The Wizard of the Saddle

Nathan Bedford Forrest

His admirers call him a military genius, while his detractors label him a cold-blooded killer. Regardless of the characterization, Nathan Bedford Forrest entered the American Civil War as a virtual unknown, but emerged as a Rebel hero and a Yankee villain. As a young adult, the Tennessean worked his way up the economic ladder, operating a livery business and brick yard, and serving as the town constable and coroner. With fierce determination to improve his financial standing, he eventually became a successful slave trader, real estate broker, and cotton planter. By the time the Civil War broke out in April of 1861, Forrest was a millionaire. Joining the Rebel cavalry with no previous military training, he became the only man in either the Confederate or Union Armies to rise from the rank of Private to Lieutenant General. He soon became the Confederacy's most accomplished cavalryman. His daring troopers repeatedly disrupted Union Army communication and supply lines. Lacking a West Point resume, and having benefited from a year of formal education, at most, Forrest developed his own battlefield strategies, which have since been studied at military academies throughout the world. A master at mobile warfare, the intrepid Forrest readily transformed his cavalrymen into foot soldiers when battlefield conditions were favorable. Forrest was also devastatingly adept at using artillery to pound the enemy into submission. At the same time, he was a master at the bluff, often inducing much larger Union Army forces to surrender to his troopers. When asked to summarize his military strategy, he offered a simple, but often-quoted maxim: "Get there first with the most men." Unlike many contemporary military leaders, Forrest led the charge into battle. Wounded 4 times, his courage under fire inspired his troopers and fortified their resolve. During the course of the Civil War, Forrest killed 31 enemy soldiers in hand-to-hand combat and had 30 horses shot out from under him. At the end of the war, his troopers were credited with having taken 31,000 prisoners of war. Forrest emerged from the Civil War physically battered and financially ruined. He was never able to replicate his pre-war financial successes, and ultimately was employed as the supervisor of convict labor camp. Rebelling against the sociopolitical culture of freedmen, carpetbaggers, and scalawags, Forrest joined the newly-formed Ku Klux Klan and was purportedly elected as the secret organization's first Grand Wizard. While endeavoring to maintain white supremacy in his native South, Forrest eventually grew disillusioned with KKK's violent reprisals against former slaves, and unsuccessfully attempted to disband the racist organization. "The Wizard of the Saddle: Nathan Bedford Forrest" is a concise biography of an enigmatic, yet unlikely warrior, who occupied an unforgettable role in the tragic and compelling lore of the American Civil War.

Remarkable story ruined by A.I. narration.

Bedford Forrest is one of American history's most intriguing characters. His exploits on the field of battle were legendary. Also, his connection with white supremacy and the K.K.K. make him one of the most controversial figures coming out of the American Civil War. Yet this A.I. narration ruined it for me. You could hear the "computer" speak. I did not like it.

Wizard of The Saddle.

This is a well-written, concise, and information-dense book that clearly prioritizes military analysis over narrative storytelling.

Smith does a solid job covering Nathan Bedford Forrest’s rise from private to lieutenant general, with heavy emphasis on dates, battle formations, troop movements, and outcomes. For readers interested in Forrest strictly as a cavalry commander, the book delivers a clear and organized overview of why he was considered tactically gifted, as well as how his aggressiveness and instinct for speed and surprise shaped his reputation on the battlefield.

The opening and closing sections do an adequate job outlining Forrest’s life before and after the war, offering a useful — if brief — glimpse into the man outside of uniform. His personality, particularly his volatile temper and forceful presence, is touched on enough to give the reader a sense of who he was, though these elements remain secondary to the military material.
Where the book struggled for me was in terms of engagement. While I appreciated the new information and the structured look at Forrest’s campaigns, the reading experience leaned far more toward study material than narrative history. It’s dense, analytical, and at times dry — rewarding from a learning standpoint, but not especially entertaining. There are moments of interest throughout, but they’re buried within a format that feels designed more for reference than immersion.

That said, the book succeeds at what it sets out to do. I wouldn’t reread it, but I would recommend it to readers looking for an early or introductory look at Forrest’s military career, particularly those interested in Civil War cavalry operations or tactical development.

Informative, efficient, and focused — just not a book meant to captivate so much as to educate