Southern Cross

Lieutenant General Leonidas Polk is notable as a distinguished West Point graduate, first Episcopal Bishop of Louisiana, university founder, and Confederate commander beloved by his troops, esteemed by the public, and killed on the field of battle. In spite of his many accomplishments, historians invariably disparage Polk's generalship and even his personal character--but is their treatment fair or accurate? This work employs a balanced perspective to shed new light on Polk's military leadership and reveal unexpected truths that explain his conflict with General Braxton Bragg. A seemingly insignificant piece of correspondence, along with an exploration of both men's writings, coalesce into a novel understanding of the root cause of the command dysfunction and chronic failures of the Army of Tennessee.