Presidents of the Confederate States

Reggie Bartlett · Feb 16, 2015

As far as post-War heroes go.

Lee, Bragg, Breckinridge, Jackson (possibly), Forrest, and maybe Hampton or Polk are going to be the big names in the public mind for the pro-Davis Democrats.

Longstreet, Hardee, Cleburne (wonder how his friendship with Hindman would go), Johnston, and Beauregard are going to be big names for the Whigs.

The Fire-Eaters. During the war they had lost some traction, after all if the CSA is independent by 1863 the thirst is quenched for them. Even Edmund Ruffin just might shut up ITTL. The only names I can think of outside of Rhett, are William Barksdale, John Pettus, and the aforementioned Thomas C. Hindman.

The Kiat · Feb 16, 2015

After the first few Presidents, you reach the point where you can simply invent people to fill the role.

Nytram01 · Feb 17, 2015

AdmiralBlake said:
You do have a good point, and ill defiantly have Tillman feature heavily in confederate politics, but probably as a senior senator rather than president

are there any civil war veterans that would likely enter politics at that point? I was thinking of Johnston, but he would really be a little too old to run in 1885, and Bearegard would almost certainly be a whig

Joe Johnston would be 78 in 1885 and in OTL he was still running around America working a busy schedule as Commissioner of the Railroads under Grover Cleveland. He was a very spritely old man in very good health and would have been able to handle the stresses of political life. Where he would fall down would be in his general apathy for politics and his taciturn nature in public added to the fact that he thought campaigning for votes to be un-gentlemanly, unbecoming and beneath him.

I am convinced that if the Confederacy had succeed and become independent Johnston would have remained with the Army, become General-in-Chief in due course and stayed there until he retired or died in the 1890's.

I personally favour the idea of Beauregard becoming President with Thomas C. Hindman as his Vice-President and possible successor.

AdmiralBlake · Feb 17, 2015

Reggie Bartlett said:
As far as post-War heroes go.

Lee, Bragg, Breckinridge, Jackson (possibly), Forrest, and maybe Hampton or Polk are going to be the big names in the public mind for the pro-Davis Democrats.

Longstreet, Hardee, Cleburne (wonder how his friendship with Hindman would go), Johnston, and Beauregard are going to be big names for the Whigs.

The Fire-Eaters. During the war they had lost some traction, after all if the CSA is independent by 1863 the thirst is quenched for them. Even Edmund Ruffin just might shut up ITTL. The only names I can think of outside of Rhett, are William Barksdale, John Pettus, and the aforementioned Thomas C. Hindman.

Bragg would be too erratic, and Jackson was not a natural politician

all the others are good though, thanks

AdmiralBlake · Feb 17, 2015

The Kiat said:
After the first few Presidents, you reach the point where you can simply invent people to fill the role.

I hate doing that though, I always like to use OTL people, it just seems better.

Reggie Bartlett · Feb 17, 2015

AdmiralBlake said:
Bragg would be too erratic, and Jackson was not a natural politician

all the others are good though, thanks

Cleburne, had he lived, would have stayed in Arkansas. I think, he really didn't have political ambitions beyond Helena.

Fiver · Feb 19, 2015

thekingsguard said:
Lee's chances go up in smoke the instant word of his abolitionist sympathies get out. Once that happens, he won't come within throwing distance of power or influence in the CSA.

Lee had no abolitionist sympathies. He considered abolitionism evil.

Fiver · Feb 19, 2015

Reggie Bartlett said:
All of them are going to vie for Lee's support. Whoever Lee chooses will be the dominant Confederate party for the next generation.

For the Confederacy to win will require at least one other Confederate to equal or exceed Lee in military performance. Lee's endorsement would be helpful, but not essential.

Fiver · Feb 19, 2015

Reggie Bartlett said:
By 1867, if this is an 1862 victory, the CSA is still decentralized. But due to the War of Secession they now sit on a rapid industrialization that happened during the war, and the need for westward expansion.

