From a distinguished historian of the American South comes this thoroughly human portrait of the complex man at the center of our nation's most epic struggle. Jefferson Davis initially did not wish to leave the Union—as the son of a veteran of the American Revolution and as a soldier and senator; he considered himself a patriot. William J. Cooper shows us how Davis' initial reluctance turned into absolute commitment to the Confederacy. He provides a thorough account of Davis' life; both as the Confederate President and in the years before and after the war. Elegantly written and impeccably researched; Jefferson Davis; American is the definitive examination of one of the most enigmatic figures in our nation's history.
#119274 in Books 2013-08-13 2013-08-13Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.20 x 1.30 x 6.20l; 1.76 #File Name: 0375703462640 pages
Review
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful. Good informationBy J. HarshbargerI'd give this a five star rating; except that I can't honestly say I loved the book. But I sure learned a lot from reading it; and learning is one of the joys of my life now. I have ancestors from this time period in most of the original 13 colonies; but I've not read a book that pulled the time period together so well before. Now I understand more about why the Indian uprisings in one colony did or did not spread to others. I think I have a better grasp of how my ancestors probably lived; and I have great admiration for them.This is probably a book anyone with an interest in the first 50-60 years of the British colonies in North America should read. It won't be painful; I promise!4 of 4 people found the following review helpful. The Barbarous YearsBy Kim Burdick."The Barbarous Years " is a book any serious historian probably should have on his or her shelf. However; I am wondering if Bernard Bailyn actually wrote this book or if he merely approved the work of a graduate assistant;allowing his own name be put on the cover.There are some astounding errors in this book. For example; on page 308 Bailyn talks about Jacob Alrichs; who "settled in Fort Christina; now renamed Altona..." This is wrong information. Fort Christina/Altena was the Swedish colony taken over by the Dutch West India Company. Alrichs was never its director. The text should read; "Jacob Alrichs settled in Fort Casimir; now renamed New Amstel." New Amstel was the City of Amsterdam's Colony and Jacob Alrich was its head.Sentences that sound like transcriptions of taped lectures don't help: "In addition he had fined one Anders the Finn a parcel of rye and other essential goods; the lack of which would probably result in the man's death from starvation and that of his wife and children."Although I am not in love with this book; it offers some interesting insights into seventeenth century North American history. Definitely not Bailyn's best book.Kim BurdickStanton; Delaware105 of 107 people found the following review helpful. absolutely fascinatingBy Stanley CroweTo a reader like myself who's fairly familiar with aspects of British and Irish history but hardly at all with American history; especially early stuff; this is fascinating. I didn't know that the earliest efforts to colonize Virginia were such a disaster -- people were dying like flies over there; even as entrepreneurs sought recruits to sail to new lives in what was presented as a terrestrial paradise. The lure of land; the development of the tobacco trade; and later the fur trade; the relations with the indigenous peoples; the blending of religious and commercial motives; the context for the behavior of the natives -- Bailyn lays it all out very deftly; blending a chronological organization with a geographical one. The cases of Maryland and New England are very different from Virginia's (and each other) despite the overlap in time. The idea of colliding cultures (English and native American) that one finds in the blurb oversimplifies things. There is no single English or European culture; and the native tribes have likewise their own pressures and agendas. So it's a complicated story to tell; and at times the reader might be overwhelmed with colonists' names and Indian place names -- and more maps would help; I think -- but the main lines of the various stories (for there isn't just one) are clear. Bailyn seems to be aiming at the general reader; but some work is required. Some Tudor and Stuart background helps; and it helps to know; for example; what a joint-stock company is and what English policy towards Ireland was in the early 17th century. Readers who aren't up on such things need to do a little work; but it's worth it. A couple of impressions to indicate what I find fascinating: first; the juxtaposition of the almost Darwinian struggle against nature; disease; and indigenous natives that is being waged in Virginia c. 1623 by people struggling also to just stay alive; while back in London very sophisticated financial transactions (and political transactions) are being undertaken to get people to a place where most of them would die in fairly short order. Second; I didn't know that Maryland was founded by Catholics who sought to establish a colony of tolerance but who found; when the Jesuits insisted on proselytizing both the natives and the Protestant colonists; that they (the Catholic governors) had to appeal to the Pope to get the Jesuits to back off. They were afraid that the English government -- trending increasingly Protestant prior to the English Civil War -- wouldn't support; maintain; or fund an aggressively Catholic colony. So . . . if this kind of stuff is news to you; get this book.
