Quote (thundercock @ Jun 11 2020 04:49pm)
Andrew Johnson said that death was not a sufficient punishment for these people. Another quote from him: “treason is the highest crime known in the catalogue of crimes ... treason must be made odious and traitors must be punished.” Obviously, Andrew Johnson doesn't speak for everyone, but given that he was from Tennessee, I find it hard to disagree with his stance.
Like I said, the Lost Cause narrative is fucking pervasive in America. They weren't foreign in the sense that they were a different culture but they were undoubtedly a separate entity and enemies of the United States
What do you mean by "present form?" We didn't have all 50 states until the mid 1900s but at the same time we've had the Constitution since the late 1780s. We've had multiple amendments since the 15th amendment which was a result of the Civil War.
Andrew Johnson was a complete boor.
Of course it's pervasive, the North invaded and completely destroyed the South's economy, prosperity, and way of life. Upwards of 10% of their manpower was dead at war's end. The Lost Cause represents a rosy, golden, and dishonest reflection of the pre-war South, but all cultural recollections (including our own) tend to be that way.
I mean that the power of the federal government vis-a-vis the states was in flux for much of the country's early history, and was only decided with the complete victory of the North over the South. We see ourselves as one and indivisible today, but the perception at the time was far different.
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