QUICK TAKES - Feb. 12, 2009

Two authors of books on Abraham Lincoln’s military leadership have been named winners of the Lincoln Prize and will share the $50,000 cash award.

James M. McPherson, best known for his Pulitzer Prize-winning Civil War history, “The Battle Cry of Freedom,” was cited for “Tried by War: Abraham Lincoln as Commander in Chief.” The other winner was Craig L. Symonds for “Lincoln and His Admirals: Abraham Lincoln, the U.S. Navy, and the Civil War.”

The award, given for outstanding Civil War scholarship, was founded in 1990 by businessmen-philanthropists Richard Gilder and Lewis Lehrman.