You have John C. Breckinridge as Davis' successor candidate for the *Democrats.

You have Stephens, Beauregard and maybe even JE Johnston trying to pander to the *Whig vote.

You have Robert Rhett, and his like pandering to the Fire Eaters.

And John H. Reagan, as a Moderate.

Other contenders would be Wigfall, Toombs, Hunter, Cobb, and Harris and perhaps Chestnut, Barnwell, Atchison, Vance, Bragg or Brown.

AdmiralBlake · Mar 28, 2015

been a month, but might as well give this a quick bump

AdmiralBlake · Mar 28, 2015

does anyone have any ideas about who would be good for the 1928-34 term?
looking for a conservative (OTL anti New Deal) democrat?

AdmiralBlake · Mar 29, 2015

right, heres the list ive got so far: (the democrats are the more agrarian conservative party, the Whigs the party of modernisation and industrialisation)

1861-1868: Jefferson Davis (No Party)
1868-1874: John C. Breckinridge (Democrat)
1874-1880: Unknown (Democrat)
1880-1886: James Longstreet (Whig)
1886-1910: Unknowns (all Democrats)
1910-1916: T. Woodrow Wilson (Whig)
1916-1921: Champ Clark (Whig)
1921-1928: William G. McAdoo (Whig)
1928-1934: John W. Davis (Democrat)

Any help with filling in the unknowns?

Anaxagoras · Mar 29, 2015

AdmiralBlake said:
id think Breckinridge would probably die a couple of years earlier than OTL, the stress of being president would probably shorten his life a little

But in a CS-Victory TL, Breckinridge won't undergo the enormous physical and mental strain that his escape through the Florida swamps inflicted upon him in 1865 IOTL. There's a fair amount of speculation that this ordeal weakened his health and might have contributed to his early death.

ennobee · Mar 29, 2015

Any chance of there being a third party other then the Democrats and Whigs? I noticed in the posts that they both were pretty conservative and reactionary in their outlook. The issue is that in the long run the 'injustices' of pre-seccession Washington will loose their value as a rallying cry and I don't know how far the Southern political system will encourage smaller issue parties, but eventually one of the new parties might well replace one of the traditional ones like in otl when the Republican party replaced the Whigs

AdmiralBlake · Mar 29, 2015

ennobee said:
Any chance of there being a third party other then the Democrats and Whigs? I noticed in the posts that they both were pretty conservative and reactionary in their outlook. The issue is that in the long run the 'injustices' of pre-seccession Washington will loose their value as a rallying cry and I don't know how far the Southern political system will encourage smaller issue parties, but eventually one of the new parties might well replace one of the traditional ones like in otl when the Republican party replaced the Whigs

trouble is both the US and CS political systems are built in such a way to make long term multi-party politics near impossible

AdmiralBlake · Mar 30, 2015

bump bump bump

Jonathan · Mar 30, 2015

what about Strom Thurmond or Claude Pepper, for office in 1934?

AdmiralBlake · Mar 30, 2015

Jonathan said:
what about Strom Thurmond or Claude Pepper, for office in 1934?

ive sorted out after 1934, already got a list for after then (which I will start writing up when I get round to it)

Jonathan · Mar 30, 2015

AdmiralBlake said:
ive sorted out after 1934, already got a list for after then (which I will start writing up when I get round to it)

What do you need.

AdmiralBlake · Mar 31, 2015

Jonathan said:
What do you need.

1861-1868: Jefferson Davis (No Party)
1868-1874: John C. Breckinridge (Democrat)
1874-1880: Unknown (Democrat)
1880-1886: James Longstreet (Whig)
1886-1910: Unknowns (all Democrats)
1910-1916: T. Woodrow Wilson (Whig)
1916-1921: Champ Clark (Whig)
1921-1928: William G. McAdoo (Whig)
1928-1934: John W. Davis (Democrat)