This Fiery Trial, IV-V

In March 1862, Lincoln wanted Congress to offer federal funds to any states that agreed to gradual emancipation.  He believed gradual emancipation would be best for everyone.  Congress did pass a resolution that would give states financial support if they would agree to gradual emancipation.  The state could use this money at its discretion for any inconveniences caused by emancipation.  In a speech to the border state representatives he predicted that if the border states adopted emancipation it would cause the Confederacy to "see, definitely and certainly, that, in no event, will the states you represent ever join their proposed Confederacy, and they can not, much longer maintain the contest" (Gienapp Kindle Locations 1741-1742).  He hoped this would bring the war to a quick end.  The border states rejected the proposal.

Lincoln knew he was not experienced in war strategy.  As his experience grew, his confidence in his strategies also grew.  Lincoln was also willing to admit when his strategies were wrong.  In a letter on July 13, 1863, to Ulysses S. Grant, Lincoln wrote: "I now wish to make the personal acknowledgment that you were right, and I was wrong" (Gienapp Kindle Locations 2295-2296).

Lincoln and Union general, McClellan, often disagreed on war strategy.  McClellan sometimes ignored Lincoln’s orders.  McClellan was slow moving and defensive in strategy. He also reported that the number of men with him was lower than what he actually had with him and Lincoln called him out on it.  Lincoln tried to make him understand how important public opinion was and that the public demanded action. McClellan never learned this lesson until it was too late.  On April 9, 1862, in a letter to McClellan, Lincoln wrote: “once more let me tell you, it is indispensable to you that you strike a blow.” (Gienapp Kindle Locations 1695-1696)

McClellan often sent overly pessimistic reports to Lincoln.  Lincoln was typically able to remain level-headed in light of these reports.  After the Battle of Antietam, Lincoln wanted McClellan to pursue the Confederate army but McClellan moved so slowly that Lee and his army escaped.  McClellan was relieved of his position as commander for this reason.  For the rest of the war, Lincoln's primary strategy in Virginia was destroying Lee's army.

Lincoln wrote that he would be happy to receive the Confederate states back into the Union with full forgiveness, but he would not give them up.  His goal was "to save it the shortest way under the Constitution" (Gienapp Kindle Location 1871).  While some wanted Lincoln to focus on a goal of emancipation, he made it clear that his primary goal was bringing the Union back together.  In an August 1863 letter to newspaper editor Horace Greenly, Lincoln wrote: "If I could save the Union without freeing any slave I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone I would also do that" (Gienapp Kindle Locations 1874-1876).  Anything he did in regards to slavery, he did it wit the goal of reunification in mind.

In 1862, Lincoln was interested in African Americans started a colony somewhere else after they were liberated.  He believed that when slaves were granted their freedom they would be at a disadvantage to white men and it would be better for them to start over somewhere else.  African Americans were not interested in colonization.  Gradually, Lincoln gave this idea up.

A significant turning point in the Civil War was the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation.  After the Union victory at Antietam, Lincoln issued the preliminary proclamation on September 22, 1862.  The seceded states were given 100 days to rejoin the Union.  Those who did not rejoin, the slaves in those areas still in rebellion would be "forever free" (Gienapp Kindle Location 1899).  Lincoln stated that "Without slavery the rebellion could never have existed; without slavery it could not continue" (Gienapp Kindle Location 2018).

Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863.  He was very confident that he was making the right decision.  He stood by his decision in a letter to a Union general: "After the commencement of hostilities I struggled nearly a year and a half to get along without touching the 'institution'; and when finally I conditionally determined to touch it, I gave a hundred days fair notice of my purpose, to all the States and people, within which time they could have turned it wholly aside, by simply again becoming good citizens of the United States" (Gienapp Kindle Locations 2110-2112).

During the war, the Union responded aggressively to criticism of the war.  Lincoln made the following accusation: "he who dissuades one man from volunteering, or induces one soldier to desert, weakens the Union cause as much as he who kills a union soldier in battle" (Gienapp Kindle Location 2213).  On being criticized that his war policies were unconstitutional, Lincoln claimed "these provisions of the constitution have no application to the case we have in hand" (Gienapp Kindle Locations 2190-2191).  He was happy to explain his reasoning behind war regulations regarding anti-war sentiment plainly.  He believed the safety of the Union required that habeas corpus be suspended and that the Constitution allowed for this in cases of rebellion.

This Fiery Trial, I-III

Abraham Lincoln attempted to enter in politics when he was twenty-three years old, with little education and no experience.  In his letter to the people of Sangamo County, he admitted that he is young and unknown.  He expressed trust in the people and the decision they would make whether or not to elect him.  This time they chose not to elect him, but he did win a significant number of votes.  Although he had limited education, he believed that education was important.

