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Jefferson Davis: The Man and His Hour

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William Davis has written many has written many wonderful books about the Civil War and quite frankly he has come a long way as a writer since he wrote this book. In this book all too often his sentence structure is poor and I had to read some sentences two or three times to see what he meant. There are also a few typos in this edition but that is hardly Davis' fault. On the other hand there is a reference in the book about Bedford Forrest being from Alabama which is hard to explain. Overall though this book is well written and will certainly hold the reader's attention.

All in all, this is an excellent biography of Jefferson Davis. I would suggest that anyone who reads this book also read William Cooper's biography of Davis because the two authors take different approaches to their subject and together they offer a great insight into the life of President Davis.

This biography tends to delve more into the personality quirks that made Davis who he was and is sometimes very critical of these quirks. In fact, this book is sometimes much more critical of Davis than is Cooper but on the other hand there is plenty of praise for the subject also. The author tends to focus on Davis as commander in chief and generally on his relationship with his generals, especially Joe Johnston, Beauregard and Bragg. These three relationships Davis argues were devastating to the Confederacy and were examples of Jefferson Davis at his worst. Full credit is given to Davis however for realizing what he had in Robert E. Lee and for doing all he could to support his best general through good times and bad.

After all is said and done the author reaches what seems like a sound conclusion. Jefferson Davis probably did as well or better than any of the other possible choices the South could have picked as their leader. He made mistakes but it was he who set up the structure that kept the armies in the field for four years. Davis was the one who persuaded Congress to pass the laws that sent the armies men and food, Davis chose Lee for command when "Granny Lee" was not at all popular, and Davis dealt with the obstinate Governors who tried to keep men and arms to themselves when they were desperately needed elsewhere. In short, Davis held the new nation together longer than most any other Southern leader could have.

Finally, the author deals quite well with the process that brought Davis to near sainthood in the South after the war. It was a process that started with his imprisonment in Fort Monroe and ended with one of the largest funerals in Southern history. Together, Cooper and Davis cover most every aspect of the life of Jefferson Davis and the two books compliment each other quite well. What Davis misses, Cooper takes care of and what Cooper only touches upon, Davis completes. These two books will serve as the most complete biographies of Jefferson Davis for years to come, and they may never be surpassed.

Once more, William C. Davis have provided us Civil War readers with another pure winner. Of all the biographies I have read on Jefferson Davis, this book definitely proves to be the best. It highly readable, interesting as well as entertaining and after you finished with the last page, you actually feel like you know something about Jefferson Davis, his talents which was outweighted by his weaknesses. The biography paint a rather tragic figure of man who was so devoted to his cause but yet, did so much to defeat it. The irony will proves to be unforgettable to anyone who read the book. I would considered this book to be one of these so called "must read" book by anyone who have a slightest interest in the Civil War.

Wlliam Davis has written a well researched and skillful biography of a major player in American history. He was not only the first and last President of the ill-fated Confederate States of America but, as well detailed in the book, he was the south's leading defender in Congress in the mid-1800s' of "states-rights" and the rightfulness of slavery (He was a major slave "owner" himself). His was not a minor role in the events that that resulted in secession nor in the terrible bloodbath that followed. An excellent book.

WC Davis writes a thorough bio on one of the most unique icons in our history. Jeff Davis is shown from his youth, painful first marriage, through his political and military rise, to the senate and to the Chief Executive position in the Confederacy. WC's bio helps explain why Davis was so unwilling to give up to the point of unrealistic dreams during the final month of the war particularly when Lee's army collapsed. WC notes the sad loss of Jeff Davis' first wife that left him a social cripple for several years to his slow rebirth. His success in the Mexican war seemed to lead him to conclude that he was a superior military man and his role as the Secretary of Defense perhaps encouraged his perspective. More a man of criticism than bright ideas in the senate, he seemed to hold his perception of honor above all else. WC does a great job describing Jeff's relations with his generals particularly Lee who seems to placate Davis' need for detail unlike Johnson and Beauregard. At the end, Jeff Davis seems to hold the Confederacy by himself and his only last political hurrah may have been allowing Alexander Stephens to make his futile effort at peace in March 65. In the end, WC notes that Jeff Davis seems to rebound with the southern public aided by his cruel treatment at Fort Monroe by his captors; however, his two-volume book seems a disaster of disorganization. One has to respect Davis for holding the Confederacy together in spite of his true desire to be a general and particularly because of his ill health and fractured political support. The book answers the question of how Davis could ever imagine that the Confederacy could survive as he was riding with a small protective band through Georgia in his last hours acting more like a fugitive than the President of a country that could still rally.

