The Dark Intrigue: The True Story of a Civil War Conspiracy

Front Cover
Fulcrum Publishing, 2007 - Biography & Autobiography - 308 pages
The Dark Intrigue tells for the first time the incredible story of how leaders of an American political party, during the Civil War, conferred cordially with enemy agents in a foreign country in a scheme to oust the president of the United States and enforce peace without victory.

Most Northerners initially supported Abraham Lincoln's war against the Southern Confederacy to save the Union. But later, many turned against it when the death toll soared above a half million. Hoping to recapture the White House as a "peace party," leading Democrats met with Confederate agents in the summer of 1864 and discussed ways to end the war-not win it. Lincoln charged that one Confederate agent, C. C. Clay, had convinced the Democrats to orchestrate an armistice. This intriguing book reveals letters from Clay that confirm Lincoln's suspicions. A fascinating read, The Dark Intrigue brings an important piece of Civil War history to light.

From inside the book

Contents

Chapter Three
11
Chapter Five
26
Chapter Eight
41
Chapter Eleven
59
Chapter Thirteen
72
Chapter Fifteen
86
Chapter Seventeen
99
Chapter Nineteen
112
Chapter TwentySeven
166
Chapter TwentyNine
179
Chapter ThirtyOne
196
Chapter ThirtyThree
213
Chapter ThirtyFive
226
Chapter ThirtySeven
240
Chapter ThirtyEight
245
Abbreviations
263

Chapter TwentyTwo
127
Chapter TwentyThree
138
Chapter TwentyFive
151
Bibliography
295
Copyright

Other editions - View all

Common terms and phrases

About the author (2007)

Frank van der Linden became a Civil War historian after nearly half a century as a Washington newspaper correspondent, covering Congress and the White House. He first interviewed President Harry Truman at a poker party for congressional Democrats in 1945 and closed his White House career with President George H. W. Bush.