Glorious War

The thrilling and definitive biography of George Armstrong Custer's incredible Civil War years and the heroics that made him a legend


From George Armstrong Custer’s graduation from West Point to the daring cavalry charges that propelled him to the rank of General and national fame to a romance with his wife Libbie Bacon that is unmatched in American history, Custer’s exploits are the stuff of legend. Not only did he capture the first Confederate battle flag of the war and receive General Lee’s messenger who had come to begin negotiations for surrender at Appomattox, but he was a key part of nearly every major engagement in the east, always leading his men from the front with a bravery seldom seen before or since.

For decades, historians have looked at Custer strictly through the lens of his death on the frontier, casting him as a failure. Nothing could be farther from the truth. While some may say that the events that took place at the Little Big Horn are illustrative of America’s bloody expansion, they have unjustly eclipsed Custer’s otherwise extraordinarily life and outstanding career and fall far short of encompassing his incredible service to his country.

This biography of thundering cannons, pounding hooves and stunning successes tells the full and true story of one of history’s most dynamic and misunderstood figures. With Glorious War, award-winning historian Thom Hatch reexamines Custer’s early career to rebalance the scales and show why his epic fall could never have happened without the spectacular rise that made him a legend.