That Devil Forrest: Life of General Nathan Bedford Forrest

“‘That devil Forrest’ was at his heels again, and once more the crackling rifles of his rear-guard and their relentless pursuers came ringing through the wood.”

Nathan Bedford Forrest was one of twelve children, born to a poor blacksmith and his wife in Bedford County, Tennessee.

Yet, despite these humble origins he would go on to become one of the most innovative cavalry leaders America has ever seen.

His enemies respected him and his Southern compatriots admired him. Both General Johnston and General Sherman agreed that he was “the most remarkable man our Civil War produced on either side.” While Jefferson Davis and Robert E. Lee, in their postwar memoirs, stated that the tide of the war might have been changed had the Confederate high command better used Forrest’s talents.

John A. Wyeth’s brilliant biography of Forrest fully captures this fascinating general and his actions throughout the war.

From his brilliant campaigns at Fort Donelson, Shiloh and Brice’s Crossroads to his more controversial moments, for example at the Battle of Fort Pillow where many Union prisoners were slaughtered, Wyeth examines every part of Forrest’s career in precise detail.

“This biography, like its subject, has few peers.” New York Times Book Review

“Dr. Wyeth’s style is attractive, and his narrative, notwithstanding the amplitude of detail and incident, is extremely clear. He tells the story well, and vividly paints the scenes of his hero’s campaigns; and Forrest stands out from the canvas, audacious and energetic, yet vigilant and cautious; vehement but clear-sighted and prescient, the incarnation of dauntless, sagacious, indomitable leadership.” The American Historical Review

John Allan Wyeth fought in the American Civil War for the Confederacy before becoming a well-respected surgeon in New York. Wyeth wrote innovative and widely used medical texts that introduced illustrations in color as well as a memoir, With Sabre and Scalpel: The Autobiography of a Soldier and Surgeon; an acclaimed biography, That Devil Forrest: Life of General Nathan Bedford Forrest, and many magazine articles. This book was first published as Life of General Nathan Bedford Forrest in 1908. Wyeth died in 1922.