Civil War History - Secession and PoliticsWas it Slavery, or was it States Rights? Perhaps it was the election of Lincoln? What were the real reasons for Southern Secession and what were the political issues in this time of war? Find your answers here in the Secession and Politics Disussion.
"The great desideratum in Government," wrote Madison, "is such a modification of the Sovereignty as will render it sufficiently neutral between the different interests and factions, to control one part of Society from invading the rights of another, and sufficiently controuled [sic] itself, from setting up an interest adverse to that of the whole Society. "
Yep. Lincoln admittedly came in with the interests of only one section of the country. The Republican manifesto had sucessfully sectionalized the nation as they planned. And Lincoln had only one section in mind with his protectionist idealogy. Too bad too.
Thank you for finding Madison's last thoughts. I know you don't agree with his last thoughts and have found much to explain to yourself why you don't agree and why he did say what he did at the end.
But I tend to like the idea of the man speaking for himself, don't you? I tend to go with the idea that when you are older, you tend to be more blunt and truthful, after you have been down life's rocky road. So, what were his last thoughts on the subject? This was part of them:
"The advice nearest to my heart and deepest in my convictions is that the Union of the States be cherished and perpetuated."
But Thea, what did Madison say about SECESSION in this document? His final words he felt were so important that he included them in his last will and testament, sort-of-speak?
I will end this post with the statements of another great man of the period, John Quincy Adams on the Jubilee of the Constitution, April 30, 1839.
"The Revolution itself was a work of thirteen years--and had never been completed until that day. The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States are parts of one consistent whole, founded upon one and the same theory of government, then new in practice, though not as a theory, for it had been working itself into the mind of man for many ages, and had been especially expounded in the writings of Locke, though it had never before been adopted by a great nation in practice."
"There are yet, even at this day, many speculative objections to this theory. Even in our own country there are still those philosophers who deny the principles asserted in the Declaration, as self-evident truths--who deny the natural equality and inalienable rights of man--who deny that the people are the only legitimate source of power--who deny that all just powers of government are derived from the consent of the governed. Neither your time, nor perhaps the cheerful nature of this occasion, permit me here to enter upon examination of this anti-revolutionary theory, which arrays State sovereignty against the constituent sovereignty of the people, and distorts the Constitution of the United States into a league of friendship between confederate corporations. <u>I speak to matters of fact. There is the Declaration of Independence, and there is the Constitution of the United States--let them speak for themselves.</u>The grossly immoral and dishonest doctrine of despotic State sovereignty, the exclusive judge of its own obligations, and responsible to no power on earth or in heaven, for the violation of them, is not there. The Declaration says, <u>it is not in me.</u> <u>The Constitution says, IT IS NOT IN ME.</u>
I await your reply,
Unionblue
Sincerely,
Unionblue
(Message edited by Unionblue on January 21, 2004)
(Message edited by Unionblue on January 21, 2004)
__________________ "The American people and the Government at Washington may refuse to recognize it for a time but the inexorable logic of events will force it upon them in the end; that the war now being waged in this land is a war for and against slavery." Frederick Douglass
"Loyalty to our ancestors does not include loyalty to their mistakes." George Santayana
I know that you have read that William Rawle and his View on the Constitution authorized secession, that it was even taught at West Point for a year or two.
But have you read what Rawle said about the effects of secession? I give you this section from Chapter XXXII, entitled, OF THE PERMANENCE OF THE UNION.
"The consequences of an absolute secession cannot be mistaken, and they would be serious and afflicting.
The seceding state, whatever might be its relative magnitude, would speedily and distinctly feel the loss of the aid and conuntenance of the Union. The Union losing a proportion of the national revenue, would be entitled to demand from it a proportion of the national debt. It would be entitled to treat the inhabitants and the commerce of the separated state, as appertaining to a foreign country. In public treaties already made, whether commercial or political, it could claim no participation, while foreign powers would unwillingly calculate, and slowly transfer to it, any portion of the respect and confidence borne towards the United States."
Evils more alarming may readily be perceived. The destruction of the common hand would be unavoidably attended with more serious consequences that the mere disunion of the parts.
Seperation would produce jealousies and discord, which in time would ripen into mutual hostilities, and while our country would be weakened by internal war, foreign enemies would be encouraged to invade with the flattering prospect of subduing in detail, those whom, collectively, they would dread to encounter.
