In July 1883, just a few days after the twentieth anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg, a group of editors at The Century Magazine engaged in a lively argument: Which Civil War battle was the bloodiest battle of them all? One claimed it was Chickamauga, another Cold Harbor. The argument inspired a brainstorm. Why not let the magazine's 125,000 readers in on the conversation by offering a series of articles written by officers in command of both sides. The series of articles became the four volume set known as Battles and Leaders of the Civil War. This single volume work is a collection of articles from that famous work.