Lincoln's Autocrat

Lincoln's Autocrat

Author: William Marvel

Publisher: UNC Press Books

Published: 2015-04-15

Total Pages: 632

ISBN-13: 1469622505

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Edwin M. Stanton (1814-1869), one of the nineteenth century's most impressive legal and political minds, wielded enormous influence and power as Lincoln's secretary of war during most of the Civil War and under Johnson during the early years of Reconstruction. In the first full biography of Stanton in more than fifty years, William Marvel offers a detailed reexamination of Stanton's life, career, and legacy. Marvel argues that while Stanton was a formidable advocate and politician, his character was hardly benign. Climbing from a difficult youth to the pinnacle of power, Stanton used his authority--and the public coffers--to pursue political vendettas, and he exercised sweeping wartime powers with a cavalier disregard for civil liberties. Though Lincoln's ability to harness a cabinet with sharp divisions and strong personalities is widely celebrated, Marvel suggests that Stanton's tenure raises important questions about Lincoln's actual control over the executive branch. This insightful biography also reveals why men like Ulysses S. Grant considered Stanton a coward and a bully, who was unashamed to use political power for partisan enforcement and personal preservation.


Book Synopsis Lincoln's Autocrat by : William Marvel

Download or read book Lincoln's Autocrat written by William Marvel and published by UNC Press Books. This book was released on 2015-04-15 with total page 632 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Edwin M. Stanton (1814-1869), one of the nineteenth century's most impressive legal and political minds, wielded enormous influence and power as Lincoln's secretary of war during most of the Civil War and under Johnson during the early years of Reconstruction. In the first full biography of Stanton in more than fifty years, William Marvel offers a detailed reexamination of Stanton's life, career, and legacy. Marvel argues that while Stanton was a formidable advocate and politician, his character was hardly benign. Climbing from a difficult youth to the pinnacle of power, Stanton used his authority--and the public coffers--to pursue political vendettas, and he exercised sweeping wartime powers with a cavalier disregard for civil liberties. Though Lincoln's ability to harness a cabinet with sharp divisions and strong personalities is widely celebrated, Marvel suggests that Stanton's tenure raises important questions about Lincoln's actual control over the executive branch. This insightful biography also reveals why men like Ulysses S. Grant considered Stanton a coward and a bully, who was unashamed to use political power for partisan enforcement and personal preservation.


Stanton

Stanton

Author: Walter Stahr

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Published: 2017-08-08

Total Pages: 768

ISBN-13: 1476739307

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"Of the crucial men close to President Lincoln, Secretary of War Edwin Stanton (1814-1869) was the most powerful and controversial. Stanton raised, armed, and supervised the army of a million men who won the Civil War. He organized the war effort. He directed military movements from his telegraph office, where Lincoln literally hung out with him ... Now with this worthy complement to the enduring library of biographical accounts of those who helped Lincoln preserve the Union, Stanton honors the indispensable partner of the sixteenth president"--


Book Synopsis Stanton by : Walter Stahr

Download or read book Stanton written by Walter Stahr and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2017-08-08 with total page 768 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Of the crucial men close to President Lincoln, Secretary of War Edwin Stanton (1814-1869) was the most powerful and controversial. Stanton raised, armed, and supervised the army of a million men who won the Civil War. He organized the war effort. He directed military movements from his telegraph office, where Lincoln literally hung out with him ... Now with this worthy complement to the enduring library of biographical accounts of those who helped Lincoln preserve the Union, Stanton honors the indispensable partner of the sixteenth president"--