Such in ancient time was the fate of Greece, broken into numerous independent republics. Rome, which pursued a contrary policy, and absorbed all her territorial acquistions in one great body, attained irresistible power...
In every aspect therefore which this great subject presents, we feel the deepest impression of a sacred obligation to preserve the union of our country; we feel our glory, our safety, and our happiness, involved in it; we unite the interests of those who coldly calculate advantages with those who glow with what is little short of filial affection; and we must resist the attempt of its own citizens to destroy it, with the same feelings that we should avert the dagger of the parricide."
Wow! Really is something if you take the time to read all of it.
I invite you to read the rest of what he said check it out at the following site:
Just click on Chapter XXXII and scroll on down to about the last two pages. Makes for very interesting reading.
YMOS,
Unionblue
(Message edited by Unionblue on January 22, 2004)
(Message edited by uNIONBLUE on January 23, 2004)
__________________ "The American people and the Government at Washington may refuse to recognize it for a time but the inexorable logic of events will force it upon them in the end; that the war now being waged in this land is a war for and against slavery." Frederick Douglass
"Loyalty to our ancestors does not include loyalty to their mistakes." George Santayana
Where did the theory of secession come from? When was the word or concept first used? When did it burst forth on the American political stage?
I, myself, cannot begin with the American Revolution. To try and imply that this was our first 'secession' movement is simply ridiculous to me. The 13 colonies knew they were in rebellion, an illegal one, and they knew the consequences if they failed in that rebellion. We are in luck today, because they did win at their attempt at illegal rebellion.
What does the term secession define or mean? Who raised this up to the point it was considered and discussed?
I await your responses.
Unionblue
__________________ "The American people and the Government at Washington may refuse to recognize it for a time but the inexorable logic of events will force it upon them in the end; that the war now being waged in this land is a war for and against slavery." Frederick Douglass
"Loyalty to our ancestors does not include loyalty to their mistakes." George Santayana
This is a bit off the beaten track from your question, Neil, but I want to get things straight on some of the other areas. Nothing earth-shattering, mind you, but something to indicate the mood and mind-set of the period.
News of the attack on Ft. Sumter was accompanied by Lincoln's call for 75,000 men to "put down the rebellion", and it had the desired effect. It blew the bugle and unified the Northern people, whetting their appetite for war; but it also unified the Southern people. It confirmed in the Northern mind that the South was determined upon destroying the Union completely, and it confirmed in the Southern mind what Southerners had long known, that Lincoln had been elected to make war upon them.
Lincoln well knew that in spite of the emotions aroused in the North by the abolitionists, the Northern people would not fight to free the Negroes. There would have to be a better cause and a good slogan to rally the enthusiasm of troops as well as the folks at home. For years he had been selling "Union" as the major issue, and just about all of his speeches emphasized it. The slogan "The Union Must Be Preserved!" caught on and convinced people in the North that they were fighting to prevent complete dissolution of the Union. Somehow secession of the Southern states would make continuation of any kind of union impossible anywhere. Nobody asked why it would, or how you could preserve something by destroying it. That was mob manipulation.
The basis of Lincoln's attitude was that secession had been carried out by a limited number of Southern leaders and that union could be restored when these people had been captured and punished. Obviously, this was fiction and Lincoln knew it. He could not help but know that secession had been voted overwhelmingly by the people themselves, and it took no great political genius to see that the South was united as few nations have been, though it had just come into being as a nation itself.
How Lincoln arrived at the figure of 75,000 men to "put down the rebellion" would be interesting to know. It could not have been calculated by any competent military authority. (Before fighting ended he had put 2,213,000 men under arms.) A call for a larger number may have aroused violent opposition on the part of too many people. It is true there were only 7 states "in rebellion" at the time, but he must have known that he was forcing the other 8 to decide between Union and independence, and he must have been shrewd enough to guess the outcome. True also, he had the regular army intact except for the officers who had already resigned (enlisted men can't resign) but he knew he would lose some more when other states seceded. On the other hand, the Southern states had no army except some uncoordinated independent units, and no navy.
Whether or not secession was the wisest course at the time and under the circumstances depends on what the alternatives appeared to be. Southern leaders were of the opinion that complete ruin faced the South, that the whole section was, as George Mason had said, being bound hand and foot and delivered into the hands of New England, that is, the ruthless group that had become powerful through a phenominal industrial development. Few Southerners were any longer of the belief that an alternative to war could be reached in the bitterness aroused by the abolitionists.
