Lincoln and His Party in the Secession Crisis - Softcover

Potter, David M.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0807120278 ISBN 13: 9780807120279

Publisher: LSU Press, 1995

Synopsis

Originally published in 1942, this perceptive and impartial analysis of one of the most baffling periods in American history―the months between the election of Lincoln and the fall of Fort Sumter―was a bold declaration of intellectual independence. David M. Potter revolted against the prevailing southern argument that Lincoln deliberately provoked the South into war to bring a violent end to slavery, arguing instead that the new president followed the least aggressive course available to him in dealing with the secession crisis.

Based on a painstaking examination of the writings and statements of both the northern principal players in the crisis and other, lesser-known Republicans who revealed the sentiment of the party’s rank and file, this groundbreaking study details the Republicans’ attitudes to the threat of secession, their reaction to the actual withdrawal of the southern states, and their faith that the Union could be restored without violence. Daniel W. Crofts provides a new Introduction, setting Potter’s account in the context of contemporary literature.

About this title

About the Author

David M. Potter was Coe Professor of American History at Stanford University. He authored several books, including People of Plenty: Economic Abundance and the National Character and The Impending Crisis, 1848–1861.

Daniel W. Crofts is professor of history at Trenton State College. He is the author of Old Southampton: Politics and Society in a Virginia County, 1834–1869 and Reluctant Confederates: Upper South Unionists in the Secession Crisis.

From the Back Cover

Originally published in 1942, this perceptive and impartial analysis of one of the most baffling periods in American history - the months between the election of Lincoln and the fall of Fort Sumter - was a bold declaration of intellectual independence. David M. Potter revolted against the prevailing southern argument that Lincoln deliberately provoked the South into war to bring a violent end to slavery, arguing instead that the new president followed the least aggressive course available to him in dealing with the secession crisis. Based on a painstaking examination of the writings and statements of both the northern principal players in the crisis and other, lesser-known Repubulicans who revealed the sentiment of the party's rank and file, this groundbreaking study details the Republicans' attitudes to the threat of secession, their reaction to the actual withdrawal of the southern states, and their faith that the Union could be restored without violence. Daniel W. Crofts provides a new Introduction, setting Potter's account in the context of contemporary literature.

Edition details

• Publisher: LSU Press
• Publication date: 1995
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0807120278
• ISBN 13: 9780807120279
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 440