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Nobody gets married thinking they’re going to get divorced.
My wife runs a wedding venue, and so I see dozens and dozens of couples every year take the plunge. All of them have high hopes and stars in their eyes.
Whether they are all ready for marriage is another matter entirely, and that might have a bearing on how successful their marriage ends up being. But they all go in with love in their hearts and the best of intentions.
I thought about this, oddly enough, when someone recently tried to argue the legality of Secession with me. As this person’s argument went, the Ninth and Tenth Amendments of the Constitution say all rights not enumerated in the document belong to the People or the States—and since the Constitution doesn’t mention Secession, it is therefore a right granted to the People or the States.
And that might be true enough as far as it goes, but like so much of strict constructionism, it defies the context and common sense of the Founding.
Consider: the Founders were trying to create “a more perfect Union.” What incentive is there to succeed if you build an escape clause right into the document? It’s like saying, “Hey, while we’re planning our marriage, let’s start thinking about divorce.”
“That’s what a pre-nuptial agreement is for,” someone might point out. Perhaps—but then why isn’t there a pre-nup agreement in the Constitution? It’s because the Founders didn’t want one.
When my wife I and got married, the pastor who performed the ceremony gave us some advice that resonates strongly with me still to this day: “Is it better to be right, or to be together?” At the time of the Founding, Northern states obviously thought it better to be together, making concessions to Southern states over slavery in order to close the deal.
It’s a topic people continue to debate, albeit the war settled the question on the battlefield and, on that basis, the Supreme Court settled it ex post facto. Too many people debate the question too earnestly today for my liking, mostly because they seem to impose a kind of wishful thinking on their argument. We’ve already seen what over-heated rhetoric in the 1850s led to; we should instead consider the advice our pastor gave my wife and me. Compromise can lead to many happy—and fulfilling—years of marriage. That’s what coexistence is all about.
— Chris Mackowski, Ph.D.
Editor-in-Chief
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Emerging Civil War (ECW) is pleased to welcome Joshua Frye as the organization’s new Executive Administrator.
As the Executive Administrator for ECW, Josh will aid in many different areas of the organization’s day-to-day operations.
“Bringing on Josh—who is, himself, an ‘emerging voice’ in the field—is a big step for us, but a natural, necessary part of our evolution and growth,” said ECW Editor-in-Chief Chris Mackowski. “Most of our historians get involved with ECW because they love history, not because they have backgrounds in administration. Josh’s involvement will allow our contributors to focus more on the history they love, knowing they now have a strong presence tending to the organization’s infrastructure.”
Josh brings an extensive background in the field of historical film production field. His main areas of historical interest are the American Civil War, Revolutionary War, and War of 1812. As the owner of Foxhole Film Productions, Josh has worked extensively in the film industry with companies such as The Hallmark Channel, Lionsgate Films and the Smithsonian Channel.
“Working with Emerging Civil War is a dream come true,” Josh said. “To have the opportunity to work with my personal favorite historians and individuals that I have looked up to for so long is the opportunity of a lifetime. I have been a huge fan of the organization and its purpose since it was first founded, and I am grateful and eager to offer my services and learn from the best history professionals in the field.”
In addition to his duties and responsibilities with ECW, Josh also operates a YouTube Channel, History Savior 1941, where he travels the country to historic sites and battlefields to help educate the general public on a wide array of historical topics, including Civil War and Revolutionary War battles. Josh is also working on his first book, which focuses on the history of Native American involvement in the Civil War.
He currently resides on the Poarch Creek Indian Reservation, fifty miles north of Mobile, Alabama.
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Tenth Annual Emerging Civil War Symposium at Stevenson Ridge
Want to stay up to date on the latest details about this year’s Symposium? Tune in to the blog on Wednesday mornings for our Symposium Spotlight. We would love to have you join us August 2-4, 2024, at Stevenson Ridge on the Spotsylvania Court House Battlefield for “1864: The War in the Balance.”
You can learn more, and order tickets, at our Symposium page.
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The semester just closed out for Neil P. Chatelain down in Texas. He has a break of a couple of weeks before summer classes begin. Civil War related, on April 27 he spoke at the Baton Rouge Civil War Symposium about the Mississippi River as an independent actor and the river's annual freshet impacting 1862 riverine campaigning.