It is ironic that it was moderates like Davis whose efforts had postponed secession to the disadvantage of the South. The so-called "Fire-Eaters" who had urged secession for years before were really far-sighted, radical though they were. Had the South seceded at almost any time prior to 1860, they would almost certainly have succeeded in gaining their independence.
The longer the South waited, the heavier the odds against them became. The West was developing fast, and the Northeast was rapidly gathering wealth and the technology that would produce more efficient weaponry. The interests of the border states had not swung as much toward the North and they probably would have gone with their sister states. On the other hand, if secession could have been postponed just a few years, the technology of peace might have averted it.
__________________ Thea
No one has permission to use any material from any of my posts on any CWT forum, the archives, or any other forum without my express written permission.
"News of the attack on Ft. Sumter was accompanied by Lincoln's call for 75,000 men to 'put down the rebellion', and it had the desired effect. It blew the bugle and unified the Northern people, whetting their appetite for war;"
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The people of the North and the West were already unified. They had voted for Lincoln in the face of secession threats, and during the secession crisis they made their feelings known. The Minnesota Legislature passed the following resolution almost a month-and-a-half before Lincoln was even inaugurated:
Joint Resolutions of the Legislature of the State of Minnesota, on the state of the Union. Adopted January 22, 1861.
1. Resolved, That one of the vital and necessary principles which form the basis of all free governments, is that the constitutional majority must always rule. And therefore, the right of the people of any State to withdraw from the Union, thereby hazarding the liberties and happiness of the millions comprising this Confederacy, can never be acknowledged by us under any circumstances.
We regard secession upon the part of any State as amounting directly to revolution, and precipitating civil war with all its sad train of consequences.
2. Resolved, That the people of the State of Minnesota re-iterate their unalterable devotion to the Constitution of the United States, and that if its provisions are strictly observed, it will, in its own words, ensure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessing of liberty to ourselves and our posterity.
3. Resolved, That ABRAHAM LINCOLN and HANNIBAL HAMLIN, having been constitutionally and legally elected President and Vice President of the United States, at a general election fully and freely participated in, on the same day, by the people of every State of the Union, South as well as North, that any attempt to dissolve or destroy the Union on account thereof, is without excuse or justification, and should receive the condemnation of every patriot in the land.
4. Resolved, That we have heard with astonishment and indignation of the recent outrages perpetrated at Charleston, South Carolina, by firing upon an American steamer, sailing under the flag of our country, and that we expect of the General Government the strongest and most vigorous effort to assert its supremacy, and to check the work of rebellion and treason. Fully impressed with our duty to make every possible effort to uphold the Union, and to maintain the authority of the General Government, we hereby tender to the President of the United States, for that purpose, through the Governor of this State, aid in men and money, to the extent of our ability.
When one or more States erect the standard of disunion, and place themselves in military array against the Government bequeathed to us by our ancestors, we can discover no other honorable or patriotic resource than to test, both on land and on ocean, the full strength of the Federal authority under our National Flag.
5. Resolved, That we declare to each State of this Union our sincere desire to secure a renewal of that fraternal feeling which ought always to exist between citizens of a common country, and which distinguished the history of the nation for more than half a century. Especially do we express to those patriotic citizens of the Southern States, who have nobly and manfully exerted their utmost effort to prevent the catastrophe of dissolution, our sincere gratitude and highest admiration.
6. Resolved, That the most sincere thanks of the nation are justly due to that distinguished patriot and veteran, Lt. General Winfield Scott for the prompt and decisive steps he has taken to stay the tide of revolution, and for the determined spirit he has evinced in maintaining the honor of our Government.
7. Resolved, That we never will consent or submit to the obstruction of the free navigation of the Mississippi river, from its source to its mouth, by any power hostile to the Federal Government.
8. Resolved, That the Governor of this State is hereby requested to transmit a copy of these resolutions to the President of the United States, to Lt. General Winfield Scott, and to each of our Senators and Representatives in the Congress of the United States, and to the Governors of the several States.
IGNATIUS DONNELLY,
President of the Senate.
JARED BENSON,
Speaker of the House of Representatives.
