President Jefferson Davis and his rise to power

Jefferson Davis early life

Although many people know the events which transpired during the period of time known as the War of Northern Aggression/The Constitutional War/The Second American Revolution/Second War for Liberty/War for Southern Independence or more commonly the Civil War (depending on one’s frame of reference, the name often varies), few people consider the sequence of events. Knowing what happened, where it happened and when it happened, helps scholars understand the meaning to attach to events. History courses in the government schools often do not take the time to consider these matters and the significance of them.

Davis’s first military experience was at West Point. Upon completing his degree, he participated in the Blackhawk War. His family had a long history of service to the United States. His father and uncles had served in the Continental Army. Three of his older brothers served in the War of 1812. When the time came, he also served his nation. He eventually married the wife of General and later President Zachary Taylor. After his wife died, he retired from military life and returned to a life on his plantation.

Political and Military Experience

ventually, Davis entered public life becoming elected US Representative from Mississippi. He also married a second time, to the grand-daughter of a Governor of New Jersey. Her name was Varina Howell. Her grand father was Governor Richard Howell. His term was shortened by the outbreak of hostilities associated with the Mexican War. Davis resigned his position to lead Mississippi forces in that military campaign.

Davis’s experience included personally leading forces in some of the assaults on Mexican positions in the Battles of Monterrey and Buena Vista. In both battles, the American forces were outnumbered and fighting on foreign soil. The fighting in the Battle of Monterrey was particularly fierce, lasting three days and eventually turning into hand to hand combat in urban warfare.

His previous training at West Point and experience leading troops in the Mexican-American War equipped Davis well for the task assigned the Secretary of War (1853-1957) during the administration of President Franklin Pierce. During that time, he updated the military and had been innovative in making many improvements in the quality of United States troops, their training and the weapons they carried. Davis had been educated at West Point and had also served in combat during the Mexican War.

After completing his term as Secretary of War, he served as a Senator from Mississippi.

By the time 1860 rolled around he was serving his second term as the Senator from Mississippi. He was well liked and well connected in both political and military circles.

Davis's Farewell Speech to the US Senate

Jefferson Davis' Farewell Address
to the U.S. Senate January 21, 1861

I rise, Mr. President, for the purpose of announcing to the Senate that I have satisfactory evidence that the State of Mississippi, by a solemn ordinance of her people, in convention assembled, has declared her separation from the United States. Under these circumstances, of course, my functions are terminated here. It has seemed to me proper, however, that I should appear in the Senate to announce that fact to my associates, and I will say but very little more. The occasion does not invite me to go into argument; and my physical condition would not permit me to do so, if it were otherwise; and yet it seems to become me to say something on the part of the State I here represent on an occasion as solemn as this.

It is known to Senators who have served with me here that I have for many years advocated, as an essential attribute of State sovereignty, the right of a State to secede from the Union. Therefore, if I had thought that Mississippi was acting without sufficient provocation, or without an existing necessity, I should still, under my theory of the Government, because of my allegiance to the State of which I am a citizen, have been bound by her action. I, however, may be permitted to say that I do think she has justifiable cause, and I approve of her act. I conferred with her people before that act was taken, counseled them then that, if the state of things which they apprehended should exist when their Convention met, they should take the action which they have now adopted.

I hope none who hear me will confound this expression of mine with the advocacy of the right of a State to remain in the Union, and to disregard its constitutional obligation by the nullification of the law. Such is not my theory. Nullification and secession, so often confounded, are, indeed, antagonistic principles. Nullification is a remedy which it is sought to apply within the Union, against the agent of the States. It is only to be justified when the agent has violated his constitutional obligations, and a State, assuming to judge for itself, denies the right of the agent thus to act, and appeals to the other states of the Union for a decision; but, when the States themselves and when the people of the States have so acted as to convince us that they will not regard our constitutional rights, then, and then for the first time, arises the doctrine of secession in its practical application.

A great man who now reposes with his fathers, and who has often been arraigned for want of fealty to the Union, advocated the doctrine of nullification because it preserved the Union. It was because of his deep-seated attachment to the Union -- his determination to find some remedy for existing ills short of a severance of the ties which bound South Carolina to the other States -- that Mr. Calhoun advocated the doctrine of nullification, which he proclaimed to be peaceful, to be within the limits of State power, not to disturb the Union, but only to be a means of bringing the agent before the tribunal of the States for their judgement.

