Simon Bolivar Buckner was a Confederate general and one of the most unique figures of the Civil War. A West Point graduate from Kentucky, Buckner chose the Confederacy when the war began, even though his personal ties to Grant ran deep. In 1862, Buckner surrendered Fort Donelson to Grant after receiving the famous demand for unconditional surrender, a moment that helped launch Grant’s rise to national fame. After the war, Buckner rebuilt his life in the United States. He served as Governor of Kentucky, promoted reconciliation between North and South, and later ran for Vice President in 1896.

Major General John Schofield was one of the most steady and reliable Union commanders of the Civil War. Rising fast through the ranks, he played key roles in Missouri, the Atlanta Campaign, and the Carolinas, often serving as the calm problem solver between stronger personalities like Sherman and Hood. Known more for discipline and judgment than flashy battlefield heroics, Schofield helped keep Union armies moving when coordination mattered most.

Alexander H. Stephens was one of the most contradictory figures of the Civil War. A longtime U.S. congressman from Georgia, he became Vice President of the Confederacy while openly doubting secession and warning it would end badly.

We cover Stephens’ rise, his infamous Cornerstone Speech, his uneasy role inside the Confederate government, and his unlikely return to Congress and the Georgia governorship after the war. His story exposes the political contradictions at the heart of the Confederacy and the rocky road of Reconstruction.

All three battles of the Chickamauga Campaign ending with one of the bloodiest battles in all of the Civil War.

Discover the story of Edwin Stanton, the hard driving Secretary of War who helped steer the Union to victory. This episode looks at his rise from Ohio lawyer to one of the most powerful men in Washington, his tense early relationship with Lincoln, and how the two became an unstoppable team during the Civil War. We cover Stanton’s reforms, his clashes with generals, his role in shaping Union strategy, and the legacy he left on America long after the war ended.

Three towns. Three massacres. One brutal truth about the Civil War that textbooks like to skip. In this episode, we dive into the darkest side of Confederate guerrilla warfare. The murder sprees, executions, and terror campaigns carried out by men like Bloody Bill Anderson, Champ Ferguson, and William Clarke Quantrill. From the Centralia Massacre to the Saltville killings to the fiery destruction of Lawrence, Kansas, we break down how these raids blurred the line between soldier and outlaw. Brutal tactics, no-quarter orders, and the kind of revenge killing that turned Missouri and Kentucky into the Wild West before the Wild West even existed.

Burning valleys. Empty counties. Armies that didn’t just fight the war… they scorched everything in their path. In this episode, we break down three of the most controversial Union actions of the Civil War. Sheridan’s burning of the Shenandoah Valley, Sherman’s March to the Sea, and General Order No. 11 in Missouri. Brutal campaigns, civilian suffering, and tactics that still spark debate today.

The Fort Pillow massacre stands as one of the darkest moments of the Civil War. After Union forces surrendered on April 12 1864, hundreds of Black Union soldiers and white Tennessean Unionists were shot down by Confederate troops in what eyewitnesses described as a slaughter. Survivors told of men killed while begging for mercy and others executed after laying down their weapons. This episode looks at what happened after the shooting stopped and why Fort Pillow remains one of the most controversial and brutal events of the entire war.

The Sand Creek Massacre was a brutal 1864 attack where Colorado soldiers raided a peaceful Cheyenne and Arapaho village, killing over 230 people, mostly women, children, and the elderly. Despite flying a white flag of truce, the village was destroyed. The massacre sparked national outrage, fueled decades of conflict, and remains one of the most tragic betrayals in American history.

Stand Watie was the only Native American Confederate Brigadier General and the last of all Confederate Generals to surrender. From the Cherokee Nation to Civil War battlefields, his story mixes loyalty, rebellion, and survival in a divided America.