Jefferson Davis: His Rise and Fall: A Biographical Narrative

by Allen Tate

Poet, essayist, and Southern Agrarian, Allen Tate brings to this biographical sketch of the Confederate President not only a tremendous narrative talent, but also a deep understanding of, and sympathy for, the Southern culture that produced Jefferson Davis. But unlike other Southern writers who made Davis a larger-than-life hero of the Lost Cause, Tate pulls no punches in his assessment of the President's weaknesses as well as his strengths, and how they may have crippled the Confederacy from the very beginning.

Genres: History, Civil War, Biography

282 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1929

About the author

Poetry of especially known American writer and editor John Orley Allen Tate includes "Ode to the Confederate Dead" (1926); a leading exponent of New Criticism, he edited the Sewanee Review from 1944 to 1946.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allen_Tate

Reviews

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Allen Tate has an elegant writing style. This is an informative piece of scholarship.

[Dwight Etgen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written, but too concise

[Christopher · Rating 5 out of 5]

A 5 star book, not a 5 star biography of Davis, but an excellent view of what really went wrong in the south with enough prescient insight into the faults and flaws of Davis to keep it at 5 stars. Refreshingly honest and enjoyable. Edited to also add that it is rife with misprints and typos... I can't believe that after ninety years they still can't get it right - fortunately, Mr. Tate's writing skills more than make up for it!

[Hillary · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting close reading of Jefferson Davis' life and presidency, and how a combination of factors drove Davis and the South to ruin in the Civil War. I was fascinated to realize that without a few of those factors, the South could very well have won, and easily.

[Cathy Houston · Rating 4 out of 5]

an interesting if highly opinionated biography of Davis; much food for thought