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In the early eastern theater of the American Civil War, the Northern and Southern armies saw little of combat and little of each other, with most of their military intelligence more akin to propaganda than objective fact. However, by 1862 both sides knew through bloody experience how the other could fight, though gaps in knowledge of the other's tactics and political strategies remained. Perhaps most important, Northern soldiers had by then spent significant time in the South, and as they witnessed firsthand the effects of slavery, their attitudes hardened toward the South.

Covering all aspects of the war in Virginia in the first six months of 1862, Forward to Richmond treats the military actions in the Shenandoah Valley, the Piedmont, and the Peninsula as part of a theatre-wide campaign. Brian K. Burton goes beyond military events to also examine the political, social, and diplomatic interactions with military events, including the meetings of Union soldiers with Southern civilians and African Americans, ultimately leading to a turn away from conciliation and a beginning of a move toward support of emancipation.