Lincoln's Spies

Lincoln's Spies

Author: Douglas Waller

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Published: 2019-08-06

Total Pages: 624

ISBN-13: 1501126873

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This major addition to the history of the Civil War is a “fast-paced, fact-rich account” (The Wall Street Journal) offering a detailed look at President Abraham Lincoln’s use of clandestine services and the secret battles waged by Union spies and agents to save the nation—filled with espionage, sabotage, and intrigue. Veteran CIA correspondent Douglas Waller delivers a riveting account of the heroes and misfits who carried out a shadow war of espionage and covert operations behind the Confederate battlefields. Lincoln’s Spies follows four agents from the North—three men and one woman—who informed Lincoln’s generals on the enemy positions for crucial battles and busted up clandestine Rebel networks. Famed detective Allan Pinkerton mounted a successful covert operation to slip Lincoln through Baltimore before his inauguration after he learns of an assassination attempt from his agents working undercover as Confederate soldiers. But he proved less than competent as General George McClellan’s spymaster, delivering faulty intelligence reports that overestimated Confederate strength. George Sharpe, an erudite New York lawyer, succeeded Pinkerton as spymaster for the Union’s Army of the Potomac. Sharpe deployed secret agents throughout the South, planted misinformation with Robert E. Lee’s army, and outpaced anything the enemy could field. Elizabeth Van Lew, a Virginia heiress who hated slavery and disapproved of secession, was one of Sharpe’s most successful agents. She ran a Union spy ring in Richmond out of her mansion with dozens of agents feeding her military and political secrets that she funneled to General Ulysses S. Grant as his army closed in on the Confederate capital. Van Lew became one of the unsung heroes of history. Lafayette Baker was a handsome Union officer with a controversial past, whose agents clashed with Pinkerton’s operatives. He assembled a retinue of disreputable spies, thieves, and prostitutes to root out traitors in Washington, DC. But he failed at his most important mission: uncovering the threat to Lincoln from John Wilkes Booth and his gang. Behind these operatives was Abraham Lincoln, one of our greatest presidents, who was an avid consumer of intelligence and a ruthless aficionado of clandestine warfare, willing to take whatever chances necessary to win the war. Lincoln’s Spies is a “meticulous chronicle of all facets of Lincoln’s war effort” (Kirkus Reviews) and an excellent choice for those wanting “a cracking good tale” (Publishers Weekly) of espionage in the Civil War.


Book Synopsis Lincoln's Spies by : Douglas Waller

Download or read book Lincoln's Spies written by Douglas Waller and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2019-08-06 with total page 624 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This major addition to the history of the Civil War is a “fast-paced, fact-rich account” (The Wall Street Journal) offering a detailed look at President Abraham Lincoln’s use of clandestine services and the secret battles waged by Union spies and agents to save the nation—filled with espionage, sabotage, and intrigue. Veteran CIA correspondent Douglas Waller delivers a riveting account of the heroes and misfits who carried out a shadow war of espionage and covert operations behind the Confederate battlefields. Lincoln’s Spies follows four agents from the North—three men and one woman—who informed Lincoln’s generals on the enemy positions for crucial battles and busted up clandestine Rebel networks. Famed detective Allan Pinkerton mounted a successful covert operation to slip Lincoln through Baltimore before his inauguration after he learns of an assassination attempt from his agents working undercover as Confederate soldiers. But he proved less than competent as General George McClellan’s spymaster, delivering faulty intelligence reports that overestimated Confederate strength. George Sharpe, an erudite New York lawyer, succeeded Pinkerton as spymaster for the Union’s Army of the Potomac. Sharpe deployed secret agents throughout the South, planted misinformation with Robert E. Lee’s army, and outpaced anything the enemy could field. Elizabeth Van Lew, a Virginia heiress who hated slavery and disapproved of secession, was one of Sharpe’s most successful agents. She ran a Union spy ring in Richmond out of her mansion with dozens of agents feeding her military and political secrets that she funneled to General Ulysses S. Grant as his army closed in on the Confederate capital. Van Lew became one of the unsung heroes of history. Lafayette Baker was a handsome Union officer with a controversial past, whose agents clashed with Pinkerton’s operatives. He assembled a retinue of disreputable spies, thieves, and prostitutes to root out traitors in Washington, DC. But he failed at his most important mission: uncovering the threat to Lincoln from John Wilkes Booth and his gang. Behind these operatives was Abraham Lincoln, one of our greatest presidents, who was an avid consumer of intelligence and a ruthless aficionado of clandestine warfare, willing to take whatever chances necessary to win the war. Lincoln’s Spies is a “meticulous chronicle of all facets of Lincoln’s war effort” (Kirkus Reviews) and an excellent choice for those wanting “a cracking good tale” (Publishers Weekly) of espionage in the Civil War.


