Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederate States
The time period revolving around the Civil War featured many key figures. There was an abundance of influential people, but of these many people, Jefferson Davis was one of the most important individuals. Jefferson Davis is a prominent figure in history. As the first, and only, president of the Confederate States, he had a large influence over the politics at the time, and the tactical strategies of the Civil War. While he wasn’t the best president, he was still filled with experience, which contributed to crucial decisions he made. These decisions influenced the outcome of the war, such as ordering the first battle, appointing Robert E. Lee as a vital general, and creating a faulty strategy.
Before Davis was a president, however, he served as the secretary of war for the fourteenth president of the United States, Franklin Pierce. Along with this, he was formerly a part of the presidential cabinet, he served a senator of Mississippi (Biography.com 2018). The experience from these two echelons greatly contributed to his capability as a member of society and as a president. Ironically enough, he was initially opposed to the secession of the South. However, following the secessions of several other states, including the state he represented as a senator, he eventually joined the South and was elected as president for the Confederacy.
As a president, Jefferson Davis was notably inferior to the Union president Abraham Lincoln. As History.com (2009) states, Davis was more concerned with “domestic politics” and was could not control “congressional opposition.” However, Davis was still a popular political figure among the Southern people. He was devoted to the Confederacy, and believed in its cause. On top of this, he was a well-known military hero, and had an abundance of experience in the world of politics (civilwar.org).
Despite the fact that he was the president of the Confederacy, Jefferson Davis was rather against conflict with the Union. Unfortunately, and as he predicted, tensions were high and war was imminent. With the intention of preventing the war before it could start, Davis dispatched a peace commission, meant to arrive at Washington D.C. However, this attempt at peace was made unsuccessful as Lincoln declined the offer to discuss the matter with the ambassadors that Davis sent (Strode 2018). Soon after this, Lincoln sent supplies to the Union’s Fort Sumter, located in the Confederate state of South Carolina. Davis begrudgingly sent armed forces to attack the fort. This battle was the first of many to come out of the Civil War (Strode 2018). Seeing as Jefferson Davis was the one to order this attack, and seeing as this was the first battle, this order alone from Davis marks him as an important figure of the Civil War.
Moreover, Jefferson Davis oversaw the war, including managing the armies of the Confederacy. Still, he was not the foremost tactician. Seeking a good commander, Davis appointed Robert E. Lee to a leadership position in the army, and gave him jurisdiction over much of the military tactics (Strode 2018). This decision proved to be one of the wisest decisions he made as president and commander-in-chief, as Lee was one of the most formidable and famous generals of the war.
However, Davis still had a major influence in the military tactics. Unfortunately for the Confederacy, Davis felt the need to protect the capital of the South, Richmond, Virginia (Strode 2018). This strategy ended up being a major downfall of the South, as other areas of the Confederate states were left without significant protection from the onslaught of the Union’s soldiers. As such, many key locations of the Confederacy fell to the might of the North, drastically weakening the South. Still, this decision was incredibly important as it gave the North the upper hand, and affected the South for the remainder of the Civil War.
After the war, Jefferson Davis’ relevancy and influence dwindled until he was essentially powerless. Stripped of all political authority, Davis was charged with treason and imprisoned for two years in Fort Monroe, Virginia, although he was never put on trial (History.com 2009). .After his release, he struggled to make a living. Due to his high-ranking political position as president in the Confederacy, there were many that disliked him. His poor health made his late years more difficult, too. His attempts at selling a book which he wrote (aptly named The Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government) did not sell well, and he eventually had to live off of the donations of friends and family, all the way up until his death in 1889 (History.com 2009). Additionally, Jefferson Davis never regained citizenship until after his death, living his remaining years in defense of the South (Strode 2018). This latter portion of his life was disheartening and miserable for him, until the day he died
In the end, Jefferson Davis, while not necessarily the most loved or favored politician, was still an incredibly influential man. Taking full advantage of his role as president and commander-in-chief, he tried to settle things peaceably, ordered the first battle of the Civil War, appointed the remarkable general Robert E. Lee, created a defective strategy that helped bring the Confederacy to its knees, and opposed the Union until death.
Works Cited
Biography.com staff. (2018, March 07). Jefferson Davis. Retrieved April 11, 2018, from
https://www.biography.com/people/jefferson-davis-9267899
The author(s) is/are member(s) of the Biography.com staff, and it is their job to write articles like this. The article elaborates extensively on his background information, including some helpful and unique details. It agrees with the other articles.
Civilwar.org staff. (n.d.). Jefferson Davis. Retrieved April 11, 2018, from
https://www.civilwar.org/learn/biographies/jefferson-davis
The author(s) is/are member(s) of the Civilwar.org staff, and it is their job to create
articles, including this one. It provides a broad range of information on the topic, which can be helpful in numerous ways. It agrees with the other articles.
History.com Staff. (2009). Jefferson Davis. Retrieved April 12, 2018, from
https://www.history.com/topics/american-civil-war/jefferson-davis
The author(s) is/are member(s) of the History.com staff, and it is their job to make
articles such as this one.The article discusses some of his background and what happened to him after the war. The post-war details are particularly helpful. It agrees with the other articles.
Strode, H. (2018, February 23). Jefferson Davis. Retrieved April 12, 2018, from
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Jefferson-Davis
The author, Hudson Strode, was a professor at a University and author of
some books on Jefferson Davis. The article provides information on various different
aspects of his life, especially as president of the Confederacy. Some especially helpful
things from the article include the tactics he used during the Civil War.