Tried by War: Abraham Lincoln as Commander in Chief Hardcover - 2008

by James M. McPherson

James McPherson, a bestselling historian of the Civil War, illuminateshow Lincoln worked with and often against his senior commandersto defeat the Confederacy and create the role of commander in chiefas we know it.

Though Abraham Lincoln arrived at the WhiteHouse with no previous military experience (apart from acouple of months spent soldiering in 1832), he quickly establishedhimself as the greatest commander in chief in Americanhistory. James McPherson illuminates this often misunderstoodand profoundly influential aspect of Lincoln's legacy. In essence,Lincoln invented the idea of commander in chief, as neitherthe Constitution nor existing legislation specified how thepresident ought to declare war or dictate strategy. In fact, byassuming the powers we associate with the role of commanderin chief, Lincoln often overstepped the narrow band of rightsgranted the president. Good thing too, because his strategicinsight and will to fight changed the course of the war andsaved the Union.

For most of the conflict, he constantly had to goadhis reluctant generals toward battle, and he oversaw strategyand planning for major engagements with the enemy. Lincolnwas a self-taught military strategist (as he was a self-taught lawyer),which makes his adroit conduct of the war seem almostmiraculous. To be sure, the Union's campaigns often wentawry, sometimes horribly so, but McPherson makes clear howthe missteps arose from the all-too-common moments whenLincoln could neither threaten nor cajole his commanders tofollow his orders.

Because Lincoln's war took place within our borders,the relationship between the front lines and the home frontwas especially close and volatile. Here again, Lincoln facedenormous challenges in exemplary fashion. He was a masterlymolder of public opinion, for instance, defining the war aimsinitially as preserving the Union and only later as ending slavery when he sensed the public was at last ready to bear sucha lofty burden.

As we approach the bicentennial of Lincoln's birthin 2009, this book will be that rarest gift a genuinely novel,even timely, view of the most-written-about figure in our history.Tried by War offers a revelatory portrait of leadership duringthe greatest crisis our nation has ever endured. How Lincolnovercame feckless generals, fickle public opinion, and his ownparalyzing fears is a story at once suspenseful and inspiring.