Reluctant Confederates - by Daniel W Crofts (Paperback)

About the Book

Reluctant Confederates: Upper South Unionists in the Secession Crisis

Book Synopsis

Daniel Crofts examines Unionists in three pivotal southern states--Virginia, North Carolina, and Tennessee--and shows why the outbreak of the war enabled the Confederacy to gain the allegiance of these essential, if ambivalent, governments.

"Crofts's study focuses on Virginia, North Carolina, and Tennessee, but it includes analyses of the North and Deep South as well. As a result, his volume presents the views of all parties to the sectional conflict and offers a vivid portrait of the interaction between them.--American Historical Review

"Refocuses our attention on an important but surprisingly neglected group--the Unionists of the upper South during the secession crisis, who have been too readily ignored by other historians.--Journal of Southern History

From the Back Cover

Daniel Crofts examines Unionists in three pivotal southern states--Virginia, North Carolina, and Tennessee--and shows why the outbreak of the war enabled the Confederacy to gain the allegiance of these essential, if ambivalent, governments.

Review Quotes

"Reluctant Confederates tells us much about the political diversity of the Old South, and, especially in conjunction with important new works by Lacy Ford and John Inscoe, illuminates the ideas and social practices that nonetheless united it. . . . [An] important book explores topics usually ignored and discovers cautionary lessons for presentist historians."--Civil War History

"An important new work . . . Most studies on the secession have concentrated on the Lower South, then quickly added the reluctant states after the war began. This study adds a great deal of information about the three states on which it focuses. It deserves to be read by anyone who has an interest in the fateful secession crisis."--Journal of American History

"Crofts's study focuses on Virginia, North Carolina, and Tennessee, but it includes analyses of the North and Deep South as well. As a result, his volume presents the views of all parties to the sectional conflict and offers a vivid portrait of the interaction between them."--American Historical Review

"Refocuses our attention on an important but surprisingly neglected group--the Unionists of the upper South during the secession crisis, who have been too readily ignored by other historians."--Journal of Southern History

About the Author

Daniel W. Crofts is professor of history at Trenton State College.