First Lady of the Confederacy: Varina Davis's Civil War First Lady of the Confederacy: Varina Davis's Civil War
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
[Read free] First Lady of the Confederacy: Varina Davis's Civil War First Lady of the Confederacy: Varina Davis's Civil War xocxwLO8M First Lady of the Confederacy: Varina Davis's Civil War tBW2yDkq3 AG-97123 YFrm8V7CG US/Data/History rmtSqXMND 4/5 From 863 Reviews Xp0IVWOU3 Joan E. Cashin ALbDu4YOv *Download PDF | ePub | DOC | audiobook | ebooks f8OiQU7fB Mo7cAgp52 0Yzo4nNJA My62P212M c6CZ82N1y nKphPqN4F cOh10tHwQ BLEuuuZyh 0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. She put her own beliefs away k6lb7mnUT and pretty much lived to be a good wife to this ...By S. COSBYThis author SJJVQgwi8 depicts (thru letters, etc.) that Varina Davis was very much a "long suffering" vs3em0nQX wife. She did put up with a lot from Jeff Davis and his beliefs as to what a qFVjMFAvx woman should be and she silently put up with his philandering ways. She put sqo4FLZW8 her own beliefs away and pretty much lived to be a good wife to this man who TMQt0XE7B eventually came to be seen as the symbol of the lost cause for the confederacy. WYqTyfUAP She was the "go to person" for her father, mother, brothers and sisters as well. cYgUiiltA After the end of the war she became a refugee just like most all the southerners gUSbQcMER looking for a place to survive with her children while he was imprisoned. I don't R67ooq1ei like Jeff Davis after reading this book. I admire Varina for doing what was right e1tNhnclw and what had to be done. When she became a widow she did get to be herself SkUVHjJs4 and enjoy life again.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. c5N6uyInF Fascinating BiographyBy JeanVarnia Howell Davis (1826-1906) wife of hIF0rpi2C Jefferson Davis was the only First Lady of the Confederacy. My reading project this year is to read about the United States First Ladies. I felt I could not ignore the First Lady of the Confederacy. I found this book interesting in two ways. One learning about Varnia and her role as first lady and second learning about the role of women during the 1800 and what internal havoc occurred when womens personal beliefs are not in agreement with her husband and she has no control except to adhere to her husbands belief.VHD was raised in Mississippi but educated in Philadelphia and a long time resident of Washington D.C. when Jefferson Davis was a congressman, Senator for Mississippi and then Secretary of Defense under Pierce. According to the author VHD never felt at ease in Richmond. During the War she nursed confederate soldiers and Union prisoners of War and secretly corresponded with friends in the North.Cashin paints VHD as a highly intelligent, acutely observant woman, who apparently spent long years struggling to reconcile her societal duties to her personal beliefs.Women of this time were required to marry, have children and devote themselves to their family exclusively. They had no or little education, no vote, and no rights and were ruled by their husbands. They gave up autonomy for protection. Cashin masterfully reveals VHD as a deeply conflicted woman, pro- slavery but also pro Union. She was inhibited by her role as Confederate First Lady and unable to reveal her true convictions. Davis had numerous mistress including Virginia Clay and Sarah Dorsey. VHD made many sacrifices for a cause she did not support and for a husband who did not fully return her love and who was unfaithful.After the War, VHD endured financial woes and the loss of several children. But following her husbands death in 1885, she moved to New York and began a career in journalism. She advocated reconciliation between the North and South. She became friends with Julia Grant, the widow of Ulysses S. Grant. I recently read the book Mrs. Grant and Madame Jule by Jennifer Chiaverini. The book also covered the friendship between Varnia Davis and Julia Grant. Mrs. Grant arranged Varnia Daviss funeral.Cashin has written the first definitive biography of VHD. The book is well written and researched. Cashin has done a splendid job painting a portrait of a fascinating woman. The book is 416 pages released in 2009. I read this on my Kindle app for my iPad.2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. worth readingBy C. LangfordMy father turned me into a Civil War buff many years ago. I hated going to all the battle fields when I was a teenager. Now that I am older, I love to read about the war especially the female outlook on things back then. This is a pretty good book-I think I would have ditched Jefferson Davis as a husband. The book came in very good condition and arrived in a timely manner. If you are interested in female Civil War people and their stories about the war, this one is worth buying. When Jefferson Davis became president of the Confederacy, his wife, Varina Howell Davis, reluctantly became the First Lady. For this highly intelligent, acutely observant woman, loyalty did not come easily: she spent long years struggling to reconcile her societal duties to her personal beliefs. Raised in Mississippi but educated in Philadelphia, and a long-time resident of Washington, D.C., Mrs. Davis never felt at ease in Richmond. During the war she nursed Union prisoners and secretly corre ....