Quantrill in Texas

Of the many writings about William Clarke Quantrill, very few are based in historical fact. United with a common sense of vindictiveness in order to keep the guerrilla chieftain from being viewed as a hero of the Civil War, many writers have vilified him as the single most despicable character of the conflict. But careful research, steeped in an understanding of the nature of war, reveals one of the most outstanding light cavalry leaders of the mid-nineteenth century. Paul R. Petersen's study of Quantrill's war-fighting philosophy reveals a military leader who did not perpetrate the harsh realities of internecine warfare but rather responded to them.