Nicholas I, Emperor and Autocrat of All the Russias

Nicholas I, Emperor and Autocrat of All the Russias

Author: W. Bruce Lincoln

Publisher: Midland Books

Published: 1978

Total Pages: 432

ISBN-13:

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**** The Indiana U. Press edition (1978) is cited in BCL3. A scholarly biography that provides a view of Russian autocracy. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR


Book Synopsis Nicholas I, Emperor and Autocrat of All the Russias by : W. Bruce Lincoln

Download or read book Nicholas I, Emperor and Autocrat of All the Russias written by W. Bruce Lincoln and published by Midland Books. This book was released on 1978 with total page 432 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: **** The Indiana U. Press edition (1978) is cited in BCL3. A scholarly biography that provides a view of Russian autocracy. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR


Edwin McMasters Stanton

Edwin McMasters Stanton

Author: Frank Abial Flower

Publisher:

Published: 1905

Total Pages: 582

ISBN-13:

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Book Synopsis Edwin McMasters Stanton by : Frank Abial Flower

Download or read book Edwin McMasters Stanton written by Frank Abial Flower and published by . This book was released on 1905 with total page 582 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:


Father Abraham

Father Abraham

Author: Richard Striner

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2007-05

Total Pages: 321

ISBN-13: 0195325397

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Recent portraits of Abraham Lincoln as a passive politician and reluctant abolitionist are challenged in an incisive study that helps make sense of the many contradictions in his life, political views and strategies, and accomplishments.


Book Synopsis Father Abraham by : Richard Striner

Download or read book Father Abraham written by Richard Striner and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2007-05 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Recent portraits of Abraham Lincoln as a passive politician and reluctant abolitionist are challenged in an incisive study that helps make sense of the many contradictions in his life, political views and strategies, and accomplishments.


The Intimate World of Abraham Lincoln

The Intimate World of Abraham Lincoln

Author: C.A. Tripp

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Published: 2005-01-11

Total Pages: 384

ISBN-13: 1439104042

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The late C. A. Tripp, a highly regarded sex researcher and colleague of Alfred Kinsey, and author of the runaway bestseller The Homosexual Matrix, devoted the last ten years of his life to an exhaustive study of Abraham Lincoln's writings and of scholarship about Lincoln, in search of hidden keys to his character. In The Intimate World of Abraham Lincoln, completed just weeks before he died, Tripp offers a full examination of Lincoln's inner life and relationships that, as Dr. Jean Baker argues in the Introduction, "will define the issue for years to come." Throughout this riveting work, new details are revealed about Lincoln's relations with a number of men. Long-standing myths are debunked convincingly -- in particular, the myth that Lincoln's one true love was Ann Rutledge, who died tragically young. Ultimately, Tripp argues that Lincoln's unorthodox loves and friendships were tied to his maverick beliefs about religion, slavery, and even ethics and morals. As Tripp argues, Lincoln was an "invert": a man who consistently turned convention on its head, who drew his values not from the dominant conventions of society, but from within. For years, a whisper campaign has mounted about Abraham Lincoln, focusing on his intimate relationships. He was famously awkward around single women. He was engaged once before Mary Todd, but his fiancée called off the marriage on the grounds that he was "lacking in smaller attentions." His marriage to Mary was troubled. Meanwhile, throughout his adult life, he enjoyed close relationships with a number of men. He shared a bed with oshua Speed for four years as a young man, and -- as Tripp details here -- he shared a bed with an army captain while serving in the White House, when Mrs. Lincoln was away. As one Washington socialite commented in her diary, "What stuff!" This study reaches far beyond a brief about Lincoln's sexuality: it is an attempt to make sense of the whole man, as never before. It includes an Introduction by Jean Baker, biographer of Mary Todd Lincoln, and an Afterword containing reactions by two Lincoln scholars and one clinical psychologist and longtime acquaintance of C.A. Tripp. As Michael Chesson explains in one of the Afterword essays, "Lincoln was different from other men, and he knew it. More telling, virtually every man who knew him at all well, long before he rose to prominence, recognized it. In fact, the men who claimed to know him best, if honest, usually admitted that they did not understand him." Perhaps only now, when conventions of intimacy are so different, so open, and so much less rigid than in Lincoln's day, can Lincoln be fully understood.


