Name: The Demon of Unrest
Rating: 4.2 (57 reviews)
Author: Erik Larson

Introduction

What’s in it for me? Learn more about the state of the nation leading up to the American Civil War.

While the American Civil War ended in 1865, divisions in the U.S. persist, many of which can be traced back to that nineteenth-century conflict. The phrase "demon of unrest" was coined by Dennis Hart Mahan, a professor at West Point, in a letter where he described the unsettling impact of the rapidly advancing industrial age. Mahan noted how this change disturbed wealthy plantation owners, who relied on slavery to sustain their businesses and way of life.

Change was on the horizon, and the Southern way of life – rooted in ideas of racial superiority – was in jeopardy. Not only was there the threat of industrial advancements, slavery was being made illegal in other countries and abolitionists in the North were gaining favor. It was indeed a time of unrest in America, but in the months leading up to the start of the Civil War, the politicians in the North would underestimate how deep the feelings of resentment ran in the Southern states.

In this Blink, we’ll look at those uneasy months leading up to the Battle of Fort Sumter, which finally tipped the scales and sent the nation into a bloody four-year war that continues to linger in the Nation’s consciousness today.

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A new political power

In the months leading up to Abraham Lincoln’s election in 1860, the United States was teetering on the edge of chaos. At the heart of the discord was slavery – an issue that was creating havoc in the nation’s political landscape.

The Democratic Party, which had long been dominant in Washington, had split into Northern and Southern factions, with each side nominating their own candidate for the presidency. A third party, the Constitutional Union Party, had also entered the fray, hoping to bridge the growing divide between North and South.

Meanwhile, the Republican Party was a rising political force that opposed the expansion of slavery in the growing United States. They’d chosen Lincoln as their candidate. With the three other contenders splitting the vote, Lincoln’s supporters saw a clear path to victory.

For the South, however, Lincoln’s potential win wasn’t just a political shift – it felt like an existential threat. Southern states, particularly those driven by radical pro-slavery “fire-eaters,” viewed Lincoln as a danger to their way of life. The “chivalry,” as the affluent Southern population called themselves, couldn’t exist without the use of slavery.

Despite Lincoln’s repeated assurances that he wouldn’t interfere with slavery where it already existed, it made little difference. The “chivalry” abhorred the Republican abolitionists and Lincoln. But it hardly mattered, Lincoln wasn’t even on the ballot in ten Southern states. Already, newspapers like South Carolina’s Charleston Mercury were calling for secession if Lincoln triumphed.

On November 6, 1860, as Lincoln won crucial states like New York, it became clear that the Republicans had secured the presidency. Despite earning less than half of the popular vote due to the divided race, Lincoln dominated the Electoral College. But his victory did little to unite the fractured country. In the South, he barely made a dent in the vote count. Even in Kentucky, his birth state, he received less than one percent.

It would be months before Lincoln would be sworn in as president, however, and during that time he remained unnervingly silent as calls for secession from the Union grew louder among the Southern states. In Charleston, South Carolina, military leaders like Colonel John Gardner were on edge. Gardner, commander of the US Army forces in Charleston, worried that local militias or even angry mobs might seize key forts, particularly Fort Sumter, a half-completed fortress in the city’s harbor.

Gardner pushed for more troops to protect these vulnerable installations, but in Washington, doubts arose about whether he was the right man for the job. He was soon replaced by Major Robert Anderson, a seasoned officer with Southern roots who, while sympathetic to the South, was known to be loyal to the Union. From the outset, Anderson found himself stepping into a pressure cooker in Charleston Harbor – one that was only going to intensify in the coming months.

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An endangered way of life

Charleston was a bustling hub of the domestic slave trade. The city hosted regular slave auctions, where entire families were sold off to the highest bidder. In many ways, the city symbolized the South’s deep reliance on slavery. The enslaved population outnumbered the free, and they weren’t just confined to plantations – they were an integral part of the city, driving carriages and ensuring the smooth running of commerce and daily life for the Southern elite.

