New Reflections on Lincoln and the Constitution During the Civil War Lincoln and the Triumph of the Nation: Constitutional Conflict in the American Civil War Abraham Lincoln and Treason in the Civil War: The Trials of John Merryman

Abstract

The Body of John Merryman: Abraham Lincoln and Suspension of Habeas Corpus. By Brian McGinty. (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2011. Pp. 253, notes, bibliography, index. Cloth, $29.95.) Lincoln and Triumph of Nation: Constitutional Conflict in American Civil War. By Mark E. Neely Jr. (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2011. Pp. 408, notes, bibliography, index. Cloth, $35.00.) Abraham Lincoln and Treason in Civil War: The Trials of John Merryman. By Jonathan White. (Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 2011. Pp. xii, 191, illustrations, notes, bibliography, index. Paperback, $17.95.) Recently, because of my interest in life, work, and politics of Joseph Holt - Abraham Lincoln's judge advocate general, head of War Department's Bureau of Military Justice, and a crucial supporter of Lincoln's wartime policies following his appointment in September 1862 - I was invited to speak at a conference in Clinton, Maryland. During one of our breaks, a fellow speaker took pains to express to me his opinion about Lincoln's suspension of writ of habeas corpus. An unprecedented power grab, he called it, shaking his head, and unconscionable, unAmerican violation of civilians' civil rights in wartime. My interlocutor went on to describe his own current research, which, he warned, would cast a number of presidents (including Lincoln) and their administrations' enforcers (such as Holt) in a severely unfavorable light. I am no stranger to this sort of exchange, having come to be known over last decade or so, with varying degrees of affection, approval, curiosity, and disdain, as the Holt lady. On this occasion, in response to my colleague's warning, I asked whether he had read recent and extremely relevant books Mark E. Neely Jr., Brian McGinty, and Jonathan W. White. When he informed me that he had not, I urged him to do so in near future, at very least, before he set into permanent print his opinions on President Lincoln, Chief Justice Roger B. Taney, habeas corpus, and wartime civil liberties. I made this recommendation energetically not just because I believe these books were worth his time, but also because they are important resources for Civil War scholars generally. Each of three is illuminating in its own way. The longest and most sweeping of trio is Pulitzer Prize-winner Mark Neeh/s Lincoln and Triumph of Nation. In this book, Neely seeks to redress previous absence in literature of a single volume dealing simultaneously with wartime history of U.S. which he describes as an underestimated asset to Union cause, and Confederate which he insists was by no means... a cause of Confederate defeat. (pp. 15-16) Since constitutions were markedly similar in content, Neely explains, the historian has opportunity to see document itself tested in two different societies at same time. (p. 17) This, then, is precisely what Neely sets out to do: to explore how lawyers, justices, and government officials in both Union and Confederacy thought about Constitution, (p. 25) and to examine they made with respect to which government policies during war were constitutional and which were not. From start, Neely informs readers that rather than a sharply defined thesis on history of Civil War, his goal is to present us with several arguments (p. 17) and abundance of opinions expressed period's judges, newspapers editors, politicians, and political pamphleteers. (p. 26) In doing so, he hopes that Lincoln and Triumph of Nation can become a springboard for future studies of Constitution in Civil War and in other American wars. Neely would be pleased indeed if his thought-provoking book were to launch a new series of titles, beginning with 'Constitutional Problems Under Madison' and stretching through all our wars until we have accumulated a shelf of volumes that reconsider role of Constitution in America's wars. …