Book Synopsis The Intimate World of Abraham Lincoln by : C.A. Tripp

Download or read book The Intimate World of Abraham Lincoln written by C.A. Tripp and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2005-01-11 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The late C. A. Tripp, a highly regarded sex researcher and colleague of Alfred Kinsey, and author of the runaway bestseller The Homosexual Matrix, devoted the last ten years of his life to an exhaustive study of Abraham Lincoln's writings and of scholarship about Lincoln, in search of hidden keys to his character. In The Intimate World of Abraham Lincoln, completed just weeks before he died, Tripp offers a full examination of Lincoln's inner life and relationships that, as Dr. Jean Baker argues in the Introduction, "will define the issue for years to come." Throughout this riveting work, new details are revealed about Lincoln's relations with a number of men. Long-standing myths are debunked convincingly -- in particular, the myth that Lincoln's one true love was Ann Rutledge, who died tragically young. Ultimately, Tripp argues that Lincoln's unorthodox loves and friendships were tied to his maverick beliefs about religion, slavery, and even ethics and morals. As Tripp argues, Lincoln was an "invert": a man who consistently turned convention on its head, who drew his values not from the dominant conventions of society, but from within. For years, a whisper campaign has mounted about Abraham Lincoln, focusing on his intimate relationships. He was famously awkward around single women. He was engaged once before Mary Todd, but his fiancée called off the marriage on the grounds that he was "lacking in smaller attentions." His marriage to Mary was troubled. Meanwhile, throughout his adult life, he enjoyed close relationships with a number of men. He shared a bed with oshua Speed for four years as a young man, and -- as Tripp details here -- he shared a bed with an army captain while serving in the White House, when Mrs. Lincoln was away. As one Washington socialite commented in her diary, "What stuff!" This study reaches far beyond a brief about Lincoln's sexuality: it is an attempt to make sense of the whole man, as never before. It includes an Introduction by Jean Baker, biographer of Mary Todd Lincoln, and an Afterword containing reactions by two Lincoln scholars and one clinical psychologist and longtime acquaintance of C.A. Tripp. As Michael Chesson explains in one of the Afterword essays, "Lincoln was different from other men, and he knew it. More telling, virtually every man who knew him at all well, long before he rose to prominence, recognized it. In fact, the men who claimed to know him best, if honest, usually admitted that they did not understand him." Perhaps only now, when conventions of intimacy are so different, so open, and so much less rigid than in Lincoln's day, can Lincoln be fully understood.


Conflict of Command

Conflict of Command

Author: George C. Rable

Publisher: LSU Press

Published: 2023-08-30

Total Pages: 491

ISBN-13: 080718103X

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The fraught relationship between Abraham Lincoln and George McClellan is well known, so much so that many scholars rarely question the standard narrative casting the two as foils, with the Great Emancipator inevitably coming out on top over his supposedly feckless commander. In Conflict of Command, acclaimed Civil War historian George C. Rable rethinks that stance, providing a new understanding of the interaction between the president and his leading wartime general by reinterpreting the political aspects of their partnership. Rable pays considerable attention to Lincoln’s cabinet, Congress, and newspaper editorials, revealing the role each played in shaping the dealings between the two men. While he surveys McClellan’s military campaigns as commander of the Army of the Potomac, Rable focuses on the political fallout of the fighting rather than the tactical details. This broadly conceived approach highlights the army officers and enlisted men who emerged as citizen-soldiers and political actors. Most accounts of the Lincoln-McClellan feud solely examine one of the two individuals, and the vast majority adopt a steadfast pro-Lincoln position. Taking a more neutral view, Rable deftly shows how the relationship between the two developed in a political context and ultimately failed spectacularly, profoundly altering the course of the Civil War itself.