In 1834, Lincoln was elected and in 1936, he ran for reelection.  To the editor of the Sangamo Journal, he announced that he believed all white people should be able to vote as long as they paid taxes, including females.  Lincoln believed government played a critical role in organized society and announced that he himself would be governed entirely by the will of the people.  What people could do for themselves, he said, should not be handled by the government were acquainted.

In 1841, Lincoln broke off his engagement with Mary Todd and suffered from depression.  A couple years later, they were reunited and married.  In a letter to his wife in April 1848 he teases her: "I am afraid you will get so well, and fat, and young, as to be wanting to marry again. Tell Louisa I want her to watch you a little for me"(Gienapp Kindle Locations 371-372).  Lincoln was estranged from his father.  When his father was close to death, Lincoln did not visit him, nor did he attend the funeral.

Lincoln was uncomfortable with organized religion and never joined a church.  He did not deny the truth of the scriptures but he never spoke too extensively on his beliefs.  He was a private individual and did not tend to express his emotions.  Upon leaving Springfield to head to Washington, he broke this mold.  He spoke to the crowd and revealed "No one, not in my situation, can appreciate my feeling of sadness at this parting" (Gienapp Kindle Locations 1242-1243).

Slavery became the central issue of Lincoln's political career in 1854.  Lincoln was anti-slavery, but critical of abolitionists.  He wrote "that the promulgation of abolition doctrines tends rather to increase than to abate [slavery's] evils" (Gienapp Kindle Locations 187-188).  Lincoln believed slavery was an injustice that dehumanized African Americans and that made the United States look like hypocrites.

Lincoln opposed the Kansas-Nebraska Act.  He accused Stephen Douglas in a senatorial debate of "blowing out the moral lights around us" (Gienapp Kindle Locations 811-812) if slavery were to be allowed in the new territories if they became states.  He was not in favor of outlawing slavery where it already existed, but he believed it should not be allowed to extend any further than it already existed.  He did, however, think that slavery would ultimately be outlawed in all of the United States, which is what the founding fathers wanted to eventually take place.

While Lincoln believed slavery was morally wrong, he did not believe in the equality of the races.  He was "in favor of having the superior position assigned to the white race" (Gienapp Kindle Location 827).

Lincoln had strong beliefs about the important of keeping the law.  He also was a firm believer in diligence and against procrastination.  He believed free labor was the best option which allowed people to benefit from the work they did.  He also thought that labor and education were compatible.

Lincoln thought the Republican party should try to do everything they could do to work with the Confederacy and not respond out of passion.  But he believed the rebels could not be appeased.  He stated that "Even though the southern people will not so much as listen to us, let us calmly consider their demands, and yield to them if, in our deliberate view of our duty, we possibly can" (Gienapp Kindle Locations 1137-1138).  The Confederacy would only be happy if the Republicans stopped calling slavery wrong, which they would not do.

After Lincoln was elected, he wrote to assure the South that he would not interfere with slavery in the South, directly or indirectly.  In his inaugural address, he firmly denied that a state had the right to secede, calling it "anarchy" (Gienapp Kindle Location 1326).  He pledged to bring the Union back together and believed it could be done without bloodshed.  He stated that there was no conflict unless the Confederacy was the aggressor.

After the attack on Fort Sumpter, Lincoln called for 75,000 troops to serve for three months, but did not declare war on the Confederacy.  He called citizens of the Union "to favor, facilitate and aid this effort to maintain the honor, the integrity, and the existence of our National Union" (Gienapp Kindle Locations 1381-1382).

Lincoln felt sure that the government of Maryland would attempt to secede.  He authorized the Union General Winfield Scott to do whatever was necessary to keep Maryland from seceding.  In parts of Maryland, Lincoln suspended the writ of habeas corpus.  He justified these actions in a speech to Congress.

What Caused The Civil War?: Refection on Ayers

In his article, What Caused the Civil War?, Edward L. Ayers unpacks the different views regarding, as the name suggests, the cause of the Civil War.  He recounts an episode of the Simpson's where an individual taking his citizenship test attempts a lengthy explanation of the Civil War and is told by the official to "just say slavery."

While this explanation is somewhat accurate, historians are not satisfied with it.  There are two approaches to correcting faulty thinking regarding the cause of the Civil War.  The fundamentalists, who emphasize the conflict between free labor and slave labor, point to a struggle over the future of the United States and a struggle between slavery and freedom.  The revisionists tend to emphasize slavery less and focus more on events and political structures, like the fragmentation of the Democratic party and the election of Abraham Lincoln.  In both approaches, slavery plays a role, but much more predominately in the fundamentalist argument.

The Civil War was caused by small steps that led to big, unforeseen consequences.  Slavery was a large part of the problem.  But it was not slavery that caused the Civil War.  Confusion and misunderstanding between the North and South played a role.  The collision of politics and slavery steered the country to war, with print being a catalyst.  The action and reaction of people in the North and South to these events brought on the Civil War.

History does not have simple answers for why something happens and simple answers should be avoided.  We need to understand the society which is being studied as a whole.