Charles M. Robinson

"The Great Plains cover the central two-thirds of the United States, and during the nineteenth century were home to some of the largest and most powerful Indian tribes on the continent. The conflict between those tribes and the newcomers from the Old World lasted about one hundred and fifty years, and required the resources of five nations - Spain, Mexico, the Republic of Texas, the Confederate States of America and the United States - before fighting ended in the mid 1980s. This masterly exposition explains the background, causes and long-term effects of these bitter wars, the legacy of which can still be felt today."--Jacket.

Charles M. Robinson pieces together the contradictions of Crook’s career to reveal that although the general sometimes micromanaged his campaigns to the point that his officers had virtually no flexibility, he gave his officers so much freedom on other occasions that they did not fully understand his expectations or objectives. Crook resented any criticism and was quick to blame both subordinates and superiors, yet Robinson shows that much of Crook’s success in the Indian wars can be attributed to the efforts of subordinate officers. He also details Crook’s later efforts to provide equal rights and opportunities for American Indians. General Crook and the Western Frontier, the first full-scale biography of Crook, uses contemporary manuscripts and primary sources to illuminate the general’s personal life and military career.

Based on exhaustive primary-source research, this is the first full history - from a naval perspective - of the fort on North Carolina's Cape Fear River and its little-known significance as both the Achilles' heel of the Union blockade and the lifeline of the Confederacy. It challenges many hidebound perceptions. Robinson vigorously disputes traditional explanations for the Union's inaction and the sacking of Adm. Samuel Lee with often embarrassing new findings. In a minute-by-minute description of the heaviest naval bombardment and greatest amphibious assault the world had ever seen, he also offers new evidence that vindicates the ill-equipped and poorly trained sailors and marines who for more than 130 years have been unjustly blamed for the failure of their assault across a mile of open beach.

The English-built Confederate commerce raider Alabama is easily the best-known ship from the American Civil War. This book is essentially the biography of that ship - how she came to be, her mission, her cruises, and her destruction. By far the most inclusive, thorough book yet written on this famous American warship, it chronicles everything from construction to destruction, as well as her recent salvage.

It was 1876, The Black Hills, which overlap the boundary between South Dakota and Wyoming, had become the last important battleground of a tragic war against the Indians. The Indians were to be trapped in a three-pronged attack by General Crook, General Terry, and Colonel Custer, but the rugged country - where the temperature could often dip thirty to forty degrees in just a few hours - thwarted almost every foray. By the time the campaign had ended, the army had suffered several major reversals: Custer and his troops were massacred at the Little Bighorn and General George Crook met with near-disaster at the Rosebud; the brilliant Oglala Sioux chief Crazy Horse was dead; Sitting Bull and his band had been driven to Canada; and the military power of the Sioux and the Northern Cheyennes was broken. The government achieved its aims, but the casualties both sides had suffered made these wars the most unnecessary ever fought between the federal government and the Indians. Much of the dramatic narrative is based on first-hand accounts of the participants, diaries and letters of American soldiers, and the oral histories of many of the Indians who fought them.

Flipper was the first black graduate of the West Point Academy, but was court-martialed for mishandling funds. Robinson uses military records of the court martial to recreate events and assess the fairness of the proceedings, considering racism and underlying influences on the decisions. An intriguing re-creation of the past.

In 1867 the total number of buffaloes in the trans-Missouri region was estimated, conservatively, at fifteen million. By the end of the 1880s that figure had dwindled to a few hundred. The destruction of the great herds is the theme of this book. The development of the West and the fate of the plains indians are inextricably bound up with the fate of the buffalo.

"The Spanish conquest of Mexico was the most remarkable military expedition in history, and in achieving it, Hernan Cortes proved himself as one of the greatest generals of all time. This book explains the background of the Aztec Empire and of the Spanish presence in Mexico. It describes the lives of the Aztecs in their glittering capital and of the Europeans who learned to adapt and survive in an alien and often dangerous world. The invasion was a war between civilizations, pitting the fatalism and obsessive ritual of the Aztecs against soldiers fighting for riches, their lives, and eventually their souls."--Bloomsbury Publishing.

"The Great Plains cover the central two-thirds of the United States, and during the nineteenth century were home to some of the largest and most powerful Indian tribes on the continent. The conflict between those tribes and the newcomers from the Old World lasted about one hundred and fifty years, and required the resources of five nations - Spain, Mexico, the Republic of Texas, the Confederate States of America and the United States - before fighting ended in the mid 1890s. This masterly exposition explains the background, causes and long term effects of these bitter wars, whose legacy can still be felt today."--Bloomsbury Publishing.

Here is the first full telling of the most colorful and famous law enforcers of our time. For years, the Texas Rangers have been historical figures shrouded in myth. Charles M. Robinson III has sifted through the tall tales to reach the heart of this storied organization. The Men Who Wear the Star details the history of the Rangers, from their beginnings, spurred by Stephen Austin, and their formal organization in 1835, to the gangster era with Bonnie and Clyde, and on through to modern times. Filled with memorable characters, it is energetic and fast-paced, making this the definitive record of the exploits and accomplishments of the Texas Rangers.

These volumes are a first person narrative of a soldier in the West during the Great Sioux War and the Cheyenne Outbreak as well as other important Indian battles. Extensive information is also given about the Native Americans living during those times.