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 How
could there be another book about Abraham Lincoln? Author Frank
van der Linden spent eight years gathering research to
support a new twist on an old theme--that the Civil War was
not inevitable; and, that it could have been prevented.
It begins with Lincoln's early term in Congress, when he rails
against Polk's Mexican War, describing it as "unnecessarily
and unconstitutionally begun by the President," in an attempt
to win military glory. This becomes a prophecy for Lincoln's
own actions as president nearly fifteen years later.
To support the theory, van der Linden states that if Lincoln
had left the seven original seceded states alone, no other
southern states would have supported them. Neither the Union
nor Europe would have recognized them. The Confederacy was
too weak to survive for long by itself and slavery was already
an anachronism. World opinion and economic pressures eventually
would have forced the demise of both.
Instead, Lincoln believed that the Union must be preserved
at all costs. His pride prevented him from appearing weak and
yielding to the South. Had he done so, the author poses that
the ultimate result would have been the same--an end to slavery
and a stronger federal government--without the horrors of four
years of war.
Does this book present a flawed Lincoln, a politically motivated
individual succumbing to political pressure in order to appear
strong and win military glory? Or, another aspect of an extremely
complex individual? The answer is yes to both, but it is not
quite a complete answer. So, make room on your bookshelves
for this book on Lincoln--with more to follow!
Photo: National Archives
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