Davis Jefferson Davis: "The Lover"

[DBF]

After reading a bit about Varina's wit and independent nature ~ something Davis must have found attractive at some point (until she had an opinion that differed from his own perhaps...ha...not that any of us have experience with that ) ~ I wonder what Sarah was like.

I imagine in the eyes of Jefferson Davis, Sarah was "perfect" and Varina wasn't.

 

[FarawayFriend]

Knoxie died to soon, she could not disappoint him in any way in this short time they had together. They were both young and he had expended considerable effort to get her hand... how could she be anything less than perfect to him?

 

[LoriAnn]

I imagine in the eyes of Jefferson Davis, Sarah was "perfect" and Varina wasn't.

Knoxie died to soon, she could not disappoint him in any way in this short time they had together.

Very true. Davis and Sarah did not have years and years of struggles, whereas he and Varina were put through the ringer.

I suspect the age difference between Davis and Varina didn't help either. Not that May December relationships can't work, but at some point, the maturity levels and degrees of experience are bound to clash.

I wonder if Davis blamed himself for Sarah's death. That's tough to carry around.

 

[FarawayFriend]

I suspect the age difference between Davis and Varina didn't help either. Not that May December relationships can't work, but at some point, the maturity levels and degrees of experience are bound to clash.

Exactly! What is surprising is that, although Varina had "run the machine" often enough when Davis was incapacitated by his many ailments, in the end he still did dot recognize her as a partner, if not as his beloved wife. Maybe he has suppressed that memory. Or he was too embarrassed. It is said that Varina, who had learned to imitate Davis' handwriting, had even given orders. Maybe he later was embarrassed to have let her take the steering wheel and chose to forget how important Varina had been to him and to the Confederacy.

I wonder if Davis blamed himself for Sarah's death.

I don't think he blamed himself for her death, but he will have reasoned with fate or his Lord why she had to die and he had to survive. What a tragedy! No wonder it changed him!