The Sacred Cause of Union

When considering famous Civil War fighting units, Iowa regiments probably don't enter the minds of most general readers. Nevertheless, in the West and in the Trans-Mississippi, Hawkeyes punched above their small state weight, figuring prominently in many important campaigns and battles. Lowell Soike looked toward the conflict in his fine recent study of antebellum Iowa [Busy in the Cause: Iowa, the Free-State Struggle in the West, and the Prelude to the Civil War (2014)] but The Sacred Cause of Union: Iowa in the Civil War (Iowa, November 2016) will be the "first-ever survey of the state’s Civil War history," weaving "economics, politics, army recruitment, battlefield performance, and government administration." It will also detail the roles of women's organizations that fed, clothed, and nursed the fighting men. From the description, it appears the narrative will closely follow six thematically representative individuals, as well.