People’s Contest - Preface and Prologue,  pages xi-xxx

1.    What great events is the author trying to meld in writing People’s Contest?

2.    Identify one example, as stated by the author, that reflected the rapid economic growth of the United States before the Civil War?

3.    Identify one social change that was taking place in the North before the attack on Fort Sumter?

People’s Contest - Chapter 1,  pages 3-31

4.    For what reason did George T. Strong lament the condition of the North in response to southern “brag” and “mob despotism”?

5.    Even though Frederick Douglass supported political reform to end slavery, for what reason did he approve John Brown's efforts to overthrow slavery through force?

6.    How did Frederick Douglass describe the nation following John Brown's failed raid at Harpers Ferry?

7.    Even though the North declared to be fighting for the restoration of the Union, for what reason was Frederick Douglass happy over the news of the attack on Fort Sumter?

8.    How did Theodore Upson’s uncle react to the election of Lincoln?

9.    What does it mean “to afford all, an unfettered start, and a fair chance, in the race of life”?

10. Because of popular involvement in legal and political institutions, what was the most consistent theme echoed by Northerners in their call to arms?

11. How did Herman Melville and Walt Whitman describe the conflict between North and South in their poetry?

12. For what reason were citizens more likely to identify with their local government rather than national government?

13. In contrast to the boundless energies of the states, what words does the author use to describe the respnse of the national government following the attack on Fort Sumter?

14. Briefly explain why the inhabitants of Washington felt vulnerable following Lincoln’s declaration of an insurrection.

15. Identify one factor that encouraged Lincoln to make a modest response to the attack on Fort Sumter.

16. For what reason was it academic that national government was unable to fill its quota of men for the United States Army?

17. What forced state governors to keep a watchful eye on how their troops were being treated by the army? (How were soldiers able to lash out when mistreated?)

18. With the onset of the industrial revolution, what did Americans fear was happening to their national character?

19. What did many newspapers claim was responsible for corrupting the nation’s character?

20. In what ways did Herman Melville’s interpretation of the conflict differ from that of Walt Whitman’s?

21. Identify one reason why the issue of loyalty in the border states was so agonizing?

22. What paradoxical dilemma did Washington face in its effort to generate allegiance in the border states?

23. While the North claimed that the war was a struggle to preserve rule of law, what was the most compelling argument made by the secessionists?

24. What civil right had Lincoln suspend in the early days of the Civil War?

25. How did President Lincoln react to the demand by Chief Justice, Roger Taney that John Merryman be released from prison?

Chapter 2 People’s Contest – pages 32 - 60

26. For what reason did northern leaders need to consider the international implications of blockading southern ports?

27. Identify one of two imperatives of war that forced the Union government to treat the war as an international conflict instead of a rebellion?

28. For what reason was the position of Britain in the Civil War extremely important to the North?

29. What in Confederate ideology engendered the belief that Britain would be forced to aid the South?

30. Identify one reality that complicated the British stance over the Civil War?

31. In what way did Britain’s status as the world’s greatest imperial power make her sensitive to the North’s argument that nations be allowed to put down rebellions?

32. Why was Britain sensitive to the issue of blockades?

33. What personal and political inclinations pushed Napoleon III in the direction of helping the South?

34. Identify one of four realities that pushed Napoleon III to support the North.

35. In addition to generating hardships at home, what overriding concern did both Britain and France share regarding the American Civil War that made ending the war their highest priority?

36. For what reason did Lincoln insist that the North was not fight for emancipation in the opening days of the war?

37. In what way did Britain’s recognition of the Confederacy as a “belligerent” make a concession to the South?

38. What did Seward encourage Lincoln to do as a means of uniting the nation?

39. What was the Trent Affair?

40. What important lesson did Lincoln and Seward both learn from the Trent Affair?

41. What British activity (in the private sector) spawned a second crisis that culminated in the threat of war with Britain?

42. What did Congress establish in 1802 in responding to a need for professional soldiers?

43. What in their past experience led many professional officers to harbor doubts about citizen soldiers?

44. Identify one element that West Point emphasized in its training of professional soldiers.

45. In what way did advances in weaponry force military planners to rethink the wisdom frontal attacks?

46. Although many military theorists espoused the use of frontal attacks in war, what reality of weaponry that supported the use of entrenchments?

47. What became the primary qualification for command when governors were unable to obtain men with military training?

48. What in the nature of Northern society fueled conservative doubts about the ability of the North to wage war against the South?

49. What encouraged many Americans to believe that the military leadership of the South was superior to that of the North?

50. Identify one negative outcome (excluding military defeat) and one positive outcome of the battle of Bull Run.