Lincoln's Autocrat: The Life of Edwin Stanton

by William Marvel

Overview

Edwin M. Stanton (1814-1869), one of the nineteenth century's most impressive legal and political minds, wielded enormous influence and power as Lincoln's secretary of war during most of the Civil War and under Johnson during the early years of Reconstruction. In the first full biography of Stanton in more than fifty years, William Marvel offers a detailed reexamination of Stanton's life, career, and legacy. Marvel argues that while Stanton was a formidable advocate and politician, his character was hardly benign. Climbing from a difficult youth to the pinnacle of power, Stanton used his authority—and the public coffers—to pursue political vendettas, and he exercised sweeping wartime powers with a cavalier disregard for civil liberties.

Though Lincoln's ability to harness a cabinet with sharp divisions and strong personalities is widely celebrated, Marvel suggests that Stanton's tenure raises important questions about Lincoln's actual control over the executive branch. This insightful biography also reveals why men like Ulysses S. Grant considered Stanton a coward and a bully, who was unashamed to use political power for partisan enforcement and personal preservation.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781469636153
Publisher:	The University of North Carolina Press
Publication date:	08/01/2017
Series:	Civil War America
Pages:	632
Sales rank:	170,229
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.20(h) x 1.40(d)

About the Author

William Marvel's many books include A Place Called Appomattox, Andersonville: The Last Depot, Lincoln's Darkest Year, and Tarnished Victory.

What People are Saying About This

Daniel E. Sutherland

This is easily the most comprehensive biography of Edwin M. Stanton ever written. Lincoln's Autocrat will doubtless stir debate over both Stanton’s character and his role in the war, but that is clearly this book's very purpose. Marvel's erudite and probing interpretation will unquestionably stand as the definitive biography of this overlooked key player in Lincoln's cabinet for the current, and likely the next, generation of readers.

From the Publisher

This is easily the most comprehensive biography of Edwin M. Stanton ever written. Lincoln's Autocrat will doubtless stir debate over both Stanton's character and his role in the war, but that is clearly this book's very purpose. Marvel's erudite and probing interpretation will unquestionably stand as the definitive biography of this overlooked key player in Lincoln's cabinet for the current, and likely the next, generation of readers.—Daniel E. Sutherland, author of A Savage Conflict: The Role of Guerrillas in the American Civil War



With Lincoln's Autocrat, William Marvel has delivered another fine book, prodigiously researched and told in his trademark lucid, fast-paced narrative style. A seasoned scholar, Marvel casts his net wide in evaluating Stanton and his contribution to the war and to the political culture of the postwar period, navigating the intersections of the era's legal system and the convoluted political culture like only a writer such as he can.—Stephen D. Engle, author of Don Carlos Buell: Most Promising of All

Stephen D. Engle

With Lincoln's Autocrat, William Marvel has delivered another fine book, prodigiously researched and told in his trademark lucid, fast-paced narrative style. A seasoned scholar, Marvel casts his net wide in evaluating Stanton and his contribution to the war and to the political culture of the postwar period, navigating the intersections of the era's legal system and the convoluted political culture like only a writer such as him can.

Editorial Reviews

Well-written.—Wall Street Journal



A complex work that will appeal to Civil War scholars and general readers who want a deeper treatment of Stanton.—Library Journal, starred review



Marvel's extraordinarily detailed and meticulously researched work is eye-opening.—Journal of Southern History



This should be considered the definitive biography on Stanton and should stand as a classic of academia not only in the Civil War genre but the biographical style as well. Incredibly researched, amazingly written and packed to the seams with information, Lincoln's Autocrat should be on the shelf of every Civil War historian.—Gettysburg Chronicle



[A] meticulously researched biography.—Civil War Book Review



[A] remarkable biography.—Journal of Army History



The tremendous research, clarity, and Marvel's narrative style make [this book] a joy to read. . . . Should enjoy a unique longevity unparalleled by its predecessors.—The Journal of America's Military Past



Marvel effectively describes Edwin Stanton in one of the more important works to appear on the Union war effort in years.—America's Civil War Magazine



[A] riveting book [that] offers a highly detailed and scathing indictment of an unprincipled and repellent individual.—On Point: The Journal of Army History



Massively detailed and gracefully written. . . . A significant study of this prominent Civil War leader.—Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography

From the Publisher

★ 02/15/2015
Civil War scholar Marvel (Tarnished Victory) writes definitively of Edwin M. Stanton (1814–69), a member of President Abraham Lincoln's cabinet and his secretary of war from 1862 to 1868. This book supplants the work of Benjamin Thomas and Harold Hyman, whose Stanton (1962) has served as the standard for more than 50 years. Marvel contends that that work contains many flaws of fact and interpretation that led to a generous view of Stanton's administrative contributions. Here the author offers a thorough alternative view, describing Stanton as protecting personal interests—sometimes at the expense of others—including the presidents who depended on him during crucial years before, during, and after the Civil War. Marvel pays relatively little attention to Stanton's early years except to reveal qualities that intensified as he became a prominent lawyer who arrived in Washington during the tumultuous late 1850s, argued cases before the Supreme Court, and eventually became attorney general in the final months of the Buchanan administration. His considerable manipulative skills as Lincoln's secretary of war helped achieve battle aims but also allowed self-preservation during frequent administrative struggles. These abilities served him well during Reconstruction when he became the focus of difficulties between the Congressional Republicans and President Andrew Johnson. VERDICT A complex work that will appeal to Civil War scholars and general readers who want a deeper treatment of Stanton than found in Doris Kearns Goodwin's Team of Rivals.—Charles K. Piehl, Minnesota State Univ., Mankato

Library Journal

Norman Dietz offers a solid narration of this biography. Edwin Stanton, President Lincoln’s secretary of war, has been described as an opportunist who kissed the asses of those above him and kicked the asses of those below him. While this assessment is not incorrect, this biography shows Stanton to have been far more complex. Dietz’s relaxed style is especially valuable because of the book’s length and level of detail. He keeps the text flowing throughout, quickening his pace, not surprisingly, with the start of the Civil War. R.C.G. © AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine

MARCH 2016 - AudioFile