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To Purge This Land with Blood: A Biography of John Brown
One hundred thirty-five years after his epochal Harpers Ferry raid to free the slaves, John Brown is still one of the most controversial figures in American history. In 1970, Stephen B. Oates wrote what has come to be recognized as the definitive biography of Brown, a balanced assessment that captures the man in all his complexity. The book is now back in print in an updated edition with a new prologue by the author.
448 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1970
41 people are currently reading
766 people want to read
About the author
Stephen B. Oates
42 books64 followersAn expert on 18th century U.S. history, Stephen B. Oates was professor of history at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he taught from 1969 until his retirement in 1997. Oates received his BA (1958), MA (1960), and Ph.D. (1969) from the University of Texas.
Oates wrote 16 books during his career, including biographies of Martin Luther King, Jr., Abraham Lincoln, Clara Barton, and John Brown, and an account of Nat Turner's slave rebellion. His Portrait of America, a compilation of essays about United States history, is widely used in advanced high school and undergraduate university American history courses. His two "Voices of the Storm" books are compilations of monologues of key individuals in events leading up to and during the American Civil War. He also appeared in the well-known Ken Burns PBS documentary on the war.
Oates received the Nevins-Freeman Award of the Chicago Civil War Round Table for his historical work on the American Civil War.
Oates wrote 16 books during his career, including biographies of Martin Luther King, Jr., Abraham Lincoln, Clara Barton, and John Brown, and an account of Nat Turner's slave rebellion. His Portrait of America, a compilation of essays about United States history, is widely used in advanced high school and undergraduate university American history courses. His two "Voices of the Storm" books are compilations of monologues of key individuals in events leading up to and during the American Civil War. He also appeared in the well-known Ken Burns PBS documentary on the war.
Oates received the Nevins-Freeman Award of the Chicago Civil War Round Table for his historical work on the American Civil War.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews
May 18, 2022
The best John Brown biography out there, this one does not disappoint. The author traces the subject's trajectory from growing up in northeast Ohio all the way to denouement at Harper's Ferry. Along the way, we learn that Brown was many things, but never a revolutionary, at least in his own eyes. I enjoyed the book, particularly since it dealt with local history and historical places close to my current location. A worthy effort.
July 2, 2016
At a time when even most abolitionists were strident racists, wanting nothing so much as to send blacks "back" to Africa, John Brown took seriously the biblical injunction that all men are brothers, as well as the language of the Declaration that "all men are created equal." To Brown slavery was indefensible, not just because it denied the freedom which is the right of every man, each equally created an image of God, but also because the institution corrupted the soul of both the slave and the slaveholder.
Oates biography does not gloss over Brown's failings or his megalomania, but still conveys the powerful presence of a man who was able to convince twenty others to join him on a doomed assault to liberate slaves.
After meeting Brown, the great Frederick Douglas said Brown, "though a white gentleman, was in sympathy, a black man, and as deeply interested in our cause, as though his own soul had been pierced with the iron of slavery."
As galvanizing as Brown's raid was in the South, his statements at his trial and letters while awaiting hanging had a similar effect in the North. Taken in total, Brown's role in the Pottawatomie Massacre, his raid to free slaves in Missouri, the raid at Harper's Ferry and his words (spoken and written) after his capture at Harper's Ferry probably did more than any other single person to bring about the Civil War and as a result, the emancipation of the slaves.
Oates' biography is essential reading to understand that aspect of American history.
"I see a book kissed, which I suppose to be the Bible, or at least the New Testament, which teaches me that all things whatsoever I would that men should do to me, I should do to them. It teaches me further that to remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them. I endeavor to act upon that instruction. I say I am yet too young to understand that God is any respecter of persons. I believe that to interfered as I have done with his despised poor, is no wrong, but right. Now if it is deemed necessary that I should forfeit my life for the furtherance of the ends of justice, and mingle my blood with the blood of millions in this slave country whose rights are disregarded by wicked, cruel and unjust enactments, I say, let it be done." John Brown, at his sentencing hearing.
Oates biography does not gloss over Brown's failings or his megalomania, but still conveys the powerful presence of a man who was able to convince twenty others to join him on a doomed assault to liberate slaves.
