If Civil War battlefields saw vast carnage, the Northern home-front
was itself far from tranquil. Fierce political debates set
communities on edge, spurred secret plots against the Union, and
triggered widespread violence, such as the New York City draft
riots. And at the heart of all this turmoil stood Northern anti-war
Democrats, nicknamed "Copperheads." Now, Jennifer L. Weber offers
the first full-length portrait of this powerful faction to appear
in almost half a century. Weber reveals how the Copperheads came
perilously close to defeating Lincoln and ending the war in the
South's favor. Indeed, by the summer of 1864, they had grown so
strong that Lincoln himself thought his defeat was "exceedingly
likely." Passionate defenders of civil liberties and states' rights
- and often virulent racists - the Copperheads deplored Lincoln's
suspension of habeas corpus, his liberal interpretation of the
Constitution, and, most vehemently, his moves toward emancipation.
Weber reveals how the battle over these issues grew so heated,
particularly in the Midwest, that Northerners feared their
neighbors would destroy their livestock, burn their homes, even
kill them. Indeed, some Copperheads went so far as to conspire with
Confederate forces and plan armed insurrections, including an
attempt to launch an uprising during the Democratic convention in
Chicago. Finally, Weber illuminates the role of Union soldiers,
who, furious at Copperhead attacks on the war effort, moved firmly
behind Lincoln. The soldiers' support for the embattled president
kept him alive politically in his darkest times, and their
victories on the battlefield secured his re-election. Disgraced
after the war, the Copperheads melted into the shadows of history.
Here, Jennifer L. Weber illuminates their dramatic story. Packed
with sharp observation and fresh interpretations, Copperheads is a
gripping account of the fierce dissent that Lincoln called "the
fire in the rear."
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