Bert Dunkerly is hard at work on his next book project, about Antietam. He and Patrick Schroeder are also editing Chris Calkins' Final Bivouac for reprint by Savas Beatie next year.
Phill Greenwalt and Pat Kelly-Fischer met up in Denver to discuss the war’s most impactful campaign.
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Chris Kolakowski had an article appear in the latest issue of the Air Force Journal of Indo-Pacific Affairs.
It’s been a particularly cool, damp, and lush spring in Northern Virginia this year, so Dwight Hughes has been spending more time away from the keyboard tending to the gardens (when not raining), including brightly blooming azaleas. He did manage to visit the Montgomery County (Maryland) Civil War Round Table to present on “The Naval Civil War in Theaters Near and Far.” He also celebrated (?) his 80th birthday on Cinco de Mayo, one month before the same anniversary of D-Day. History is not dead; we are history.
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From Chris Mackowski: “I’ve been hard at work on a hardcover book about the battle of Spotsylvania. It’s in, at 117,000 words. To paraphrase one of the soldiers at the May 12 fight at the battle of the Bloody Angle, finishing the book was clearly a matter of bravery and endurance! The book, A Tempest of Iron and Lead: Spotsylvania Court House, May 8–21, 1864, will be available later this year from Savas Beatie.
“I hit the Spotsy battlefield in early May with the Harrisburg and Hersey Civil War Roundtables. I also spoke this month at the Pennsylvania Military Museum in Boalsburg, PA, to the State College (PA) Civil War Roundtable; the Bull Run Civil War Roundtable in Manassas, VA; the Southern Maryland Civil War Roundtable in Newburg, MD; and the Hampton Roads Civil War Roundtable in Virginia Beach. My talks focused on the 160th anniversary of the Overland Campaign and my Emerging Civil War books Hell Itself: The Battle of the Wilderness, A Season of Slaughter: The Battle of Spotsylvania Court House (with Kris White), and Strike Them a Blow: Battle Along the North Anna River.”
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This month, Evan Portman graduated from Duquesne University with a master of arts in history. He will also be speaking to the Greater Pittsburgh Civil War Roundtable on June 17 about The Seven Days Battles.
Cecily Zander was interviewed by Andy Graybill for the New Books Network.
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ECW Bookshelf
Tonya McQuade will be hosting a Zoom Book Talk on May 30 at 7 p.m. CST where she will be talking about her new book, A State Divided: The Civil War Letters of James Calaway Hale and Benjamin Petree of Andrew County, Missouri. She will also be sharing some photos and Missouri history as well as reading excerpts from the letters and book.
If you are interested in attending, send her your email address at tonyagrahammcquade@gmail.com so she can send you the Zoom link.
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You Can Help Support Emerging Civil War
Emerging Civil War is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization. If you’re interested in supporting “emerging voices” by making a tax-deductible donation, you can do so by visiting our website: www.emergingcivilwar.com; you can mail us a check at the address below (make checks payable to "Emerging Civil War"); or you can make a gift through PayPal.
Thank you!
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June
10: Dwight Hughes, “The Sailor and the Soldier at Vicksburg: Unprecedented Joint Operations,” Western North Carolina Civil War Roundtable, Cullowhee, NC
13: Bert Dunkerly, “Unhappy Catastrophes: The Revolution in Central New Jersey,” New Jersey Revolutionary War Round Table, Morristown, NJ
13: Chris Mackowski, Fredericksburg (VA) Rotary Club
13: Chris Mackowski, “Grant’s Last Battle,” Greater Boston (MA) and General Lander Civil War Roundtables (via Zoom)
17: Evan Portman, “The Seven Days Battles,” Greater Pittsburgh Civil War Round Table, Hampton Township, PA
19: Kristopher White, “The Battle of Mobile Bay,” Western Pennsylvania Civil War Roundtable
20: Dwight Hughes, “The Sailor and the Soldier at Vicksburg: Unprecedented Joint Operations,” North American Society for Oceanic History (NASOH) Annual Conference, Ontario, CA
July
14: Tim Talbott, “The United States Colored Troops at Richmond and Petersburg,” Camp Nelson, KY
15: Bert Dunkerly, “Appomattox and Other Surrenders of the Civil War,” James Monroe Museum
24: Phillip Greenwalt, “A Nation Torn and A State Divided: Maryland in the First Two Years of the War,” Pipe Creek CWRT
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