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While New Jersey was more willing to pursue compromise, they were also unalterably opposed to a breakup of the Union. New Jersey passed this resolution around the same time Minnesota passed theirs:
Joint Resolutions in relation to the Union of the States.
Whereas, the people of New Jersey, conforming to the opinion of "the Father of his Country," consider the unity of the government, which constitutes the people of the United States one people, a main pillar in the edifice of their independence, the support of their tranquility at home and peace abroad, of their prosperity, and of that liberty which they so highly prize; and properly estimating the immense value of their National Union to their individual happiness, they cherish a cordial, habitual and immovable attachment to it as the palladium of their political safety and prosperity---therefore,
1. Be it resolved by the Senate and General Assembly Of the State of New Jersey, That it is the duty of every good citizen, in all suitable and proper ways, to stand by and sustain the Union of the States as transmitted to us by our fathers.
2. And be it resolved, That the government of the United States is a national government, and the Union it was designed to perfect is not a mere compact or league; and that the constitution was adopted in a spirit of mutual compromise and concession by the people of the United States, and can only be preserved by the constant recognition of that spirit.
3. And be it resolved, That however undoubted way be the right of the general government to maintain its authority and enforce its laws over all parts of the country, it is equally certain that forbearance and compromise are indispensable at this crisis to the perpetuity of the Union, and that it is the dictate of reason, wisdom and patriotism peacefully to adjust whatever differences exist between the different sections of our country.
4. And be it resolved, That the resolutions and propositions submitted to the Senate of the United States by the Hon. John J. Crittenden of Ky., for the compromise of the questions in dispute between the people of the Northern and of the Southern States, or any other constitutional method that will permanently settle the question of slavery, will be acceptable to the people of the State of New Jersey, and the Senators and Representatives in Congress from New Jersey be requested and earnestly alleged to support those resolutions and propositions.
5. And be it resolved, That as the Union of the States is in imminent danger, unless the remedies before suggested be speedily adopted, then, as a last resort, the State of New Jersey hereby makes application, according to the terms of the constitution, of the Congress of the United States to call a convention (of the States) to propose amendments to said constitution.
6. And be it resolved, That such of the States as have in force laws which interfere with the constitutional rights of citizens of the other States, either in regard to their persons or property, or which militate against, the just construction of that part of the constitution that provides that "the citizens of each State shall be entitled to all the privileges and immunities of citizens in the several States," are earnestly urged and requested, for the sake of peace and the Union, to repeal all such laws.
7. And be it resolved, That his Excellency Charles S. Olden, Peter D. Yroom Robert F. Stockton Benjamin Williamson, Joseph F. Randolph, Frederick T. Frelinghuysen, Rodman M. Price, William C. Alexander, and Thomas J. Stryker be appointed commissioners to confeer with Congress and our sister States, and urge upon them the importance of carrying into effect the principles and objects of the foregoing resolutions.
8. And be it resolved, That the commissioners above named, in addition to their other powers, be authorized to meet with those now or hereafter to be appointed by our sister State of Virginia, and such commissioners of other states as have been, or may be hereafter appointed, to meet at Washington on the fourth day of February next.
9. And be it resolved, That copies of the foregoing resolutions be sent to the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House of Representatives of the United States, and to the Senators and Representatives in Congress from New Jersey, and to the Governors of the several States.
Senate of New Jersey, January 24, 1861
These resolutions having been three times read and compared in the Senate,
Resolved, That the same do pass.
By order of the Senate,
EDMUND PERRY, President.
In the House of Assembly, January 25, 1861
These resolutions having been three times read and compared in the House of Assembly,
Resolved, That the same do pass.
By order of the House of Assembly,
F.H. TEESE, Speaker.
Approved, January 29, 1861.
CHARLES S. OLDEN, Governor.
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New York's resolution was passed even earlier:
Concurrent Resolutions tendering aid to the President of the United States in support of the Constitution and the Union
STATE OF, NEW YORK.
In Assembly, Jan. 11, 1861.
