DK - The American Civil War

Davis’s considerable talents, dedication
to the cause, and real military
knowledge benefited the Confederacy,
even if errors in judgment and failures
of temperament detracted from those
contributions. He established a strong
relationship with his most talented
general, Robert E. Lee, and recognized
the need to concentrate military power
in viable field armies rather than try to
defend every square mile of Confederate
territory. He extended central authority
to mobilize the South’s limited
economic resources, including such
controversial measures as conscription
and the commandeering of supplies.
Davis realized that international aid
would come only after decisive signs
of Confederate success, and that the
South could not rely on Britain and
France to win its independence. He
even proved willing to sacrifice slavery
for the Southern cause, supporting Lee’s
proposal in 1864 to enroll slaves—with

the promise of freedom—to serve in the

depleted Confederate armies. While

Lincoln had the political savvy to hold

together a fractious domestic political

environment in the North, Davis’s

cold, imperious manner and

inability to rally public

opinion hurt the South’s

war effort.

Flawed leadership

More seriously, Davis

had poor relationships

with some of his

generals. The trouble

began as early as the

First Battle of Bull Run

(First Manassas), when

the relationship

between Davis and

Generals Joseph E.

Johnston and P. G. T.

Beauregard began to

fail. The egotism of both

generals was the main cause, but Davis

could have managed the problems better.

Davis’s failings in personnel

management had the most serious

consequences in the important Western

theater. He relied too much on the

capabilities of General Albert Sidney

Johnston at the start of the war. More

seriously, he allowed the high command

of the Army of Tennessee to become a

dysfunctional nest of intrigue, as

various corps commanders

worked to undermine

General Braxton Bragg.

Bragg had certain virtues,

including organizational

acumen, but mixed

abilities on the battlefield

—revealed in the Chaplin

Hills (Perryville) campaign

of 1862—and his troops

and subordinates heartily

disliked him. In October

1863 matters came to a

head, and Davis traveled

west in an attempt to

resolve the issue.

Unfortunately, Davis

left Bragg in command,

instead of replacing him with a general

who had the confidence of the army

and punishing those officers who had

been most insubordinate. The crisis

would fester until Bragg was removed.

After the war

Davis survived the war and two years

of imprisonment at Fort Monroe. He

continued to defend the Southern

cause in print and engaged in various

unsuccessful business ventures. But he

refused to seek a pardon from the

Federal government, which would

have allowed him to resume a political

career. His death in 1889 was marked

by a funeral of imposing proportions.

JEFFERSON DAVIS

TIMELINE

THREE GENERATIONS, 1885

Davis and his generals
The depiction of Davis (center) in military uniform
reflects his prior military experience and his tendency
to involve himself in the details of military affairs.

Varina Davis

This miniature of Davis’s wife, Varina

Howell, shows her at the age of 23

after four years of marriage. They had

five children, two born during the war.

“Let me beseech you to lay aside

all rancor [and] bring about a

consummation devoutly to be

wished—a reunited country.”

JEFFERSON DAVIS’S LAST PUBLIC ADDRESS, MISSISSIPPI CITY, 1888

■ June 3, 1808 Born in west central Kentucky,

near the Tennessee border.

■ 1824–28 Trains at West Point, emerging 23rd

out of a class of 33, and joins the infantry

branch of service.

■ February 1835 Court-martialed on a charge of

insubordination, Davis is acquitted but resigns

from the U.S. Army in May.

■ June 1835 Marries Sarah Knox Taylor, daughter

of future president Zachary Taylor.

■ September 1835 His young wife dies—

probably of malaria—on a Louisana plantation.

Davis himself is seriously ill.

■ 1846 Elected colonel of 1st Mississippi

Volunteer regiment.

■ February 1847 Plays an important role in the

American victory against Mexico at Buena Vista.

■ August 1847 The Mississippi state legislature

appoints Davis to be a U.S. Senator.

■ 1851 Defeated by Unionist support for the

Compromise of 1850, Davis leaves the Senate

and loses the gubernatorial race in Mississippi.

■ 1853–57 Becomes Secretary of War in the

administration of President Franklin Pierce.

■ 1857 Returns to the Senate.

■ February 9, 1861 The Montgomery secession

convention chooses Davis to be the first

President of the Confederate States of America.

■ March 1862 Davis asks the Confederate

Congress to pass a conscription act.

■ June 1862 After General Joseph E. Johnston is

badly wounded at Seven Pines, Davis chooses

Robert E. Lee to take command of what later

becomes the Army of Northern Virginia.

■ July 1864 Replaces Johnston at the head of the

Confederate Army of Tennessee with John Bell

Hood—a disastrous appointment.

■ March 1865 Signs a bill authorizing the

enlistment of slaves as soldiers.

■ 1865–67 Imprisoned by the Federal authorities

and indicted for treason.

■ 1868 President Andrew Johnson issues an

amnesty on Christmas Day that includes

Jefferson Davis’s pending charge of treason.

■ 1881 Publishes The Rise and Fall of the

Confederate Government, a defense of

secession and his own conduct.

■ 1886–87 Tours the South and is warmly

received at numerous Lost Cause ceremonies.

■ December 6, 1889 Dies in New Orleans.