Description
By Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederate States of America (CSA). Written by the man who was at the very center of the CSA and who held its highest office, this remarkable history tells the story of the rebel republic right from its very beginning to its bitter end. It is not an exhaustive story of the “War between the States,” but rather the events of those times as experienced by the CSA President.
The author deals with the fundamental questions which caused the rupture: the issue of states’ rights, slavery, and the usurpation of the U.S. Constitution.
Although he denies that slavery was the real cause of the way, he does readily admit that the constitutionally guaranteed right of individual states to practice slavery was the fundamental constitutional issue over which the division came.
The author shows that in fact the Confederacy was adhering to the actual letter of the original U.S. Constitution, and this was doubtless an important reason why he was never brought to trial—as opponents feared he would prove this in court.
The majority of the book then describes the tumultuous events from 1861 to 1865 as he experienced them: the decision to open hostilities, the total unpreparedness of the South for a war of any sort, the reports from the front lines of the decisive turning point battles, and much more.
Along the way he deals with many of the long-mythologized aspects of the Confederacy: the truth around the alleged use of black slaves to fight for the CSA, the truth behind the “Fort Pillow Massacre,” and much more.
An extremely valuable historical document for anyone interested in a first-hand account of the CSA from the most senior source possible. Although titled a “short” history, it is anything but that.
Now completely reset with 203 brand new footnotes and annotations explaining personalities and events to the present-day reader, and 67 new and ultra-rare illustrations and photographs.
Softcover, 552 pages. #921