Davis presents casual readers and historians with an excellent bio of Davis and his tenure as president of the short-lived Confederate nation. His meticulous research is evident in this interesting account of the man AND his motivations. I had the privilege of hearing Mr. Davis address a Civil War Round Table shortly after the publication of this book. His other works, especially "The Deep Waters of the Proud" are also highly recommended

"Jefferson Davis" by historian William C. Davis is probably the best biography of the Confederate President that I have found. The author's work is incredibly voluminous at 706 long pages; no stone was left unturned considering the life of a man which spanned nearly the entire 19th century. The great challenge for an author who attempts a book of this length is obviously the need to keep the pace moving while sifting through a mountain of details in order to sort out the important and definitive events of the man's era. This is done quite well and with a few exceptions I found his acumen for focusing on interesting reading points quite sharp, avoiding a text book type feel. The author's style makes for an enjoybable read, but at times I thought it far too sympathetic to a man like Davis, who proved to be hypocritical and at times despotic.

The life of Jefferson Davis is in many ways a definitive and symbolic portrait of the Antebellum south. Like all politicians in executive positions, Davis was chosen for his ability to represent both the social aspects of the South and its political ambition. The author carefully chose his subtitle as "The Man and his Hour", which accurately shows how Davis' life was shaped by the turbulent times he lived through. Although Davis was trained at West Point and served bravely in the Mexican War, he was not the most remarkable president and the many problems that he dealt with during the Civil War evidenced how corrupt and bureaucratic the Southern government really was.

Perhaps the best part of the book was the first 300 pages which dealt with Davis' early life, especially the run up to the Civil War in the 1850s'. Davis' family was not extremely wealthy, but grew from his father's prominence in leading a Revolutionary War company. His early life was quite typical of a well to do Southern planter as he was mentored and watched over by his older brother Joseph. His influence was quite important in establishing Davis' early career as a soldier on the frontier and later commanding the 1st Mississippi in the Mexican War, and later his entrance into politics. The author shows the reliance upon hereditary possession that was a perhaps a weakness of the south, leading its' prominent men to assume entitlement based upon birth. In contrast to the Northern men such as Lincoln, Davis and many of his contemporaries lacked the flexibility to compromise the power that came along with it. Davis was accustomed to being obeyed (another byproduct of the slaveocracy) and his ability to delegate and manage differing talents suffered as a result. Davis was very much the southern gentlemen of honor, hot tempered and convinced of his infallibility. In this way the author shows how Davis very much represented his country and the "hour" in which they found themselves.

The author's treatment of the "turbulent 50's" is the book's great strength; the cause of the Civil War and Southern outrage at restrictions on slavery is as clear as can be. As the books second half begins with secession and the war, the writing shifts into a slightly different mode as the reader sees Davis as more of a bureaucrat than man. This decision to document the endless squabbling between the President and some of his leading Generals made the war chapters drag a bit. I would have liked to hear more in the way of Davis's personal life and how his humanity was affected by the war. I still enjoyed the author's treatment of Confederate ineptness and division (which is his contention of Davis' real failing as a leader), but they are perhaps of more interest to a Political Science major than casual reader.

