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Abraham Lincoln and the Road to Emancipation: 1861-1865
In this comprehensive account of Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation, William K. Klingaman takes a fresh look at what is arguably the most controversial reform in American history. Taking the reader from Lincoln's inauguration through the Civil War to his tragic assassination, it uncovers the complex political and psychological pressures facing Lincoln in his consideration of the slavery question, including his decision to issue the proclamation without consulting any member of his cabinet, and his meticulous attention to every word of the document. The book concludes with a discussion of what the Emancipation Proclamation really meant to four million newly freed blacks and its subsequent impact on race relations in America.
352 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2001
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
March 25, 2018
A History Of The Emancipation Proclamation
William Klingaman's "Abraham Lincoln and the Road to Emancipation, 1861-1865 (2001)gives a good account of President Lincoln's issuance of the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation of September 22, 1862, and the Final Emancipation Proclamation of January 1, 1863. On a closely-related subject, the book also discusses the Union Army's gradual use of African-American soldiers as a means to winning the Civil War.
Klingaman focuses on the changes in Lincoln's attitude towards emancipation and his gradual assumption of a strong leadership role. He also points out that many of Lincoln's decisions were forced upon him by the political and military circumstances of the War. Thus, Klingaman describes how Lincoln's original goal in the War was the preservation of the Union. He resisted pressure from the Abolitionists and from the Radical Republicans to emancipate the slaves in order to avoid antagonizing the border states and those in the North who would not have fought a war to free the slaves. As political pressures changed, and as the North suffered setbacks in the Virginia theatre of the war, the pressures on Lincoln changed. Although the seeds of the Emancipation had been planted earlier, as Klingaman shows, Lincoln used the end Lee's invasion of the North at Antietam as the fulcrum to issue the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation and followed it up with the Proclamation of January 1, 1863. Klingaman explains well how the issuance of the Proclamation helped change the momentum of the War, militarily, politically, and internationally.
This book is not a work of new scholarship but it is valuable and worth reading nonetheless. Klingaman does a good job of emphasizing both the military and political aspects of the War, while many books concentrate on one or the other. I thought the book had particularly good insights to offer on Lincoln's relationship with Union General George McClellan.
Klingaman's Lincoln is primarily a politician and a pragmatist more than a political theorist. Lincoln's backwoods humor comes through well in the book as does his depression and sadness resulting from the heavy weight of his public and private trials. There are effective descriptions of pre-war Washington, D.C. which are followed by further descriptions of the way the city and our nation changed with the industrialization wrought by the War.
There are good textual discussions of both the Preliminary and Final Emancipation Proclamations which emphasize the compromises Lincoln had to make to politics rather than the role of ideas.
Finally, the book briefly discusses Emancipation following the conclusion of the War and points out eloquently how much remained and still remains to be done to bring about racial equality.
This book is a balanced and thoughtful history of the Emancipation for the reader interested in a seminal moment of our Nation's history.
Robin Friedman
William Klingaman's "Abraham Lincoln and the Road to Emancipation, 1861-1865 (2001)gives a good account of President Lincoln's issuance of the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation of September 22, 1862, and the Final Emancipation Proclamation of January 1, 1863. On a closely-related subject, the book also discusses the Union Army's gradual use of African-American soldiers as a means to winning the Civil War.
Klingaman focuses on the changes in Lincoln's attitude towards emancipation and his gradual assumption of a strong leadership role. He also points out that many of Lincoln's decisions were forced upon him by the political and military circumstances of the War. Thus, Klingaman describes how Lincoln's original goal in the War was the preservation of the Union. He resisted pressure from the Abolitionists and from the Radical Republicans to emancipate the slaves in order to avoid antagonizing the border states and those in the North who would not have fought a war to free the slaves. As political pressures changed, and as the North suffered setbacks in the Virginia theatre of the war, the pressures on Lincoln changed. Although the seeds of the Emancipation had been planted earlier, as Klingaman shows, Lincoln used the end Lee's invasion of the North at Antietam as the fulcrum to issue the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation and followed it up with the Proclamation of January 1, 1863. Klingaman explains well how the issuance of the Proclamation helped change the momentum of the War, militarily, politically, and internationally.
This book is not a work of new scholarship but it is valuable and worth reading nonetheless. Klingaman does a good job of emphasizing both the military and political aspects of the War, while many books concentrate on one or the other. I thought the book had particularly good insights to offer on Lincoln's relationship with Union General George McClellan.
Klingaman's Lincoln is primarily a politician and a pragmatist more than a political theorist. Lincoln's backwoods humor comes through well in the book as does his depression and sadness resulting from the heavy weight of his public and private trials. There are effective descriptions of pre-war Washington, D.C. which are followed by further descriptions of the way the city and our nation changed with the industrialization wrought by the War.
There are good textual discussions of both the Preliminary and Final Emancipation Proclamations which emphasize the compromises Lincoln had to make to politics rather than the role of ideas.
Finally, the book briefly discusses Emancipation following the conclusion of the War and points out eloquently how much remained and still remains to be done to bring about racial equality.
This book is a balanced and thoughtful history of the Emancipation for the reader interested in a seminal moment of our Nation's history.
Robin Friedman
October 16, 2016
Aside from some quotes that are perhaps less well-known from our 16th president, there was not really anything new to the discussion on the issue of emancipation, Lincoln's motivations, machinations, and strategies. The last chapter on "Aftermath" seems hurried and very subdued, and the author seems to want to assign a lot of credit for the future of the civil rights movement and its eventual leaders (for which I think a strong argument can be made), but does not support his assertion with anything more than a couple of obscure quotes from emerging civil rights leaders (B.T. Washington and MLK--really? these were the only two you could think of as significant?) I see what he wanted to do but I think his publisher really wanted this one done in 300 pages or less.
March 12, 2016
Certainly had higher hopes for this book. The book felt very much like a collection of anecdotes and quotes strung together in a book-length fashion. Often hard to take many of the stories seriously since the myth-making around Lincoln was incredible due to the timing of his death very soon after Appomattox.
Little analysis or stringing together other than narratives provided by the author. Was looking for more historical analysis and interpretation. Also, I felt the author's coverage of the anxieties of the Border States in the lead up to the Emancipation Proclamation was a bit weak, other than stating that they were, indeed, anxious.
Little analysis or stringing together other than narratives provided by the author. Was looking for more historical analysis and interpretation. Also, I felt the author's coverage of the anxieties of the Border States in the lead up to the Emancipation Proclamation was a bit weak, other than stating that they were, indeed, anxious.
January 14, 2008
This book covers the reasons and process behind the emancipation proclamation and the wrestle Lincoln had in bringing it about. It goes way more in depth and is far more honest in talking about the motives behind the proclamation than the sugar-coated lessons you get in school. It was definitely an eye-opener and a very interesting read.
March 14, 2008
What a piece of shit this guy was...
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews