The Scourge of War: The Life of William Tecumseh Sherman

The Scourge of War: The Life of William Tecumseh Sherman
Socio-Cultural Features, Economic Conditions, and Political Structures
There are many socio-cultural features, economic conditions, and political structures of time and place in the total war strategy by General Sherman. In this regard, the book titled "The Scourge of War (Reid 15). The Life of William Tecumseh Sherman" highlights such economic and political structures that were relevant at the time. In this book, William Sherman was one of the initiators of the campaign of the American Civil War that concluded the operations of the Union in the State of Georgia, US. In this, Sherman was very instrumental in applying a scorched-earth policy that was intended to cripple the war-making capacity of the South.    
From an economic perspective, William Sherman devised a strategy to ensure that the Confederate did not succeed economically. In this regard, Sherman devised a mechanism to bring the economy of the Confederate to its knees that would lead to its eventual collapse. Sherman's primary intention was to neutralize and capture Atlanta so that it would collapse economically (Bailey 200). During the time, Atlanta was a significant economic hub not only in Georgia but also in the entire United States. When the seizure happened, Atlanta was immensely affected. Some affected areas included manufacturing hubs, supply depots, and railroad centers. 
From a socio-cultural perspective, General Sherman’s war was highly destructive and affected innocent civilians. In this regard, the dangerous path embraced by General Sherman's war strategy blazes a new formula that would see the forces conquer all the areas they had targeted. In addition, the devastating march of the General brought about a kind of warfare never witnessed before and resulted in the advent of the Second World War. In addition, the carnage of the war resulted in the death of many people never seen before (Ryan 276). The massacre left over 23,000 combatants dead, missing, or wounded, which resulted in a considerable humanitarian crisis. There were numerous cases of mistreatment of innocent civilians and guerilla attacks that made Sherman even angrier and firmer against the Confederates. In this regard, Sherman also blamed the Confederacy for all the suffering experienced by the people. 
The Total War strategy by General Sherman also exemplified the Union forces forcefully invading Tennessee in the early periods of the war. However, it was not easy for the armed forces, who faced immense challenges from the Federal commanders. In this case, they had to face a hostile population in their efforts to conquer and govern the territory. On the other hand, there were also challenges governing the area they conquered because there were no clear political structures (Freedman 105). Dealing with a hostile population not ready for change and suppressing the widespread guerrilla activities became some of the problems faced by the new forces. In this case, General Sherman and his troops found themselves on the receiving end because he had to deal both with the internal and external dissent from his forces and external troops whom he had to deal with. 
Major General William Sherman had a ...