The postwar years are handled in a few chapters, which show the disappointment and suffering of Davis' life after a 2 year imprisonment. All four of his sons died from disease and accident and his health was constantly ailing him. Despite the suffering Davis lived into his 80s', the tough old soldier never repenting for the torrents of blood which were on his hands.

rHE AUTHOR WILLIAM C. DAVIS HAS WRITTEN MANY BOOKS ON THE CIVIL WAR AND THIS PERIOD OF OUR HISTORY. FOR A LONG TIME HE WAS EDITOR OF THE MAGAZINE CIVIL WAR ILLUSTRATED. SOME OF HIS BOOKS BELONG MORE IN THIS MAGAZINE THAN IN BOOK FORM. THISIS ONE OF HIS BEST, COMPARABLE TO HIS FINE WORK ON BRECKENRIDGE AND LIKE THAT EARLIER BOOK THIS OFFERS US A GOOD READ ABOUT THE POLITICS OF THE TIME BOTH NORTH AND SOUTH. IT IS A GOOD READ IN THE SENSE THAT THEE AUTHOR HAS GIVEN A GREAT DEAL OF TIME TO RESEARCH AND THINKING ON HIS SUBJECT. HOWEVER, IT IS NOT AS WELL WRITTEN AS SOME OTHER BIOS OF JEFF DAVIS.
WM. DAVIS ATTEMPS TO BE FAIR IN HIS ASSESSMENT OF DAVIS, NEITHER PRO NOR CON TO A GREAT EXTENT AND THIS SEEKING FOR FAIRNESS TAKES SOME OF THE EXCITEMENT FROM THE SUBJECT. ON THE WHOLE IT IS A WORTHY BOOK FOR ANY READER--PROFESSIONAL OR BUFF.

Before I was introduced to this book I knew nothing about the man in question outside of the fact that he was the first confederate President.

After spending a good month reading this biography of Jefferson Davis I feel like I know the man. William C. Davis does an excellent job portraying the life of Jefferson Davis. Here is a man who had his share of suffering, both physically, mentally, as well as numerous personal loses, but always seemed to bounce back and go on. The book moves along quite smooth, and William C. Davis has the gift of actually making you feel like your there when the many drama'a of Jefferson Davis unfold.

For anyone interested in learning about Jefferson Davis, this is the "meat" of books written about Jefferson Davis. When you finish reading this fine biography you will actually feel like you "know" Jefferson Davis and watched his life unfold right before you. I highly recommend this book to all beginners.

