This volume represents the multifaceted nature of Abraham Lincoln’s presidency and offers a glimpse of Civil War America in the North. Taken together these essays are intended for a general audience and offer diverse perspectives on politics, war, and society. Lincoln and northerners grappled to vindicate democracy by reuniting a nation and accepting the changes that came with reunification. Since the conflict ended, scholars have written the Civil War into our national narrative to explain how and why it was (and still is) central to American history’s foundation. In the case of these essays, ... More

This volume represents the multifaceted nature of Abraham Lincoln’s presidency and offers a glimpse of Civil War America in the North. Taken together these essays are intended for a general audience and offer diverse perspectives on politics, war, and society. Lincoln and northerners grappled to vindicate democracy by reuniting a nation and accepting the changes that came with reunification. Since the conflict ended, scholars have written the Civil War into our national narrative to explain how and why it was (and still is) central to American history’s foundation. In the case of these essays, scholars explore the context of Lincoln’s presidency, his role as both pedagogue and commander in chief; they examine the war beyond the White House and the battlefield. Finally, these scholars examine Lincoln as leader, diplomat, and visionary, who used his ability, his influence, and the power of his office to shape the contours of the new republic born out of the conflict. In short, these reflections explore the broad nature of how the president touched the Civil War era, and in particular, northern society.