Book Synopsis Conflict of Command by : George C. Rable

Download or read book Conflict of Command written by George C. Rable and published by LSU Press. This book was released on 2023-08-30 with total page 491 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The fraught relationship between Abraham Lincoln and George McClellan is well known, so much so that many scholars rarely question the standard narrative casting the two as foils, with the Great Emancipator inevitably coming out on top over his supposedly feckless commander. In Conflict of Command, acclaimed Civil War historian George C. Rable rethinks that stance, providing a new understanding of the interaction between the president and his leading wartime general by reinterpreting the political aspects of their partnership. Rable pays considerable attention to Lincoln’s cabinet, Congress, and newspaper editorials, revealing the role each played in shaping the dealings between the two men. While he surveys McClellan’s military campaigns as commander of the Army of the Potomac, Rable focuses on the political fallout of the fighting rather than the tactical details. This broadly conceived approach highlights the army officers and enlisted men who emerged as citizen-soldiers and political actors. Most accounts of the Lincoln-McClellan feud solely examine one of the two individuals, and the vast majority adopt a steadfast pro-Lincoln position. Taking a more neutral view, Rable deftly shows how the relationship between the two developed in a political context and ultimately failed spectacularly, profoundly altering the course of the Civil War itself.


Lincoln's Northern Nemesis

Lincoln's Northern Nemesis

Author: Martin Gottlieb

Publisher: McFarland

Published: 2021-09-08

Total Pages: 279

ISBN-13: 1476643717

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Clement Vallandigham, an Ohio opponent of the Civil War and of abolition, was thrown out of the country by Abraham Lincoln because of his political views. As a result of his banishment, Vallandigham became a martyr to his cause and was nominated for governor by the Democratic Party in 1863. He ran the race from exile. The stakes in this colorful campaign were enormous, and Lincoln was highly involved, worrying that a Vallandigham victory would be seen as a rejection of the war by voters. That could have been devastating to the Union cause. It also would likely have made Vallandigham--a former congressman from Dayton--a presidential prospect. This book tells the story of a unique event in American history: a president--significantly, Lincoln--banishing a leading opponent, with that opponent then being nominated by a major party for high office in an important state.


Book Synopsis Lincoln's Northern Nemesis by : Martin Gottlieb

Download or read book Lincoln's Northern Nemesis written by Martin Gottlieb and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2021-09-08 with total page 279 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Clement Vallandigham, an Ohio opponent of the Civil War and of abolition, was thrown out of the country by Abraham Lincoln because of his political views. As a result of his banishment, Vallandigham became a martyr to his cause and was nominated for governor by the Democratic Party in 1863. He ran the race from exile. The stakes in this colorful campaign were enormous, and Lincoln was highly involved, worrying that a Vallandigham victory would be seen as a rejection of the war by voters. That could have been devastating to the Union cause. It also would likely have made Vallandigham--a former congressman from Dayton--a presidential prospect. This book tells the story of a unique event in American history: a president--significantly, Lincoln--banishing a leading opponent, with that opponent then being nominated by a major party for high office in an important state.


Seward

Seward

Author: Walter Stahr

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Published: 2012

Total Pages: 720

ISBN-13: 1439121184

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Presents a profile of the leader of Lincoln's "team of rivals," examining the many political roles he had in his lifetime, including governor of New York, Secretary of State, and Lincoln's closest advisor during the Civil War.


Book Synopsis Seward by : Walter Stahr

Download or read book Seward written by Walter Stahr and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2012 with total page 720 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Presents a profile of the leader of Lincoln's "team of rivals," examining the many political roles he had in his lifetime, including governor of New York, Secretary of State, and Lincoln's closest advisor during the Civil War.