Failed Apostles of Disunion: The Role of the Lower South Secession Commissioners in Virginia's Secession Crisis, January-April 1861

摘要

Between January and April 1861, in the wake of Abraham Lincoln's election, the seceding lower South states sent five secession commissioners to Virginia to persuade the Virginians to secede and join in forming the Confederacy. This study examines why all but one failed to achieve their goal. While this thesis only gives a partial answer, it sheds light on a number of complexities regarding both the commissioners' efforts and Virginia's secession crisis.