Lincoln Dead in 1861

The Men Behind the Power

When Hamlin unexpectedly inherited the presidency from Lincoln, he inherited a rapidly-deteriorating situation. To help him address these problems, he also inherited Lincoln’s cabinet. He decided to keep most of them on, as a sign of respect for Lincoln. But within the first year of his administration, three positions would change.

First and foremost was Simon Cameron, who had been appointed Secretary of War. Cameron was a controversial figure when Lincoln was considering him for the post. Charges of corruption were rampant in his home state of Pennsylvania. Thaddeus Stevens, a congressman from Pennsylvania, told Lincoln when discussing Cameron’s honesty that “I don’t think that he would steal a red hot stove.” When Cameron, feeling personally slighted, demanded that Stevens retract his statement, Stevens said to Lincoln: “I believe I told you he would not steal a red-hot stove. I will now take that back.”

Lincoln mulled over Cameron’s appointment throughout the months between his election and his assassination. When Lincoln arrived in Washington, Cameron had not yet been formally offered the post, though he knew that his consideration was being strongly considered despite the corruption charges. He put the onus on Lincoln to remove his name from consideration rather than publicly removing it himself. As such, by March 4, 1861, Cameron and the incoming Lincoln administration were at an impasse. With Lincoln’s assassination, this would all change.

Hamlin was determined to counter Southern aggression with a strong military response. While he did not doubt Cameron’s commitment to “seeing those rebels hang,” he did take the opportunity to replace him with someone who more strongly supported a strong retaliatory response. Fortunately for Hamlin, he did not have to look far to find a replacement for Cameron.

Montgomery Blair of Maryland had already been selected as Lincoln’s Postmaster General. Lincoln had wanted Southern representation in his cabinet in order to discourage the border states from seceding. As a member of the most prominent political family in Maryland, and perhaps the entire US, Blair was perfect for this position.

Hamlin evidently agreed that Blair belonged in his Civil War cabinet, but made one change. Cameron would likely sully the position of Secretary of War, yet Blair would fill the position exactly to Hamlin’s liking. To Hamlin, it was a simple fix: appoint Blair to the position over Cameron. This would, of course, cause two problems. First, the position of Postmaster General would be left open; second, there would be no representative of Pennsylvania in the cabinet, which would be critically important to the Union effort. To solve both problems, Hamlin decided to simply appoint Cameron to the position of Postmaster General. Both men accepted their new posts, and thus Hamlin’s cabinet was complete. Blair would remain in his post throughout the war; Cameron would resign in 1862 to be replaced by John W Killinger, also from Pennsylvania, who was the chairman of the House Committee n Expenditures in the Post Office Department before assuming the position of Postmaster General.

Since Hamlin’s cabinet was critical to the Union war effort, it is prudent that to take the time to survey each post. The vice-presidency was left vacant, as was traditional, and the positions of Secretary of War and Postmaster General have already been discussed.

Occupying the position of Secretary of State was William Seward of New York, who had previously been Lincoln’s chief rival for the Republican nomination. Like Lincoln, Seward was deeply concerned with preserving the Union and did not believe that war was eminent. At Lincoln’s urging, Seward proposed multiple constitutional amendments and laws intended to appease Southern secessionists. These included a renewed fugitive slave law, expansion of slavery into the New Mexico territory, and even the construction of two transcontinental railroads, one northern and one southern. The latter proposition would come to fruition during Reconstruction. However, in the early months of 1861, none of his propositions were enough to prevent Southern secession and aggression. After the Lincoln assassination, Hamlin and Seward would constantly find themselves at odds over Southern aggression and the course of the war. In 1862 Seward would ultimately be replaced by Charles Sumner, a Senator from Massachusetts, who shared Hamlin’s thoughts on Southern aggression and was instrumental in keeping the British and French from taking sides in the war.

Salmon P Chase filled the position of Secretary of the Treasury. Formerly the governor of Ohio, he was staunchly anti-Southern and spent his political career fighting against the “Slave Power Conspiracy,” which he believed involved Southern slave owners seizing control of the federal government to block the progress of liberty. In Chase’s mind, and those of later historians, Lincoln’s assassination and the resultant Civil War overwhelmingly proved his conspiracy correct. His anti-Southern stance would play right into Hamlin’s hands during his administration.

The Attorney General was Edward Bates of Missouri. A former conservative Whig, Bates spent his tenure as Attorney General researching the legal issues surrounding secession, which would prove invaluable to the later Reconstruction movement. Gideon Welles occupied the position of Secretary of the Navy. Lincoln let the selection of the Secretary of the Navy fall to Hamlin who selected Welles, a former Democrat from Connecticut, to project an air of interparty unity in the face of secession.

The final cabinet position, Secretary of the Interior, fell to Caleb Blood Smith of Indiana. Lincoln had awarded him this position due to his involvement in the campaign. However, with the Lincoln assassination and Hamlin’s inheritance of the presidency, the conservative Smith found himself increasingly at odds with the administration. Due to this as well as poor health and lack of interest in the job, Smith resigned his post in November 1861. He was replaced by John Palmer Usher, the Attorney General for Indiana, who had been a longtime acquaintance of Lincoln and Smith.

