My daughter gave me this set a number of years ago I don't care to recall. At the time, we had just moved to Maryland and I was excited about being close enough to visit historical sites up and down the east coast. I had a general knowledge about the war , but wanted to learn more. The courses provided information from A to Z on the causes of the war, politics, leaders, and strategy. It made it easier to decide which battlefields to visit first or spend more time. It also gave me a better idea of books to acquire and read which drilled down into specific events and subjects of the war. Personally, agreeing or disagreeing could sometimes go either way, but I never regretted the time involved in watching Gary's course. It takes several hours to watch the entire course. Last year he was a speaker at our round table. As you would expect, he is an excellent speaker. Would you believe his hair was darker back when he made this course?