The siege of Washington

the long version

On April 14, 1861, following the surrender of Fort Sumter, Washington was an ideal target for the Confederacy. For twelve days the city's fate hung in the balance-- isolated from the North, without trains, telegraph, or mail, and with a rumored force of 20,000 Confederate soldiers just across the Potomac River. Lockwood tells the story from the perspective of leading officials, residents, Confederates plotting to seize the city, and Union troops racing to save it.