Whereas, Treason, as defined by the Constitution of the United States, exists in one or more of the States of this Confederacy, and
Whereas, the insurgent State of South Carolina after seizing the Post Office, Custom House, Moneys and Fortifications of the Federal Government, has, by firing into a vessel ordered by the Government to convey troops and provisions to Fort Sumter, virtually declared war; and whereas, the forts and property of the United States Government in Georgia, Alabama and Louisiana, have been unlawfully seized with hostile intentions; and whereas, further, Senators in Congress avow and maintain their treasonable acts; therefore
Resolved, (If the Senate concur,) That the Legislature of New York, profoundly impressed with the value of the Union, and determined to preserve it unimpaired, hail with joy the recent firm, dignified and patriotic Special Message of the President of the United States, and that we tender to him, through the Chief Magistrate of our own State, whatever aid in men and money he may require to enable him to enforce the laws and upheld the authority of the Federal Government. And that in defence of "the more perfect Union," which has conferred prosperity and happiness upon the American people, renewing the pledge given and redeemed by our Fathers, we are ready to devote "our fortunes, our lives, and our sacred honor" in upholding, the Union and the Constitution.
Resolved, (If the Senate concur,) That the Union-loving Representatives and Citizens of Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, Kentucky, Missouri and Tennessee, who labor with devoted courage and patriotism to withhold their States from the vortex of Secession, are entitled to the gratitude and admiration of the whole people.
Resolved, (If the Senate concur,) That the Governor be respectfully requested to forward, forthwith, copies of the foregoing resolutions to the President of the Nation, and the Governors of all the States of the Union.
The preceding Preamble and Resolutions were duly passed.
By order. H.A. RISLEY, Clerk.
In Senate, January 11, 1861. The preceding Preamble and Resolutions were duly passed.
By order. JAMES TERWILLIGER, Clerk.
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Ohio also passed resolutions around this time:
Joint Resolutions of the General Assembly of the State of Ohio, passed January 12, 1861.
RESOLVED by the General Assembly of the State of Ohio, as follows:
1. That the people of Ohio, believing that the preservation of the Unity of Government that constitutes the American people one people, is essential to the support of their tranquility at home, of their peace abroad, of their safety, of their prosperity, and of that very liberty which they so highly prize, are firmly and ardently attached to the National Constitution and the Union of the States.
2. That the General Government cannot permit the secession of any State without violating the obligations by which it is bound, under the compact, to the other States and to every citizen of the United States.
3. That, whilst the constitutional rights of every State in the Union should be preserved inviolate, the powers and authority of the National Government must be maintained, and the laws of Congress faithfully enforced, in every State and Territory, until repealed by Congress or adjudged to be unconstitutional by the proper ,judicial tribunal; and all attempts by State authorities to nullify the Constitution of the United States or the laws of the Federal Government, or to resist the execution thereof, are revolutionary in their character, and tend to the disruption of the best and wisest system of government in the world.
4. That the people of Ohio are inflexibly opposed to intermeddling with the internal affairs and domestic relations of the other States of the Union; in the same manner and to the same extent as they are opposed to any interference by the people of other States with their domestic concerns.
5. That it is the will and purpose of the people of Ohio to fulfil, in good faith, all their obligations under the Constitution of the United States, according to the spirit and intent thereof; and they demand the faithful discharge of the same duty by every State in the Union; and thus, as far as may be, to insure tranquility between the State of Ohio and the other States.
6. That it is incumbent upon any States having enactments on their statute books, conflicting with or rendering less efficient the Constitution or laws of the United States, to repeal them: and it is equally incumbent upon the General Government and the several States to secure to every citizen of the Union his rights in every State under that provision of the Constitution which guarantees to the citizens of each State all the privileges and immunities of the citizens of the several States, and thus inspire and restore confidence and a spirit of fraternal feeling between the different States of the Union.
7. That the Union loving citizens of those States who have labored, and still labor with devotional courage and patriotism, to withhold their States from the vortex of secession, are entitled to the admiration and gratitude of the whole American people.
8. That we hail with joy, the recent firm, dignified and patriotic special message of the President of the United States, and that the entire power and resources of Ohio, are hereby pledged whenever necessary and demanded, for the maintenance under strict subordination to the civil authority, of the Constitution and Laws of the General Government, by whomsoever administered.
9. That the Governor be requested to forward, forthwith, copies of the foregoing resolutions to the President of the nation, and to the Governors of all the States of the Union, and to each of the Senators and Representatives in Congress from this State, to be by them presented to each branch of the National Legislature.
ATTEST:
R. C. PARSONS,
Speaker of the House of Representatives.
