Description:
Edited by Gary Gallagher and Elizabeth Varon, two of the most prominent nineteenth-century American historians in the nation, New Perspectives on the Union War provides a more nuanced understanding of what "Union" meant in the Civil War North by exploring how various groups of northerners conceived of the term. The essays in this volume demonstrate that while there was a broad consensus that the war was fought, or should be fought, for the cause of Union, there was bitter disagreement over how to define that cause--debate not only between political camps but also within them. The chapters touch on economics, politics, culture, military affairs, ethnicity, and questions relating to just war.
Contributors: Michael T. Caires, Frank Cirillo, D.H. Dilbeck, Jack Furniss, Jesse George-Nichol, William B. Kurtz, Peter C. Luebke, and Tamika NunleyBrief description: Elizabeth R. Varon is Langbourne M. Williams Professor of American History and Associate Director of the John L. Nau III Center for Civil War History at the University of Virginia. She is the author of numerous books, including Appomattox: Victory, Defeat, and Freedom at the End of the Civil War.
Review Quotes: The eight deeply researched and highly accessible case studies that make up New Perspectives on the Union War counter traditional narratives that place northerners into one of a few discrete political categories by mapping out the complex political spectrum occupied by northerners in their support for the Civil War.---Matthew Gallman, University of Florida