Secession belongs to a different class of remedies. It is to be justified upon the basis that the states are sovereign. There was a time when none denied it. I hope the time may come again when a better comprehension of the theory of our Government, and the inalienable rights of the people of the States, will prevent any one from denying that each State is a sovereign, and thus may reclaim the grants which it has made to any agent whomsoever.

I, therefore, say I concur in the action of the people of Mississippi, believing it to be necessary and proper, and should have been bound by their action if my belief had been otherwise; and this brings me to the important point which I wish, on this last occasion, to present to the Senate. It is by this confounding of nullification and secession that the name of a great man whose ashes now mingle with his mother earth has been invoked to justify coercion against a seceded State. The phrase, "to execute the laws," was an expression which General Jackson applied to the case of a State refusing to obey the laws while yet a member of the Union. That is not the case which is now presented. The laws are to be executed over the United States, and upon the people of the United States. They have no relation to any foreign country. It is a perversion of terms -- at least, it is a great misapprehension of the case -- which cites that expression for application to a State which has withdrawn from the Union. You may make war on a foreign state. If it be the purpose of gentlemen, they may make war against a State which has withdrawn from the Union; but there are no laws of the United States to be executed within the limits of a seceded State. A State, finding herself in the condition in which Mississippi has judged she is -- in which her safety requires that she should provide for the maintenance of her rights out of the Union -- surrenders all the benefits (and they are known to be many), deprives herself of the advantages (and they are known to be great), severs all the ties of affection (and they are close and enduring), which have bound her to the Union; and thus divesting herself of every benefit -- taking upon herself every burden -- she claims to be exempt from any power to execute the laws of the United States within her limits.

I well remember an occasion when Massachusetts was arraigned before the bar of the Senate, and when the doctrine of coercion was rife, and to be applied against her, because of the rescue of a fugitive slave in Boston. My opinion then was the same that it is now. Not in a spirit of egotism, but to show that I am not influenced in my opinions because the case is my own, I refer to that time and that occasion as containing the opinion which I then entertained, and on which my present conduct is based. I then said that if Massachusetts -- following her purpose through a stated line of conduct -- chose to take the last step, which separates her from the Union, it is her right to go, and I will neither vote one dollar nor one man to coerce her back; but I will say to her, Godspeed, in memory of the kind associations which once existed between her and the other States.

It has been a conviction of pressing necessity -- it has been a belief that we are to be deprived in the Union of the rights which our fathers bequeathed to us -- which has brought Mississippi to her present decision. She has heard proclaimed the theory that all men are created free and equal, and this made the basis of an attack upon her social institutions; and the sacred Declaration of Independence has been invoked to maintain the position of the equality of the races. That Declaration is to be construed by the circumstances and purposes for which it was made. The communities were declaring their independence; the people of those communities were asserting that no man was born -- to use the language of Mr. Jefferson -- booted and spurred, to ride over the rest of mankind; that men were created equal -- meaning the men of the political community; that there was no divine right to rule; that no man inherited the right to govern; that there were no classes by which power and place descended to families; but that all stations were equally within the grasp of each member of the body politic. These were the great principles they announced; these were the purposes for which they made their declaration; these were the ends to which their enunciation was directed. They have no reference to the slave; else, how happened it that among the items of arraignment against George III was that he endeavored to do just what the North has been endeavoring of late to do, to stir up insurrection among our slaves? Had the Declaration announced that the negroes were free and equal, how was the prince to be arraigned for raising up insurrection among them? And how was this to be enumerated among the high crimes which caused the colonies to sever their connection with the mother-country? When our Constitution was formed, the same idea was rendered more palpable; for there we find provision made for that very class of persons as property; they were not put upon the equality of footing with white men -- not even upon that of paupers and convicts; but, so far as representation was concerned, were discriminated against as a lower caste, only to be represented in the numerical proportion of three-fifths. So stands the compact which binds us together.

Then, Senators, we recur to the principles upon which our Government was founded; and when you deny them, and when you deny us the right to withdraw from a Government which, thus perverted, threatens to be destructive of our rights, we but tread in the path of our fathers when we proclaim our independence and take the hazard. This is done, not in hostility to others, not to injure any section of the country, not even for our own pecuniary benefit, but from the high and solemn motive of defending and protecting the rights we inherited, and which it is our duty to transmit unshorn to our children.