It was this deep entanglement with slavery that made the prospect of a Lincoln presidency so threatening. Men like James Hammond, a prominent South Carolina planter, embodied this fear. Rising from humble beginnings to become one of the wealthiest men in the state, Hammond saw slavery as the foundation of Southern society. However, by the late 1850s, Hammond's defense of slavery was becoming harder to justify. A significant turning point came in 1852 with the publication of Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin. The book became a sensation in the North and a lightning rod for criticism in the South. Hammond and his peers struggled to comprehend the Northern opposition, clinging to the belief that their chivalrous society, built on enslaved labor, was both ideal and just.

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Key idea 3 of 7

A Christmas surprise

In Charleston, the push for secession reached its peak after Lincoln’s election, with Augustus Longstreet likening it to an unstoppable force of nature. Southern leaders like Edmund Ruffin were thrilled, while others, like Mary Chesnut, feared Lincoln’s presidency would lead to inevitable war. Even her husband, US Senator James Chesnut, resigned in order to join the secessionist cause. Across the North, reactions to Lincoln were mixed, with some doubting his ability to lead the nation through such a critical period.

As Southern states moved toward secession, President Buchanan, still in office, did little to quell the growing rebellion. His indecision frustrated both the North and the South. Southern leaders, including future Confederate President Jefferson Davis, were dismayed that Buchanan wasn’t doing more to protect their interests. At the same time, Buchanan also failed to properly defend federal forts, such as those in Charleston, leaving them vulnerable to attack. When South Carolina officially seceded on December 24, 1860, tensions surrounding these forts escalated even further.

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Lincoln finally speaks to a growing rebellion

Every step of the way, Major Anderson was cautious. He didn’t want to be among the people responsible for an all-out war breaking out. But some among his troops, including Captain Abner Doubleday, didn’t see the point. To Doubleday, it was clear that a conflict was unavoidable. All Anderson was doing was prolonging the inevitable and making the US Army look timid in the process.

This issue grew more pressing with each passing day. As long as the men at Fort Sumter remained passive, their food rations dwindled and their opponents grew more fortified – much to Doubleday’s frustration.

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Key idea 5 of 7

The severity of the situation

Lincoln’s inaugural address, on March 4, 1861, is famous for the closing remarks about the “mystic chords of memory” and “better angels of our nature.” But while it moved some audience members to tears, it also left many in the nation feeling uneasy. It walked the line between being firm and conciliatory, leaving it open to interpretation as to whether peace or war lay on the horizon.

For Ruffin and others in the South, Lincoln’s words pointed towards an inevitable war. As General Beauregard arrived in Charleston to bolster the defense, the mood shifted towards expectation of conflict, with Fort Sumter at the center of attention.

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First shots fired

On April 5, 1861, President Lincoln discovered a critical mistake – he had inadvertently assigned the same warship, the Powhatan, to both the Fort Sumter and Fort Pickens expeditions. By the time the error was noticed and a corrective order sent, the Powhatan had already set sail for Fort Pickens. Efforts to recall the ship failed, as its captain, Lieutenant David Dixon Porter, ignored the order since it hadn’t come directly from Lincoln.

Meanwhile, Captain Fox, unaware of the miscommunication, pressed on through a severe storm, further delaying his mission. On April 8, news of the resupply effort reached Charleston, leaving the Confederates little choice but to act. One last hope to avoid violence came on April 11, when the Confederacy offered Major Robert Anderson the chance to surrender, which he politely declined. The following day, on April 12, 1861, at 4:30 AM, the bombardment of Fort Sumter began, with Edmund Ruffin honored to fire the first shot.

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A legacy that lingers on

Charleston erupted in celebration over the taking of Sumpter. But there were other eyes on the scene. Sir William Howard Russell was a celebrated reporter for the London Times. Russell had embedded himself in Washington before touring the South. He was amazed at how few Northern politicians had ever set foot below the Mason-Dixon line or spoken to a Southerner. As he saw it, despite the celebrations in Charleston, the events at Fort Sumter were a sign that things were about to get much worse.

The day after Sumter’s evacuation, on April 15, 1861, President Lincoln issued a proclamation calling for seventy-five thousand troops. Their purpose was to suppress the rebellious groups in the seceded states and restore U.S. law. The first task would be to reclaim the federal forts and property seized by the Confederates.

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The Demon of Unrest summary