederate commanders. The man himself is a study in contrasts: as feared by his enemies as he was beloved by his men. And in the eyes of some, his humble and sincere Christian faith seemed at odds with his reputation as a ferocious warrior.
Jackson was graduated from West Point in 1846, participated in the Mexican War in 1848, and accepted a teaching position at the Virginia Military Institute in 1851, resigning his commission in the army a year later. When he left VMI ten years later to join the Confederate army, immediately he was commissioned a colonel and within months promoted to the rank of brigadier general. His battlefield successes against numerically superior Union armies made him a legend in both the South and the North. Mortally wounded by his own troops in May 1863, he "more than anyone else, personified the compelling and the virtuous in what the subsequent generation would label 'The Lost Cause.' " — James I. Robertson, Jr.
All Things for Good is a thoughtful addition to the Leaders in Action Series. In it J. Steven Wilkins challenges some of the myths that surround Jackson and celebrates his devout Christian beliefs.
Did you find this review helpful?