After meeting Brown, the great Frederick Douglas said Brown, "though a white gentleman, was in sympathy, a black man, and as deeply interested in our cause, as though his own soul had been pierced with the iron of slavery."
As galvanizing as Brown's raid was in the South, his statements at his trial and letters while awaiting hanging had a similar effect in the North. Taken in total, Brown's role in the Pottawatomie Massacre, his raid to free slaves in Missouri, the raid at Harper's Ferry and his words (spoken and written) after his capture at Harper's Ferry probably did more than any other single person to bring about the Civil War and as a result, the emancipation of the slaves.
Oates' biography is essential reading to understand that aspect of American history.
"I see a book kissed, which I suppose to be the Bible, or at least the New Testament, which teaches me that all things whatsoever I would that men should do to me, I should do to them. It teaches me further that to remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them. I endeavor to act upon that instruction. I say I am yet too young to understand that God is any respecter of persons. I believe that to interfered as I have done with his despised poor, is no wrong, but right. Now if it is deemed necessary that I should forfeit my life for the furtherance of the ends of justice, and mingle my blood with the blood of millions in this slave country whose rights are disregarded by wicked, cruel and unjust enactments, I say, let it be done." John Brown, at his sentencing hearing.
October 24, 2016
A thorough, balanced and well-written biography of John Brown.
Although called insane in his own time, Oates disputes this idea, instead emphasizing Brown’s belief that American slavery violated both Christian doctrine and what he saw as America’s founding principles (Oates also disputes the claim that Brown’s mother was insane) Oates also discusses how Brown came to doubt the value of non-violent abolitionism, especially when his own non-violent efforts failed, and how Brown was often able to possess a curious mix of realism and irrationality.
Oates also looks at the Harper’s Ferry raid, concluding that, while it was not the most immediate cause of the Civil War (which was Lincoln’s election) it did lead to widespread fears of slave uprisings in the South and to supposed northern efforts to stir them up.
Oates does raise many of the problems surrounding the life of Brown and his era, but never really fully addresses them: such as Brown’s motives, for example. The narrative can also be a bit repetitive. Still, a comprehensive, engaging, well-researched and well-paced work.
Although called insane in his own time, Oates disputes this idea, instead emphasizing Brown’s belief that American slavery violated both Christian doctrine and what he saw as America’s founding principles (Oates also disputes the claim that Brown’s mother was insane) Oates also discusses how Brown came to doubt the value of non-violent abolitionism, especially when his own non-violent efforts failed, and how Brown was often able to possess a curious mix of realism and irrationality.
Oates also looks at the Harper’s Ferry raid, concluding that, while it was not the most immediate cause of the Civil War (which was Lincoln’s election) it did lead to widespread fears of slave uprisings in the South and to supposed northern efforts to stir them up.
Oates does raise many of the problems surrounding the life of Brown and his era, but never really fully addresses them: such as Brown’s motives, for example. The narrative can also be a bit repetitive. Still, a comprehensive, engaging, well-researched and well-paced work.
September 24, 2015
U.S. Highway 75 runs from just south of Winnipeg all the way to Dallas, bisecting the continental United States at the eastern emerald edge of the Great Plains. In northwest Iowa, it runs right through little Sioux Center, just two blocks from the house where we lived for a quarter century.
So we decided to take it once upon a time, avoid interstates and follow Highway 75 south to Tulsa, where our son had found a girl he would eventually marry. Easy enough, get on the highway two blocks from our garage, and don't get off for a whole day, all two-lane.
I knew something about the story of John Brown before that trip, knew John Brown was an abolitionist whose personal history remained, 150 years later, something of a puzzle. But I knew little more.
We weren't pressed for time, so I followed the signs when the highway let us know we were approaching some kind of historical marker. We got off 75, followed some country roads, and came to an overgrown spot in eastern Kansas--one of those places marked with a sign that seemed to have been alone in the wilderness for quite some time, well off the beaten track.
What we'd happened upon was the backwater spot where John Brown and his sons and his men carried out cold-blooded murder. Five men, angry Southerners, "Border Ruffians" committed to the cause of slavery in these United States, men who were committed to violence themselves were hacked to death by abolitionists armed with machetes. History says Brown didn't do the killing, but that he was the instigator was indisputable. His commands were the ones that mattered in what became known as "the Pottawatomie murders."