R. C. KIRK,
President of the Senate.
Adopted by the Legislature of Pennsylvania, Jan. 24, 1861
Joint Resolutions relative to the maintenance of the Constitution and the Union.
WHEREAS, A Convention of delegates assembled in the city of Charleston, in the State of South Carolina, did on the twentieth day of December, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty, adopt an ordinance entitled "An ordinance to dissolve the union between the State of South Carolina and other States united with her, under the compact, entitled the Constitution of the United States of America," whereby it is declared that the said Union is dissolved:
AND WHEREAS, It becomes the duty or the people of Pennsylvania, through their representatives in this General Assembly, to make known what they consider to be the objects sought, and the obligations and duties imposed by the Constitution; be it therefore,
Resolved, By the Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, In General Assembly met, and it is hereby resolved, That the Constitution of the United States of America, was ordained and established as set forth in its preamble, by the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to themselves and their posterity, and if the people of any State in this Union, are not in the fall enjoyment of all the benefits intended to be secured to them by the said Constitution, if their rights under it are disregarded, their tranquility disturbed, their prosperity retarded, or their liberties imperiled by the people of any other State, full and adequate redress can, and ought to be provided for such grievances, through the action of Congress, and other proper departments of the National Government.
2. Resolved, That the people of Pennsylvania, entertain and desire to cherish "the most fraternal sentiments for their brethren of other States, and are ready now, as they have ever been, to co-operate in all measures needful for their welfare, security and happiness, under the Constitution which makes us one people. That while they cannot surrender their love of liberty inherited from the founders of their State, sealed with the blood of the Revolution, and witnessed in the history of their legislation, and while they claim the observance of all their rights under the Constitution, they nevertheless maintain now, as they have ever done, the Constitutional rights of the people of the slaveholding States, to the uninterrupted enjoyment of their own domestic institutions.
3. Resolved, That we adopt the sentiment and language of President Andrew Jackson, expressed in his message to Congress, on the sixteenth day of January, one thousand eight hundred and thirty-three: "That the right of the people of a single State, to absolve themselves at will, and without the consent of the other States, from their most solemn obligations, and hazard the liberties and happiness of the millions composing this Union, cannot be acknowledged; and that such authority is utterly repugnant, both to the principles upon which the general government is constituted, and the objects which it was expressly formed to attain."
4. Resolved, That the Constitution of the United States America, contains all tile powers necessary to the maintenance of its authority,. and it is the solemn and most imperative duty of the government, to adopt and carry into effect whatever measures may be necessary to that end, and the faith and the power of Pennsylvania, are hereby pledged to the support of such measures, in any manner, and to any extent that may be required of her, by the constituted authorities of the United States.
5. Resolved, That all plots, conspiracies and warlike demonstrations against the United States, in any section of the country, are treasonable in their character, and whatever power of the government is necessary to their suppression, should be applied to that purpose without hesitation or delay.
6. Resolved, That the Governor be, and be is hereby requested to transmit a copy of these Resolutions to the President of the United States, properly attested, under the Great Seal of the Commonwealth, and like attested copies to the Governors of the several States of this Union, and also to our Senators and Representatives in Congress, who are hereby requested to present the same to the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States.
(Signed.) E.W. Davis
Speaker of the House of Representatives
(Signed.) ROBT. M. PALMER
Speaker of the Senate
Approved --- The twenty-fourth day of January, Anno Domini, one thousand eight hundred and sixty-one.
(Signed.) A.G. CURTIN
"but it also unified the Southern people."
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That was Davis' object in ordering the attack on Fort Sumter.
"Lincoln well knew that in spite of the emotions aroused in the North by the abolitionists, the Northern people would not fight to free the Negroes. There would have to be a better cause and a good slogan to rally the enthusiasm of troops as well as the folks at home. For years he had been selling 'Union' as the major issue, and just about all of his speeches emphasized it."
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I don't deny that Lincoln was a Unionist, but can you provide a few examples of just about all his speeches emphasizing Union as the major issue prior to his election?
"The slogan 'The Union Must Be Preserved!' caught on and convinced people in the North that they were fighting to prevent complete dissolution of the Union."
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As shown, no convincing was necessary. They were already primed to fight for preserving the Union. "The Union Must Be Preserved" was not new with the Civil War. Those were Andrew Jackson's words from 1830.
