A Self-Made Man: The Political Life of Abraham Lincoln, 1809-1849. By Sidney Blumenthal. Illustrated, photos, notes, bibliography, index, 556 pp., 2016, Simon & Schuster, www.simonandschuster.com, $35.
Readers might ask: Do we really need another biography of Abraham Lincoln? Some might answer that not only do we not need another Lincoln biography, we do not need another book on Lincoln, period.
Those of us who study and write about Lincoln, however, are always willing to read another Lincoln book, especially a biography. We like to relearn something through a new or different perspective. This is what I sought in A Self-Made Man.
This book, the first of a projected four-volume Lincoln biography, is by Sidney Blumenthal, a journalist and high-level political advisor. He has witnessed up close the controversies and vicissitudes of American politics. It is this experience that shapes Blumenthal’s study.
First and foremost, this is a political biography of Lincoln. Blumenthal clearly admires Lincoln as a politician, and this volume covers the period in which Lincoln honed his political skills.
The story Blumenthal tells is not new; it’s been told many times in countless studies of Lincoln. He covers fully Lincoln’s tenure as an Illinois state legislator, his anonymous political writings in the Sangamon
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Journal and the Illinois Journal, his competition with Stephen A. Douglas, and his congressional career.
The story is conveyed in a well-written and fast-paced manner that is a joy to read. In fact, A Self- Made Man is more than a biography of Lincoln. It is really a “life and times” treatment of the first 40 years of Lincoln’s life.
There are several chapters in which Lincoln disappears completely from the narrative. Two examples will suffice. Chapter 5 concentrates on John Quincy Adams’s battles against slavery during his post-presidential years in Congress. Chapter 16 is devoted solely to William H. Seward and Thurlow Weed.
This is not a criticism. I understand Blumenthal’s intent to provide background he believes essential to understanding the political environment in which Lincoln operated.
Blumenthal opens and closes his book with Lincoln’s 1856 quote, “I used to be a slave,” to put Lincoln’s antislavery position in context. He took a moderate position that rejected abolitionists’ immediacy and pro-slavery advocates’ slavery-isgood arguments.
Blumenthal presents a generally accurate depiction of Lincoln’s views of slavery during the 1840s — a position that remained fairly consistent until his presidency.
One aspect of A Self-Made Man that may raise eyebrows is Blumenthal’s views concerning Mary Todd Lincoln. According to him, Mary was essential to Lincoln’s success as a politician.
As far as Blumenthal is concerned, Mary, just as ambitious as her husband, helped make Lincoln what he became: “there would have been no Lincoln without Mary” and Lincoln “knew it.”
I look forward to the next installment of Blumenthal’s work but will be surprised if he discovers anything new about Lincoln. Nevertheless, I recommend A Self-Made Man.
Reviewer Thomas A. Horrocks is an independent scholar who has written, edited and co-edited seven books, including Lincoln’s Campaign Biographies (2014) and The Annotated Lincoln (2016).
Observing Hancock at Gettysburg: The General’s Leadership through Eyewitness Accounts. By Paul E. Bretzger. Illustrated, photos, maps, notes, bibliography, index, 246 pp., 2016, McFarland, www.mcfarlandpub.com, $29.95 softcover.
Paul Bretzger’s book on Winfield Scott Hancock is an excellent addition to the literature on Gettysburg in general and on Hancock in particular.
Although his reputation may have faded in recent decades, Hancock was long regarded as a larger-thanlife, outstanding Union leader in the Battle of Gettysburg. This book helps fill in the blanks as to why and how he was such a domineering personality in the Army of the Potomac during that battle.
The author captures the essence of Hancock by focusing on the general’s leadership qualities and performance.
Bretzger fulfills his purpose to once again bring Hancock to the forefront of important commanders at Gettysburg. He puts it succinctly in his introduction: “This book seeks to reclaim Hancock’s true historical importance and explain the qualities he had that enabled him to be so important.”
Of course, Hancock’s activities during the battle provide much material for readers to examine for the purpose of analyzing his leadership. He played a significant role in each of the three days of fighting.
On Day One he was sent to Gettysburg by George Meade to take command and control of the army’s on-scene forces and determine where additional arriving forces should be dispersed.
He arrived there as the Union army’s 1st and 3rd Corps were retreating through Gettysburg to Cemetery Hill. Amid the chaos of the disintegrating military situation, Hancock’s commanding presence and decisive actions had a calming influence on harried soldiers.
On Day Two he was thrown into the breach once again by Meade, who asked him to take command of the 3rd Corps for the wounded Daniel Sickles.
As the battle reached its peak late that afternoon, Hancock ordered the 1st Minnesota to charge the enemy. Their costly (82 percent casualties) and fateful charge into Gen. Cadmus Wilcox’s attacking Alabamians helped stem the final and most dangerous Confederate onslaught that day.
Finally, on Day Three Hancock was once again the calming influence on his men as he slowly rode his horse up and down the Union line prior to and during Pickett’s Charge
A Virginia officer in an Alabama regiment, commander the Army of Northern Virginia’s elite sharpshooters, Eugene Blackford’s correspondence spans nearly the entire war and allows a modern reader to see this turbulent era through the eyes of someone who lived it. His accounts of the sharpshooters; battles like Chancellorsville and Gettysburg; camp life; army leaders; and national and regimental politics are detailed and exceptional. Volume 1 of 3. Special 20% prepublication discount • 6x9 cloth, 235 pages, 10 Maps,
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until he suffered a serious wound.
To help readers appreciate the significant impact Hancock had at Gettysburg, Bretzger relies heavily on written accounts from those who fought there. He has done an admirable job ferreting out these primary documents from the vast literature that exists on Gettysburg.
The book accurately describes Hancock’s actions throughout the battle and how those around him reacted to his presence. It is interesting to note that those reactions were universally positive, reaffirming the author’s contention that Hancock’s reputation should be reinstated to the high level it had immediately after the battle.
This is recommended reading for those with any interest in Hancock, Gettysburg or the Army of the Potomac.
Reviewer Jay Jorgensen has written several books about Gettysburg, including Gettysburg’s Bloody Wheatfield. He is a Superior Court Judge in New Jersey.