I find in myself perhaps a type of the general feeling of my constituents towards yours. I am sure I feel no hostility toward you, Senators from the North. I am sure there is not one of you, whatever sharp discussion there may have been between us, to whom I cannot now say, in the presence of my God, I wish you well; and such, I feel, is the feeling of the people whom I represent toward those whom you represent. I, therefore, feel that I but express their desire when I say I hope, and they hope, for peaceable relations with you, though we must part. They may be mutually beneficial to us in the future, as they have been in the past, if you so will it. The reverse may bring disaster on every portion of the country, and, if you will have it thus, we will invoke the God of our fathers, who delivered them from the power of the lion, to protect us from the ravages of the bear; and thus, putting our trust in God and in our firm hearts and strong arms, we will vindicate the right as best we may.

In the course of my service here, associated at different times with a variety of Senators, I see now around me some with whom I have served long; there have been points of collision, but, whatever of offense there has been to me, I leave here. I carry with me no hostile remembrance. Whatever offense I have given which has not been redressed, or for which satisfaction has not been demanded, I have, Senators, in this hour of our parting, to offer you my apology for any pain which, in the heat of discussion, I have inflicted. I go hence unencumbered by the remembrance of any injury received, and having discharged the duty of making the only reparation in my power for any injury offered.

Mr. President and Senators, having made the announcement which the occasion seemed to me to require, it only remains for me to bid you a final adieu.

The events of 1860

The year 1860 was an election year for the United States. The people were very agitated at recent events. In October 1859, the mass murderer, John Brown conducted a terrorist raid against the United States arsenal at Harper’s Ferry. His plan was to steal the weapons there and use them in a massive riot against the civilian population. The arsenal contained many pikes and rifles which Brown wanted to use in equipping slaves after he agitated them into action. It was the latest in a string of raids, riots and uprisings that had been agitated in the Southern States. The leaders in the Southern States wanted something done about the unrest being fomented across the South. Having agitators like Brown who encouraged armed uprisings was a concern to many in the Southern States. It did not help matters that prominent Northern politicians like William Seward were secretly funding John Brown’s terrorist activities.

Although anti-slavery groups had their start in the South, there were two schools of thought on abolition. One school of thought sought to educate the slaves and prepare them for emancipation, whereas the other school of thought was to stir them up, provide them with guns and poison then turn them loose on the populous. The trade in illegal firearms being shipped into Southern States was a cause of concern. The recent terrorist attack by John Brown brought tensions to a head. The Southern States wanted action rather than just talk. While Southerners viewed Brown as a mass murdering terrorist, many in the Northern States viewed him as an admirable man. The differences in opinion between the sections in their response to him, contributed to tensions in the Congress.

In Texas, there were also concerns regarding the lack of border protection provided by the United States government. Mexican bandits crossed the border at will, taking prisoners and capturing towns along the Rio Grande. The commander in Texas did little to prevent these actions from occurring. The people were also upset that even with the US troops stationed along the border and frontier, they were being forced to pay for them through unfunded mandates set up by the government.

There were also serious trade issues as the Northern States sought to increase the amount of the tariffs, whereas the Southern States wished for a lower tariff. The difference in trade policies was significant. The Northern policy was a form of protectionism, whereas the Southern policy was in the direction of free trade. Each section viewed the policies of the other as a significant threat to their economic security.

The candidates began campaigning for the office President. The democrats had Stephen A. Douglas, and John C. Breckinridge both contending for the office. An independent party had John Bell running for the office. The Republican Party had Abraham Lincoln as their candidate.

Abraham Lincoln was not on the ballot in many of the Southern States. The election was a controversial in that Lincoln, who was a regional candidate won with less than 50% of the vote (Lincoln had 39% of the popular vote). His opponent had more of the popular vote than he did. Lincoln won based on his victory in 16 of the 33 States. Lincoln’s election proved to be the spark of action in the South.

Timeline of Secession Events

The election of Lincoln triggered a series of events which eventually terminated in Jefferson Davis becoming the President of the Confederate States of America.

Tuesday November 6-Lincoln elected by sectional vote. Although he did not have a majority of the votes, he was considered the winner of the election.

