ePub The Hypersonic Revolution: Case Studies in the History of Hypersonic Technology; V. 1-3 by Dr. Larry Schweikart in History

Description

In early 1860; pundits across America confidently predicted the election of Illinois senator Stephen A. Douglas in the coming presidential race. Douglas; after all; was a national figure; a renowned orator; and led the only party that bridged North and South. But his Democrats fractured over the issue of slavery; creating a splintered four-way race that opened the door for the upstart Republicans; exclusively Northern; to steal the Oval Office. Dark horse Abraham Lincoln-not the first choice even of his own party-won the presidency with a record-low share of the popular vote. His victory instantly triggered the secession crisis. With a historian's keen insight and a veteran political reporter's eye for detail; Douglas R. Egerton re-creates the cascade of unforeseen events that confounded political bosses; set North and South on the road to disunion; and put not Stephen Douglas but his greatest rival in the White House. Year of Meteors delivers a vibrant cast of characters-from the gifted; flawed Douglas to the Southern “fire-eaters;” who gleefully sabotaged their own party; to the untested Abraham Lincoln-and a breakneck narrative of this most momentous year in American history.