A TREATISE ON FIELD FORTIFICATION, CONTAINING INSTRUCTIONS ON THE METHODS OF LAYING OUT, CONSTRUCTING, DEFENDING, AND ATTACKING INTRENCHMENTS; WITH THE GENERAL OUTLINES ALSO OF THE ARRANGEMENT, THE ATTACK AND DEFENCE OF PERMANENT FORTIFICATIONS

Richmond: West & Johnsto, 1862. [iii]-xxvii,[1],168pp. plus twelve folding plates, each with an inserted leaf of explanation. Lacks the initial blank leaf [p. i-ii]. 12mo. Contemporary quarter morocco and coated paper, gilt label. Boards rubbed, edges shelfworn, corners bumped, label chipped and rubbed. Front hinge cracked, but still strong. Text lightly toned, a bit of light foxing, but quite neat internally. Plate eleven reinforced at folds on verso. Good plus. "Fourth edition, revised and enlarged," and the only Confederate printing of Mahan's important and influential treatise on field fortification, as the original New York publishers (Wiley) would not sell to the Confederacy. Dennis Hart Mahan (1802-1871), noted military theorist and father of naval strategist Alfred Thayer Mahan, was a professor at West Point for more than forty- five years. He published this treatise on field fortifications, his first published book, in 1836, and it went through several printings before the outbreak of the Civil War. During Mahan's time at West Point, about two thousand cadets graduated, and every student took Mahan's course on field operations, fortifications, and leadership during his final year at the academy, using this work as the main textbook. This book was "the standard work on this subject carried into the field by United States officers in both the Mexican and Civil wars" (DAB). Mahan was a proud Virginian, but did not support the Confederacy. He corresponded with numerous generals during the war, stressing loyalty to West Point, the army, and the nation, as well as the need for military professionalism during times of war. A scarce and important Confederate imprint. PARRISH & WILLINGHAM 4947. DAB XII, pp.209-210.