Wednesday November 7-South Carolina expresses their opposition by flying the Palmetto flag in defiance of Lincoln’s election.

Monday November12-The stock market drops with news of unrest and opposition to the Lincoln administration spreading across the States, especially in the South.

Tuesday November 13-South Carolina calls up its State troops

Saturday December 15-The South Carolina secession Convention meets

Thursday December 20-South Carolina secedes from the Union (44 days after Lincoln’s election).

During this time, when the House of Representatives of the United States in Congress discussed matters in Washington, the Republican Representatives were unbending in their partisan policies and willingness to seek peaceful resolution to the crisis at hand. Their rigid partisanship led to a further splintering of the Union.

Wednesday January 9-Mississippi Secedes from the Union

Thursday January 10-Florida Secedes from the Union

Friday January 11-Alabama Secedes from the Union

Saturday January 18-Massachuests pledges men and weapons to suppress the Southern States which recently left the Union.

Saturday January 19-Georgia Secedes from the Union.

Monday January 21-Five Southern Senators withdraw from the Senate. Among these is Jefferson Davis. The Senators make farewell speeches to those in attendance. Davis’s farewell speech is met with thunderous applause which the officials responded by threatening those expressing support with the Sergeant at Arms. While the crowd was being settled down, Davis returned to his desk, hid his face in his hands and wept at the events taking place and the Union being dissolved. Davis returns home to Mississippi, where he is made commander of State Troops (76 days after Lincoln’s election).

Saturday January 26-Louisiana Secedes from the Union.

Friday February 1-Texas Secedes from the Union. Texas declares among her reasons for leaving the Union the failure of the United States to protect the borders, the failure of the United States to take prompt action in response to the agitation of people to riot, the failure of the United States to protect citizens, the election of a sectional president and the recent offering of Mass. to send troops to put down the Southern States. The idea of other States volunteering troops to supress political action in a fellow State was reprehensible.

Monday February 4-Convention of seceded States meets in Montgomery, Alabama. Each seceded State sent delegates to Montgomery to set up a new government of associated States.

Saturday February 9-The Convention selects Jefferson Davis as the Provisional President of the Confederate States. Alexander Stevens of Georgia is selected as Vice-President.

Monday February 18-Jefferson Davis inaugurated President of the Confederate States of America (104 days after Lincoln’s election victory).

Monday March 4-Abraham Lincoln inaugurated President.

From this brief timeline, the series of events occurred quickly. In the Southern States, when secession was approved, State troops quickly took over the forts and military installations since they were now State property rather than Federal property. The Federal troops then became squatters on property belonging to the sovereign States.

The Challenges of the Confederate States

An added concern was the walking out of the Representatives and Senators from the session of United States in Congress. Without the Southern States, there were not enough votes to constitute a quorum as required by the Constitution. This situation was a potential problem for the President elect.

In the Southern Confederacy, the nation wrote a new Constitution by R. R. Cobb of Georgia. It contained provisions lacking in the United States Constitution. The Southern States believed the federal government had exceeded its authority, so they sought to clearly delineate it powers. Some of these changes included:

A single six year term limit on the office of President.
The President had the power of line item veto.
Trading in slaves was prohibited.
Taxes and representation were apportioned to population of the State
It’s bill of rights were included in the Constitution itself
God was referred to as God rather than as a Higher power.

Davis faced the enormous task of establishing a nation, with all the infrastructure and services (e.g. Postal service, navy, military, trade, monetary system, international relations). He also had to construct these services in a nation that was at war and also had an unsettled frontier.

During the course of his Presidency, Davis turned away offers from the Governors of several Mexican States to join with the Southern States in their Confederacy. He believed that such an action would make the situation even more difficult than it already was.

Although he was captured after the war, he was never brought to trial for any of his actions. He was imprisoned in solitary confinement without trial for many months. Special instructions were given to the guards to not speak to him or have any itneraction with their prisoner. Lights were premanantly left on so as to not allow him to sleep. Although confined to a prison cell, the authorities maintained that he must wear leg irons at all times. The parties that wanted to have him tried for treason knew that legally, they did not have a chance to vilify him or the Confederate States of America for their actions. He was eventually released from confinement. He never apoligized for his actions nor surrenederd the civil authority of the Confederate States government.

Varina Davis