It is April 9th, 1865. The North Lawn, the White House.
The tall president addresses a jubilant gathering with a band, because the word has come from Appomattox Court House that General Lee has surrendered the Army of Northern Virginia. The war in the North—not entirely tucked up, there's still action and battles out there—but the war is done for Mr. Lincoln.
And in his remarks, he touches upon their possibility, imminent possibility, or there being the vote for well-educated freedmen or men who served in the Union Army: African-Americans. About 10% of the Union Army at the end was African-American.
I welcome the author, Robert Cwiklik of a new book Sheridan’s Secret Mission: How the South Won the War After the Civil War.
What was Lincoln thinking? What do we know now about his preparation for those remarks on the night of jubilation, knowing that we know that he would be gone in three days?
Watch the full video interview above, or listen to an audio version below:
LINKS:
Sheridan’s Secret Mission by Robert Cwiklik on Amazon
CBS Eye on the World with John Batchelor on YouTube
The John Batchelor Show on Apple Podcasts:
Reconstruction and Sheridan's Secret Mission