I think folks will find this quotation interesting:
"Early in his administration the country was convulsed by deep dissatisfaction against an impost law, (the tariff of 1828) placed on the statute book before he came into office. President Jackson viewed that law with no favor, his friends generally desired its repeal, but his was not the department of government which could repeal a law or judge of its constitutionality, however unjust, impolitic, and unequally oppressive it might be, his duty was, whilst it remained a law to see it faithfully executed. His whole power over the subject of modification or repeal, was exhausted in his messages to congress. Resistance to the laws it was his duty to suppress by all the means at his command, and when loud and deep were heard threats of disunion, the destruction of that confederacy, the establishment of which had cost him all except his honor and his life, he resolved, cost what it might, to save it.
"The agony with which he viewed the prospect of fraternal strife, and on the land where lay the bones of all his kindred, speaks forth in these few word[s], 'The Union, it must be preserved.' Long live that maxim, and may our Union ever be preserved by justice conciliation and brotherhood, without a spot, without a stain of blood that flowed in civil war." [Jefferson Davis, "Eulogy on the Life and Character of Andrew Jackson," Vicksburg, Mississippi, 28 Jun 1845, From _The Papers of Jefferson Davis,_ Vol 2, pp. 266-81. Transcribed from the Vicksburg Sentinel and Expositor, July 15, 1845]
"Somehow secession of the Southern states would make continuation of any kind of union impossible anywhere. Nobody asked why it would,"
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It was the argument the Founders had made over and over again. See the Federalist Papers, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and George Washington.
"or how you could preserve something by destroying it."
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How did the Federals destroy the Union?
"The basis of Lincoln's attitude was that secession had been carried out by a limited number of Southern leaders and that union could be restored when these people had been captured and punished. Obviously, this was fiction and Lincoln knew it. He could not help but know that secession had been voted overwhelmingly by the people themselves, and it took no great political genius to see that the South was united as few nations have been, though it had just come into being as a nation itself."
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Actually, secession was a pretty close-run thing in more than a couple of the confederate states. The confederates were nowhere near as united as you claim. A white Union regiment came from every southern state except South Carolina, and there were pockets of Unionism all around the south. Lincoln misjudged the situation. He didn't have the perfect knowledge you credit him with having.
"How Lincoln arrived at the figure of 75,000 men to "put down the rebellion" would be interesting to know. It could not have been calculated by any competent military authority. (Before fighting ended he had put 2,213,000 men under arms.)"
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Actually it was. They didn't have the arms and equipment for more men. The government would have to purchase more arms, uniforms, and equipment for more men. [See Henry Ketcham, _The Life of Abraham Lincoln,_ Chapt 27: "Lincoln had prepared his call for 75,000 volunteer troops. Douglas thought the number should have been 200,000. So it should, and so doubtless it would, had it not been for certain iniquities of Buchanan's mal-administration. There were no arms, accouterments, clothing. Floyd had well-nigh stripped the northern arsenals. Lincoln could not begin warlike preparations on any great scale because that was certain to precipitate the war which he so earnestly strove to avoid." ]
Remember also that 75,000 was almost five times as many men as the U.S. had in arms already in 1861. Relatively speaking, it was a huge mobilization when compared with the starting point.
"A call for a larger number may have aroused violent opposition on the part of too many people. It is true there were only 7 states 'in rebellion' at the time, but he must have known that he was forcing the other 8 to decide between Union and independence, and he must have been shrewd enough to guess the outcome."
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Again, you credit him with having perfect knowledge. Once the confederates fired on Fort Sumter, Lincoln had no real choice but to respond with force. Right up to the firing on Fort Sumter Lincoln believed, wrongly as it turned out, the whole secession thing was a bluff. It's critical to understand this because once this is understood, his actions throughout the Sumter crisis fall into place.
"True also, he had the regular army intact except for the officers who had already resigned (enlisted men can't resign) but he knew he would lose some more when other states seceded. On the other hand, the Southern states had no army except some uncoordinated independent units, and no navy."
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Not so. The confederacy was rapidly becoming an armed camp. Fort Sumter was surrounded by artillery batteries, as was Fort Pickens. The Deep South's state militia had all been turned over to the control of the central confederate government. The confederate government was calling the shots at Fort Sumter and had been for about a month.