It's not always easy to write a compelling 700 page biography of a man who is viewed negatively by most people today and many in his own day. But William C. Davis managed to do it in Jefferson Davis: The Man & His Hour.
The author Davis, a longtime historian, takes up the subject of Confederate president Davis (no relation) in an extremely well-researched and readable narrative that covers Davis' life from birth to death. As the author points out, the main reason that Davis is known today was because of his role in the American Civil War, and therefore much of the book is dedicated to that enthralling four-year period from 1861-1865. But Davis's life involved much more than that period alone.
The youngest child in a large family, Jefferson Finis Davis was born in 1808 to parents who aptly named their child, hoping (rightly so) that he would be their last child. Born in Kentucky, Davis was ultimately raised in Mississippi. After a brief stint at Transylvania University, he accepted an appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point. Always fiery and opinionated, Davis was a less than stellar, albeit popular student who made friends and enemies that would last a lifetime. After graduating, he continued his military career and eventually became a war in hero in the brief Mexican War of 1846-1848.
As a young man, Davis married the daughter of Zachary Taylor, his commanding officer and future U.S. President. Although Taylor initially did not want his daughter Sarah to marry a soldier, he eventually reluctantly consented when Davis resigned the service and moved back to his native Mississippi. But early summer was not a good time for the newlyweds to move to the tropical climate and both soon came down with malaria. Davis almost died. Sarah did. A mere two months into their marriage. Young Jefferson Davis was utterly devastated.
For the next ten years, Davis became a reclusive farmer. His older brother Joseph, more than twenty years his senior, served as a father -figure to Jefferson and gave him a portion of his land to manage. For the next decade he worked with his brother managing the plantation and he largely kept to himself. But eventually he became involved in local politics, and he found romance once again.
At the age of 35, Davis met the young Varina Howell and married the 17 year old girl who would eventually become the First Lady of the Confederacy. Around this same time, Davis was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. At times, the marriage was strained as the firm and opinionated Jefferson learned to live with the much younger and equally opinionated Varina. But eventually their union became a blissful one, producing several children.
Davis never finished his term in Congress because of the outbreak of the Mexican War. He resigned so he could serve as Colonel in the 1st Mississippi volunteers. After he came home a hero, he attempted a run for governor, but was defeated. From 1853-1857, he served in the cabinet of President Franklin Pierce as Secretary of War; ironically building up a United States military that he would one day fight against as Confederate President.
After his stint in Pierce's cabinet, Davis was elected U.S. Senator from Mississippi, this being the last office that Davis would hold in the Union. In 1861, he resigned from the Senate and returned to Mississippi to await what would happen as the Southern states seceded, eventually forming the Confederate States of America. He was appointed by the governor to serve as Brigadier General of Mississippi volunteers and desperately hoped to be a commanding general in the coming war, but fate had other plans. He was unanimously selected to serve as President of the new nation and was summoned to Montgomery, Alabama the first capital of the C.S.A. Davis claims to have never wanted the position, but rather accepted it out of a sense of duty. His hope was that once the government was firmly established he would return to field service, but his election to a six-year term in 1862 ended such hopes.
As President, Davis tried to establish a new government, while also serving as Commander-in-Chief to a fledgling nation fighting a war for independence. A bureaucrat by nature, Davis at times struggled in his role as chief executive. He idolized some generals, like Robert E. Lee and Albert Sidney Johnston; while he loathed others, namely Joseph Johnston and Pierre Beauregard. He was loyal to a fault to those he considered friends, while sometimes irrationally critical to those he deemed enemies.
William Davis, while writing honestly about the President's many faults, also manages to bring out the tender human side of Davis. He was a man intensely sensitive to the feelings of others; and a father who reveled in playing with his children. Publicly considered cold and aloof, Davis could be quite warm and engaging when he visited with friends in private. For most of his time as President, he carried a tremendous burden and it usually showed in his outer actions and demeanor.
During the war, Davis was baptized and confirmed in the Episcopal Church and seems to have been a committed Christian for the remainder of his life. In fact, Davis was sitting in church on a Sunday morning when he received an urgent telegram from Robert E. Lee that he must evacuate Richmond at once. Davis and his cabinet complied and began to flee south temporarily establishing capitals in Danville, Virginia and Greensboro, North Carolina. Having already sent Varina and the children ahead several days earlier, he eventually caught up with them and they were reunited, though the reunion would prove to be brief.
The assassination of Abraham Lincoln made Davis a wanted man. In the hysteria following Lincoln's murder, Davis and other high ranking Confederate were suspected as conspirators. Some wanted him captured, tried, and hung for murder or treason. He was eventually captured near Irwinville, Georgia in May of 1865.
The next two years would be some of the most trying of Davis' life as he sat imprisoned awaiting what charges might be filed against him. As word leaked to the public of the persecution Davis was experiencing at the hands of his jailers an ironic sympathy began to grow for him, even in the North. Some demanded he be released on bail and brought to a "speedy trial" but in truth the Federal government had no idea what to do with him. They feared a public trial that might lead to his acquittal, so eventually, he was released.
The next ten years of Davis's life were difficult as he sought to somehow make a living and rebuild his life. He spent time in Canada and England before eventually moving to Memphis where he served as President of the Carolina Life Insurance Company. But the economy destroyed the company and Davis had to look for other work. Ultimately he moved to Biloxi, Mississippi where he was given a rent-free house to work on his memoirs. The Rise & Fall of the Confederate Government was a lengthy two volume work that Davis wrote with the help of others to give an accurate defense of his actions during the war. The book did not sell well and Davis probably received nothing in royalties from the work. But he did have a new home. The rent-free estate Beauvoir was left to him in the will of the woman who owned it and Davis would spend the rest of his life there.
Davis died in 1889 from complications from pneumonia. Varina and two daughters survived him, though four sons and a daughter preceded him in death. He was initially interred in New Orleans, but later moved to the Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond, the city that made him famous.
William Davis' book is an excellent account of the enigmatic Jefferson Davis. Highly readable and interesting, William Davis manages to give an honest account of Davis' shortcomings while also adequately telling of his positive traits. Some authors manage to convey scads of facts, while others are short on facts but excel in compelling narrative. William C. Davis does both. Not only did I learn a lot about Davis, I also came away with a greater respect for the many struggles he endured in life. Any study of Jefferson Davis should include this book as a solid reference for the Confederacy's only President.

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