Looking at the Union cabinet at this time gives one a clear picture of how losing a war after suffering several demoralizing defeats affects presidential politics. Turning to the Confederate South and the other presidential cabinet offers a very different picture. The cabinet of Jefferson Davis presided over victory after victory in the early Civil War, and they took full advantage of this. Davis’ cabinet was modeled after the Union cabinet and, except for Secretary of the Interior, had the same positions as the Hamlin cabinet. Since these men would play a pivotal role in Confederate war policy, it is again prudent to discuss them individually.

First and foremost was Alexander H Stephens of Georgia, Davis’ Vice President. A former member of both the Whig and Constitutional Union Parties, Stephens was a Democrat upon his election to the Vice Presidency of the Confederacy. Throughout the months preceding his election and in the weeks after, Stephens was cautious about secession and aggressive action against the Union. He voted against Georgia’s secession and publicly cautioned against it, futile as that effort was. In the weeks leading up to the Lincoln assassination, Stephens cautioned Davis against mobilizing Confederate troops to take control over Union forts within Confederate territory, such as Fort Sumter in South Carolina and Fort Pickens in Florida.

Of course, the Lincoln assassination completely erased any hope the South may have had to build up its forces and stock up on resources. Whatever the reason though, whether increased morale or inspiration drawn from Stephens’ “Cornerstone Speech” in which he laid out the principles of states’ rights and racial superiority that the CSA was founded upon, the Confederate army racked up victory after victory in the border states. Stephens was still cautious and felt that Confederate success could not last forever; he was one of the strongest voices in the Confederate cabinet for organizing early peace negotiations on Confederate terms, but was often shot down by other members of the cabinet including Davis himself. Nevertheless, Stephens would remain Davis’ Vice President throughout the Civil War and was one of the loudest voices of dissent in the cabinet. There was talk of replacing Stephens on Davis’ ticket should the Confederacy last until the next election, but the war ended before Stephens could be humiliated in this way.

Secretary of State changed hands many times during the Davis administration. At first, Davis offered the post to Robert Toombs of Georgia. Toombs was the only major obstacle in the way of Davis’ presidency and so, according to the tradition carried over from the Union, was offered the post of Secretary of State. Like Stephens, Toombs was very much opposed to Southern aggression, believing that it would be better in the long run if the North were to strike the first blow. As such, in the aftermath of the Lincoln assassination, Toombs was furious at Davis for not immediately denouncing the terrorists. He became increasingly disillusioned after the Battle of Baltimore all but guaranteed a bloody end to this war, one way or another. In June of 1861, Toombs resigned and was immediately replaced by William M Browne, an Irishman also from Georgia. A close personal friend of Davis and Toombs, he had been selected as Assistant Secretary of State under Toombs. Upon Toombs’ resignation, Browne was a natural replacement, and was considerably more military-minded than both Stephens and Toombs. This military expertise would lead Davis to appoint Browne as Secretary of War in November 1861, replacing LeRoy Pope Walker of Alabama, where he would remain for the rest of the Civil War.

The empty post of Secretary of State was filled by Judah P Benjamin of Louisiana. A Jewish lawyer and US Senator, he gained notoriety for his eloquent speeches in support of the rights of Southern property owners. Unlike Stephens and others in the Confederate cabinet, Benjamin did not subscribe to notions of racial superiority; instead he supported the peculiar institution of slavery from a purely legal standpoint. He and Davis became fast friends during their time in the Senate. Thus when Davis was elected President of the Confederacy, Benjamin was a perfect candidate for a cabinet post. Due to his legal background, Davis initially appointed him to the post of Attorney General. Benjamin, however, rapidly proved himself invaluable to the Confederate government, especially in foreign matters. As such, when Browne left his post as Secretary of State to become Secretary of War, Benjamin was promoted. He would remain Davis’ Secretary of State and confidant throughout the Civil War. The vacant Attorney General post was filled by Wade Keyes, assistant to Benjamin, until February 1862 when he was replaced by Thomas H Watts of Alabama. Watts himself would resign to become Governor of Alabama in October 1863 and was in turn replaced by George Davis of North Carolina, who would serve until the end of the Civil War.

Christopher Memminger of South Carolina served as Davis’ Secretary of the Treasury from 1861 until 1864 when he resigned to tend to his affairs in his home state. He was replaced by George A Trenholm, also of South Carolina. Both worked to finance the Confederate war effort, each with varying degrees of success. Memminger favored financing through a combination of war bonds, tariffs, and confiscating gold from the US Mint in New Orleans. Trenholm largely continued this system, yet also worked hard to maintain friendly trade relationships with Britain. The British government had not chosen sides in the war, and were highly unlikely to do so publicly. In private though, the British were all too willing to purchase Southern textiles and finance the Confederate military. It is this private financial support that kept the Confederate army well-supplied for much of the war.

The last two posts, Secretary of the Navy and Postmaster General, were occupied by Stephen R Mallory of Florida and John H Reagan of Texas respectively. Mallory was instrumental in building up the Confederate navy, which was able to stave off the worst of the Union blockades for much of the early war. Reagan proved himself to be the most capable cabinet administrator of the Davis administration, bragging that he had had his department up and running in only six weeks. Working in tandem with both Secretaries of the Treasury, Reagan was able to save the Confederacy even more money which would be instrumental in sustaining the war effort. Both Mallory and Reagan would serve for the duration of the war.

Both cabinets would be invaluable in supporting the cause of their government. Over the next few years, these causes would increasingly clash until one prevailed. The Confederacy had won early victories and was on a plausible path to victory. Hamlin and his administration would work diligently in the coming years to counter this.
 
Top