Civil War Justice: Union Army Executions under Lincoln

9780942597103

0942597109

A factual account of how Lincoln's lack of management skills, his vacillation over decisions of military justice, and his complete disregard for the Constitution caused the deaths of many Union soldiers off the battlefield. This book is not another biography of Lincoln, nor is it a revisionist history of the Civil War era. It is, however, a glimpse into the everyday world of the North's soldiers. Here is a frightening account of justice denied to hundreds of poor, uneducated soldiers who were tried, convicted and executed for military offenses, sometimes trivial. It is also a study of the government's misreporting of the actual number of men who were executed by court-martial order. This is the first book to study intensively the court-martial system during the Civil War and the effect of that system on the common soldier. With its careful analysis backed by detailed and fascinating documentation, Civil War Justice will be read and discussed for years to come.