Friday, April 29, 2005
Books: Book Idea, A What If Book Idea
Just a quick little note. A book idea came to me over lunch, a book that I'd be interested in reading (if anyone knows of a book, let me know). The book falls into the "What If" category, the Alternate History genre. Booth killed Lincoln (died April 15, 1865, the morning after), and there is talk that the VP was also marked for assassination. What might have happened if both Lincoln and Johnson had been assassinated?
"[T]he possibility of peace with magnanimity died" with Lincoln. VP Andrew Johnson was a Southern Democrat added to a modified Republican party, the Republican National Union Party, to "balance" the ticket, to make it more of a party for all the US. So, how could having Johnson as President caused the "possibility of peace with magnanimity died" with Lincoln? Because, though Johnson moved quickly, while Congress wasn't in session, to try to reconstruct the former Confederate States on "good" terms (going by the biography of Johnson on the White House website, Johnson's reconstruction program would have been good for the former Southern Leaders, and bad for the former slaves; it died because the Radical Republicans did not want to let the South off the hook, while Lincoln was more interested in reforming the USA, apparently, and not vengeance and Lincoln had some pull with Congress, apparently). The Radical Republicans of Congress came back in session and started undoing Johnson's actions, and eventually almost impeached him (articles of impeachment passed in the House but not the Senate).
Well, I'm not sure how the succession would have gone in 1865 (but this website notes that the Senate President Pro Tempore was 3rd in line, then the Speaker of the House, with no one beyond the Speaker), but with President Johnson marginalized, I guess history would have been similar with a Radial Republican as President of the USA in 1865. I suppose the better book would be one where Lincoln wasn't assassinated, and the "peace with magnanimity" had a chance to play out ("Grade 5-8" book (or here, same book) where Lincoln didn't die; black man saves Lincoln, a play; Lincoln survives the attempt on his life; haven't read any of these, not sure if any are good).
Conspiracy Theories
Alternate History website (divergences around Civil War time period)
A Guide to Alternate History (I; II)
"[T]he possibility of peace with magnanimity died" with Lincoln. VP Andrew Johnson was a Southern Democrat added to a modified Republican party, the Republican National Union Party, to "balance" the ticket, to make it more of a party for all the US. So, how could having Johnson as President caused the "possibility of peace with magnanimity died" with Lincoln? Because, though Johnson moved quickly, while Congress wasn't in session, to try to reconstruct the former Confederate States on "good" terms (going by the biography of Johnson on the White House website, Johnson's reconstruction program would have been good for the former Southern Leaders, and bad for the former slaves; it died because the Radical Republicans did not want to let the South off the hook, while Lincoln was more interested in reforming the USA, apparently, and not vengeance and Lincoln had some pull with Congress, apparently). The Radical Republicans of Congress came back in session and started undoing Johnson's actions, and eventually almost impeached him (articles of impeachment passed in the House but not the Senate).
Well, I'm not sure how the succession would have gone in 1865 (but this website notes that the Senate President Pro Tempore was 3rd in line, then the Speaker of the House, with no one beyond the Speaker), but with President Johnson marginalized, I guess history would have been similar with a Radial Republican as President of the USA in 1865. I suppose the better book would be one where Lincoln wasn't assassinated, and the "peace with magnanimity" had a chance to play out ("Grade 5-8" book (or here, same book) where Lincoln didn't die; black man saves Lincoln, a play; Lincoln survives the attempt on his life; haven't read any of these, not sure if any are good).
Conspiracy Theories
Alternate History website (divergences around Civil War time period)
A Guide to Alternate History (I; II)