"Whether or not secession was the wisest course at the time and under the circumstances depends on what the alternatives appeared to be. Southern leaders were of the opinion that complete ruin faced the South, that the whole section was, as George Mason had said, being bound hand and foot and delivered into the hands of New England, that is, the ruthless group that had become powerful through a phenominal industrial development."
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Please, please, please look at the U.S. Census for 1860. There had been no "phenominal industrial development" yet. There were more farms in New England than factories. There were way more farmers in New England than factory workers. The cash value of farms in New England was $476,303,837, whereas the capital invested in manufacturing for that region was $257,477,783. New England still had an agrarian economy, not yet an industrial one.
I have read it many times on this post that secession was not a purely Southern idea or concept.
We have heard of the Hartford Convention and other New England claims of secession during the war of 1812 and when President Jefferson made the Louisiana Purchase and that somehow these incidents make the theory of secession by the South justifiable, even legal in some way.
How can this conclusion be supported in light of the one simple fact that stands out for each and every one of these earlier attempts. Secession did not take place, not once. Why didn't it? If these earlier attempts were justifiable, why didn't these sections of the country exercise the 'right' of secession? Who opposed them? And why?
YMOS,
Unionblue
__________________ "The American people and the Government at Washington may refuse to recognize it for a time but the inexorable logic of events will force it upon them in the end; that the war now being waged in this land is a war for and against slavery." Frederick Douglass
"Loyalty to our ancestors does not include loyalty to their mistakes." George Santayana
Some folks claim the Hartford Convention was a secessionist convention. It was not.
"The character of the twenty-six delegates at the convention also boded well. George Cabot, Nathan Dane, and [Harrison Gray] Otis headed the Massachusetts delegation; Chauncey Goodrich and James Hillhoun, the Connecticut delegation; and Daniel Lyman and Samuel Ward the Rhode Island delegation. Except for Timothy Bigelow and perhaps one or two others, all the delegates were moderates, hardly the sort to promote violent measures. Radicals like Blake, Quincy, and Fessenden were purposely excluded from the meeting." [Donald R. Hickey, _The War of 1812: A Forgotten Conflict,_ University of Illinois Press, 1989, page 275]
The convention, dominated by moderates, had perhaps as many as three radicals. "The only known radical, Bigelow, was given no committee assignments and apparently did not play a major role in the proceedings. Nor was there any sign of disunion." [Hickey, _The War of 1812,_ p. 277]
"The Hartford Convention pressed the administration to explain its inattention to the immigrant problem: 'Why admit to a participation in the government,' asked the convention report, 'aliens who were not parties to the compact--who are ignorant of the nature of our institutions and have no stake in the welfare of the country but what is recent and transitory?' " [James M. Banner, Jr., _To the Hartford Convention: The Federalists and the Origins of Party Politics in Massachusetts, 1789-1815,_ 1969, page 94]
"Although the election of 1800 dashed their hopes of constitutional and statutory revision, they persisted throughout the Jeffersonian era in their plans. The Hartford Convention culminated their efforts to gain a hearing for an amendment to prohibit naturalized citizens from holding 'any civil office' under national authority. In the convention report which it is generally agreed he wrote, Otis, the undisputed champion of American nativists, attacked 'the easy admission of naturalized foreigners, to places of trust, honour or profit, operating as an inducement to the malcontent subjects of the old world to come to these States, in quest of executive patronage, and to repay it by an abject devotion to executive measures.' " [Banner, _To the Hartford Convention,_ p. 98]
Banner tells us it was the radical Federalists who "encouraged secessionist sentiment and countenanced plans for disunion." [Banner, _To the Hartford Convention,_ p. 141]
But as we've seen, there weren't more than two or three radicals at the most in the convention. Because of this the convention can't seriously be characterized as being about secession.
The Hartford Convention was about the grievances New England Federalists had concerning the administration. They drafted a very moderate report that in no way endorsed secession, and there is no evidence a secession proposal would ever have had a chance. To claim it was about secession is a total mischaracterization of the convention. This mischaracterization was done at the times for political reasons. Because the proceedings of the convention were kept secret, it left a vacuum of information. As we all know, nature abhors a vacuum, and it was filled with misinformation from Jefferson's Republicans. Because there was no word out of Hartford about what they were doing, that misinformation became a widespread impression and helped lead to the eventual demise of the Federalists as a political party.
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