Includes bibliographical references (pages 470-482) and index.
Summary
This book attempts to tell the story through the eyes of the original disputants, as they saw it at the time. It is not just about the Sumter crisis itself but about what it signified to that generation. It seeks to show what America was in 1860 and what it was becoming, and why certain forces drove her people into deadly and unavoidable conflict.
Contents
Prologue: Ship of foils -- Part I: The battle for Washington. November. Vox Populi -- Something old -- Something new -- The Senators from South Carolina -- A tale of three cities -- A change of command -- December. The politics of bewilderment -- Turning points -- At the brink -- Part II: The battle over secession. January. War beckons -- War recedes -- The peace puzzle -- February. Farewells and forebodings -- Two journeys -- Plums and nuts -- The waiting game -- Part III: The battle over Fort Sumter. March. Last gasps and first breaths -- Uneasy arrangements -- Decisions and delusions -- The great divide -- April. Ends without means -- April fools -- The good fight -- The price of pride.
