Lincoln vs. Davis: The War of the Presidents -- Nigel Hamilton, Hardcover

From renowned biographer­­­ Nigel Hamilton, author of the epic FDR at War trilogy and the bestselling JFK: Reckless Youth, comes the greatest untold story of the Civil War: how two American presidents faced off as the fate of the nation hung in the balance -- and how Abraham Lincoln came to embrace emancipation as the last, best chance to save the Union.

Of all the books written on Abraham Lincoln, there has been one surprising gap: the drama of how the "railsplitter" from Illinois grew into his critical role as U.S. commander-in-chief, and managed to outwit his formidable opponent, Jefferson Davis, in what remains history's only military faceoff between rival American presidents. Davis was a trained soldier and war hero; Lincoln a country lawyer who had only briefly served in the militia. Confronted with the most violent and challenging war ever seen on American soil, Lincoln seemed ill-suited to the task: inexperienced, indecisive, and a poor judge of people's motives, he allowed his administration's war policies to be sabotaged by fickle, faithless cabinet officials while entrusting command of his army to a preening young officer named George McClellan - whose defeat in battle left Washington, the nation's capital, at the mercy of General Robert E. Lee, Davis's star performer.

The war almost ended there. But in a Shakespearean twist, Lincoln summoned the courage to make, at last, a climactic decision: issuing as a "military necessity" a proclamation freeing the 3.5 million enslaved Americans without whom the South could not feed or fund their armed insurrection. The new war policy doomed the rebellion--which was in dire need of support from Europe, none of whose governments now would dare to recognize rebel "independence" in a war openly fought over slavery. The fate of President Davis was sealed.

With a cast of unforgettable characters, from first ladies to fugitive coachmen to treasonous cabinet officials, Lincoln vs. Davis is a spellbinding dual biography from renowned presidential chronicler Nigel Hamilton: a saga that will surprise, touch, and enthrall.


Author: Nigel Hamilton
Publisher: Little Brown and Company
Published: 11/05/2024
Pages: 800
Binding Type: Hardcover
ISBN: 9780316564632

Review Citation(s):
Library Journal 06/01/2024 pg. 14

About the Author
Nigel Hamilton is a best-selling and award-winning biographer of President John F. Kennedy, General Bernard "Monty" Montgomery, and President Bill Clinton, among other subjects. His book The Mantle of Command: FDR at War, 1941-1942 was long-listed for the National Book Award. He is a senior fellow at the McCormack Graduate School, University of Massachusetts, Boston, and splits his time between Boston, Massachusetts, and New Orleans, Louisiana.