The Fate of Liberty: Abraham Lincoln and Civil Liberties

by Mark E. Neely Jr.

Book Overview

If Abraham Lincoln was known as the Great Emancipator, he was also the only president to suspend the writ of habeas corpus. Indeed, Lincoln's record on the Constitution and individual rights has fueled a century of debate, from charges that Democrats were singled out for harrassment to Gore Vidal's depiction of Lincoln as an "absolute dictator." Now, in The Fate of Liberty, one of America's leading authorities on Lincoln wades straight into this controversy, showing just who was jailed and why, even as he explores the whole range of Lincoln's constitutional policies.
Mark Neely depicts Lincoln's suspension of habeas corpus as a well-intentioned attempt to deal with a floodtide of unforeseen events: the threat to Washington as Maryland flirted with secession, distintegrating public order in the border states, corruption among military contractors, the occupation of hostile Confederate territory, contraband trade with the South, and the outcry against the first draft in U.S. history. Drawing upon letters from prisoners, records of military courts and federal prisons, memoirs, and federal archives, he paints a vivid picture of how Lincoln responded to these problems, how his policies were actually executed, and the virulent political debates that followed. Lincoln emerges from this account with this legendary statesmanship intact--mindful of political realities and prone to temper the sentences of military courts, concerned not with persecuting his opponents but with prosecuting the war efficiently. In addition, Neely explores the abuses of power under the regime of martial law: the routine torture of suspected deserters, widespread antisemitism among Union generals and officials, the common practice of seizing civilian hostages. He finds that though the system of military justice was flawed, it suffered less from merciless zeal, or political partisanship, than from inefficiency and the friction and complexities of modern war.
Drawing on a deep understanding of this unique period, Neely takes a comprehensive look at the issues of civil liberties during Lincoln's administration, placing them firmly in the political context of the time. Written with keen insight and an intimate grasp of the original sources, The Fate of Liberty offers a vivid picture of the crises and chaos of a nation at war with itself, changing our understanding of this president and his most controversial policies.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0195064968
• ISBN13: 9780195064964
• Release Date: January 1991
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
• Length: 304 Pages
• Weight: 1.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.4" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

Pulitzer material for sure

I gobbled up this book, but then, it falls right into my current research topic. Others who found it dull have a point if they are not into this era or the topic, but I loved reading it. I might have given it 4 1/2 stars because occasionally Neely's liberal side sneaks through, as when he deemed the military draft of 1862 an odious event. That's a personal value judgment, not a fact. That it was PERCEIVED by many Northerners as odious, is a fact. But that is a tiny, tiny flaw, and the book is definitely deserving of the Pulitzer it received. (And I suspect those occasional liberal slips were vital to winning the Pulitzer.) Neely's marvelous academic study contradicts with extensively researched facts (the man read 137 rolls of microfilm searching for arrest records) the rantings of the Lincoln-was-a-despot Libertarians such as Thomas DiLorenzo. Not light reading but highly recommended for scholars.

Everything you want to know on the subject.

This is a very worthy and scholarly work with more detail than you could ask for on the subject. My problem with it is that is is a difficult read that is best taken in small doses. No doubt Neely is the award winning expert, it shows.

Crucial book on civil liberties during wartime

Neely gives an excellent and detailed review of how civil liberties suffered during the War Between the States. The right of habeas corpus is Neely's main concern, but trials by military commissons and international law are covered among other topics.If you're not a Civil War buff, this book may seem pretty dry. For example, a lot of space is devoted to evaluating the various claims of how many military prisoners there were. While this is important historical data, it made my eyes glaze over and prompted me to skim several sections of the book.Given the post-9/11 discussions of military tribunals and other curtailments of the Bill of Rights, this book is more relevant than ever.

Excellent study of a misunderstood aspect of the Civil War

This book gives an excellent look into the policies of the Lincoln administration and the effects of these policies on civil liberties in the United States. A common misconception regarding this subject is that the majority of those arrested as a result of the suspension of habeas corpus were political enemies of Lincoln. This book, however, demonstrates how many of the arrests were not based upon politics, but upon how the crimes committed affected the war effort. Most attention in the past has focused on a few famous cases such as Clement Vallandingham, but this book shows that this case was an exception to the rule.A must-read for anyone interested in the Civil War or Abraham Lincoln. Neely also writes in a clear prose that clearly explains his points and allows the reader to understand what he is talking about even without having an extensive knowledge of Lincoln or the Civil War.