A Shattered Nation: The Rise and Fall of the Confederacy, 1861-1868

Civil War America

by Anne Sarah Rubin

Historians often assert that Confederate nationalism had its origins in pre-Civil War sectional conflict with the North, reached its apex at the start of the war, and then dropped off quickly after the end of hostilities. Anne Sarah Rubin argues instead that white Southerners did not actually begin to formulate a national identity until it became evident that the Confederacy was destined to fight a lengthy war against the Union. She also demonstrates that an attachment to a symbolic or sentimental Confederacy existed independent of the political Confederacy and was therefore able to persist well after the collapse of the Confederate state. White Southerners redefined symbols and figures of the failed state as emotional touchstones and political rallying points in the struggle to retain local (and racial) control, even as former Confederates took the loyalty oath and applied for pardons in droves.

Exploring the creation, maintenance, and transformation of Confederate identity during the tumultuous years of the Civil War and Reconstruction, Rubin sheds new light on the ways in which Confederates felt connected to their national creation and provides a provocative example of what happens when a nation disintegrates and leaves its people behind to forge a new identity.

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Historians often assert that Confederate nationalism had its origins in pre-Civil War sectional conflict with the North, reached its apex at the start of the war, and then dropped off quickly after the end of hostilities. Anne Sarah Rubin argues instead that white Southerners did not actually begin to formulate a national identity until it became evident that the Confederacy was destined to fight a lengthy war against the Union. She also demonstrates that an attachment to a symbolic or sentimental Confederacy existed independent of the political Confederacy and was therefore able to persist well after the collapse of the Confederate state. White Southerners redefined symbols and figures of the failed state as emotional touchstones and political rallying points in the struggle to retain local (and racial) control, Rubin argues, even as former Confederates took the loyalty oath and applied for pardons in droves.
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Genres: History, Civil War, American History, American Civil War, Nonfiction

332 pages, Paperback

First published March 7, 2005

Reviews

[Clay Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Invaluable insight into Southern psychology is given in this book during the American Civil War and the beginning of Reconstruction.

[Bob Pearson · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the endless stream of books about the Civil War, this one stands out. Rubin refutes the theory that Southern nationalism peaked with the birth of the Confederacy and steadily eroded thereafter as Confederate fortunes declined. The war actually strengthened a white Southern nationalism which accommodated defeat and persisted thereafter within the larger American identity. From 1865, white Southerners demanded restoration of political equality within the Union with a view to regaining political control within their states. They made the compromises necessary to this end, agreeing that slavery had held back economic development, taking loyalty oaths to the Union, and adjusting to the new realities in order to avoid long term subjugation. Belief in the inequality of the races, however, remained at the core of the white Southern view of politics, the economy, social organization and culture. As the real Confederacy went out of history, a virtual or imagined Confederacy of shared memories, tragedy, and political convictions survived for another 100 years. This was not "Lost Cause" reasoning, with its romantic longing for a failed independence; it was a realistic path to restoring group values within an indivisible American union. Rubin's scholarship, sources and insights are worth reading for their own interest, especially her work on the role of Confederate women during and after the war. She makes no apologies for the racism of white Southern views, however, in her presentation of history that still fascinates us today.

[Michael · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was disappointed by Dr. Rubin's book. The author's writing style was too rigid to be enjoyable. Perhaps the book could have been improved if the author had been paired with someone possessing a more fluid writing style. In addition, Dr. Rubin's never-ending use of quotations was quite distracting. Rare was the paragraph that did not have at least one direct quote from a participant. I have always believed that direct quotes should be used sparingly to enhance the material. While reading A Shattered Nation: The Rise and Fall of the Confederacy, 1861-1868 it seemed as if Dr. Rubin used frequent direct quotations in lieu of her own interpretations. Dr. Rubin does deserve credit for thoroughly researching the topic. It is clear from the notes and bibliography section that the author devoted a great deal of time and effort to writing her book. However, that makes it all the more disappointing to write such a negative review.