As
I recall it, sentiment in Kentucky was pretty evenly divided
initially, and the state actually tried to remain neutral in the
conflict. There was a well-equipped and pro-Southern state militia
initially, but as sentiment in the legislature swung against
succession that militia was disbanded and replaced by a pro-Union
one.
On public sentiment: In the border states, and indeed in
some of the non-border states, some individuals and organizations
were strong advocates of one side or the other, but there was also a
rather large part of the population with no strong commitment to one
side or the other, and who would fight with one side or the other or
try to avoid the fight based on their perception of their personal
interests and their perception of the power/legitimacy of the two
sides.
The Lincoln administration had a tightrope to walk in
the border states. These were states that had long considered
themselves culturally and politically part of the south. Leaders in
those states had to fear being politically isolated and powerless in
a truncated Union if the southern states successfully left the Union.
Most importantly, leaders in the border south had a number of
dilemmas: (1) Any war was going to be fought primarily on their
territory, and (2) If they stayed in the Union, they would be
required to send troops to invade the territories of not just fellow
Americans but fellow southerners, and finally (3) They would be doing
all of this for an administration most of them didn't vote for and
actively despised.
Whatever your other views on the Civil
War, it is difficult not to see the degree of Union support in the
border south as surprising and politically difficult to pull off. Any
major political misstep on the part of the Lincoln administration
either in the direction of looking too weak or of looking to eager to
war on fellow Americans could quite possibly have swung more border
state sentiment toward the confederacy. Lincoln's success on that
tightrope was probably the most crucial aspect of Union victory in
the war, but it was by no means a sure thing. It took a lot of
political skill.
The
border states, especially Kentucky and Missouri were crucial to the
form of the US Civil War, and probably should get more alternate
history attention.
Posted
on Feb 4, 2012.
More
Stuff For POD Members Only
What you see here is a
truncated on-line version of
a larger zine that I contribute to POD, the alternate history
APA. POD members get to look forward to more fun stuff.
