A Contest of Civilizations

569 Pages·2020·7.634 MB·English

by  Andrew F. Lang

A CONTEST OF CIVILIZATIONS
THE LITTLEFIELD HISTORY OF THE CIVIL WAR ERA
Gary W. Gallagher and T. Michael Parrish, editors
This book was supported by the Littlefield Fund for
Southern History, University of Texas Libraries
This landmark sixteen- volume series, featuring books
by some of today’s most respected Civil War historians, surveys
the conflict from the earliest rumblings of disunion through the
Reconstruction era. A joint project of UNC Press and the
Littlefield Fund for Southern History, University of Texas Libraries,
the series offers an unparalleled comprehensive narrative
of this defining era in U.S. history.
A Contest of
Civilizations
EXPOSING THE CRISIS OF
AMERICAN EXCEPTIONALISM
IN THE CIVIL WAR ERA
Andrew F. Lang
THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA PRESS
CHAPEL HILL
© 2021 The University of North Carolina Press
All rights reserved
Designed by Richard Hendel
Set in Miller, Modern No. 20, and Antique No. 6 by Tseng Information Systems, Inc.
Manufactured in the United States of America
The University of North Carolina Press has been a
member of the Green Press Initiative since 2003.
Jacket illustration: The Outbreak of the Rebellion in the United States 1861, ca. 1865, by
Christopher Kimmel. Justice scowls at Jefferson Davis, Alexander H. Stephens, and other
Confederates who had recently shattered the United States through secession and civil war.
Liberty stands confidently behind President Abraham Lincoln, who rallies loyal citizens to
the cause of Union. In the foreground, a hapless James Buchanan dozes while the nation
cracks and burns. The sun rises in the distance, symbolizing an enduring nineteenth- century
American faith in the United States’ exceptional standing in the world. (Library of Congress)
Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data
Names: Lang, Andrew F., 1982– author.
Title: A contest of civilizations : exposing the crisis of American
exceptionalism in the Civil War era / Andrew F. Lang.
Other titles: Littlefield history of the Civil War era.
Description: Chapel Hill : The University of North Carolina Press, 2021. | Series: Littlefield
history of the Civil War era | Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2020032946 | ISBN 9781469660073 (cloth ; alk. paper) |
ISBN 9781469660080 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Exceptionalism—United States. | National characteristics,
American. | Group identity—United States. | United States—History—
Civil War, 1861–1865—Influence. | United States—Civilization.
Classification: LCC E468.9 .L365 2021 | DDC 973.7/1—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020032946
For Margaret (2017)
and Jamie (2019),
my children born during
the writing of this book
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CONTENTS
Prologue. The Young Men’s Lyceum, 1838 / 1
Introduction.
The Civil War Era and the Problem of American Exceptionalism / 7
PART I.
Conceived in Liberty
1. UNION / 29
2. CAUSES / 73
PART II.
Now We Are Engaged in a Great Civil War
3. PURPOSES / 127
4. CONDUCT / 171
5. INSURRECTION / 244
6. ENDINGS / 282
PART III.
Shall Not Perish from the Earth
7. CONSEQUENCES / 323
8. PEACE / 359
Epilogue. The Paradox of Civilization / 399
Acknowledgments / 409
Notes / 413
Bibliography / 485
Index / 539
FIGURES
Abraham Lincoln, congressman- elect from Illinois, ca. 1846 / 1
The Triumph, ca. 1861 / 8
America Guided by Wisdom, 1815 / 30
Practical Illustration of the Fugitive Slave Law, 1851 / 74
The Eagle’s Nest. The Union! It Must and Shall Be Preserved, 1861 / 128
Sherman’s March to the Sea, ca. 1868 / 172
24th Regt. U.S. Colored Troops. Let Soldiers in War, Be Citizens in Peace, ca. 1865 / 245
The Last Offer of Reconciliation, ca. 1865 / 283
Reconstruction, ca. 1867 / 324
The “Strong” Government, 1869–1877, 1880 / 360
Thomas Nast, Victory, 1867 / 400
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