I knew nothing of that story and nothing of John Brown ever having been in Kansas, nothing of "Bleeding Kansas," a series of conflicts many mark as the real beginning of the War between the States.
I knew that Marilyn Robinson's great novel, Gilead, alluded frequently and powerfully to the cause of abolition here in Iowa. What I also knew from talking with her is that she was herself greatly taken with the abolitionists, most of whom, like John Brown, were profoundly religious.
Modernism once determined that religion was a vestige of barbarism that contemporary life was, thankfully, abandoning. What humanity had awakened to was the realization that we had no need for God. Where people worshiped some spiritual being, they did so out obligation to ritual to non-existent ancient mythologies.
But the nature of the conflict in the heart and soul of the story of John Brown remains the heart and soul of the conflicts in this country today, a country, most say, as divided in spirit and temper and character as it has been any time since the Civil War. Religion not only continues to play a role in our lives, it often still determines behavior. A clerk of court chooses jail to freedom because of her religious views. Candidates for office need to parade their religious affiliations as if they were awards for bravery. Today, six years into his second term as President, 54% of Republicans still consider Barack Obama is Muslim. Religion is the base from which many of us--most of us--operate and by which we identify ourselves.
A devout Christian presidential candidate says no Muslim should be President of these United States. Some condemn him. Others--many--run to his side in his support.
How do we balance our own contrary commitments--our commitment to God with our commitment to America? How do we give unto Caesar that which his and etc.? How have we determined such questions in the past? Was John Brown hideously insane or, as he himself determined, someone identifiably chosen by God to destroy the sinful, hideous American institution of slavery? As I said just a few days ago, the man was strengthened by scripture: "in all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct they paths" is a verse he quoted often and even used as a testimony.
I'm no historian, but I'm betting that To Purge This Land With Blood: A Biography of John Brown, by Stephen B. Oates, published way back in 1970, remains the gold standard on the life of the most famous American abolitionists. I found Oates's study utterly captivating and relentless in its determination not to leave the records unturned. Aligning sources and marching them out in an orderly fashion is an epic job all by itself in any retelling of the John Brown story, but Oates was working with one of this nation's most incredible narratives when he chose to follow the life of a man whose body, a'moulderin' in the grave, begat the music sung around a thousand Union Army campfires.
The life and times of John Brown is a story I'm glad to know better--righteous anger creating bloody violence. Brown was a radical, a terrorist, a murderer, and a madman who did it all in the name of Jesus because what he was fighting for--an end to slavery--was right there on the paths of righteousness for His name sake. His death, which he deliberately shaped into national martyrdom, probably did more to begin the bloody surgery required to end slavery in these United States. His death mobilized both sides, making Civil War more even inevitable than it already was.
There are no easy answers to the life of John Brown. Nothing is black and white, and that's what make the story so richly human. If you'd like to know more about John Brown, start with Stephen Oates' nearly fifty-year old abundantly researched biography. It's a story from heart of who we are.
So we decided to take it once upon a time, avoid interstates and follow Highway 75 south to Tulsa, where our son had found a girl he would eventually marry. Easy enough, get on the highway two blocks from our garage, and don't get off for a whole day, all two-lane.
I knew something about the story of John Brown before that trip, knew John Brown was an abolitionist whose personal history remained, 150 years later, something of a puzzle. But I knew little more.
We weren't pressed for time, so I followed the signs when the highway let us know we were approaching some kind of historical marker. We got off 75, followed some country roads, and came to an overgrown spot in eastern Kansas--one of those places marked with a sign that seemed to have been alone in the wilderness for quite some time, well off the beaten track.
What we'd happened upon was the backwater spot where John Brown and his sons and his men carried out cold-blooded murder. Five men, angry Southerners, "Border Ruffians" committed to the cause of slavery in these United States, men who were committed to violence themselves were hacked to death by abolitionists armed with machetes. History says Brown didn't do the killing, but that he was the instigator was indisputable. His commands were the ones that mattered in what became known as "the Pottawatomie murders."
I knew nothing of that story and nothing of John Brown ever having been in Kansas, nothing of "Bleeding Kansas," a series of conflicts many mark as the real beginning of the War between the States.
I knew that Marilyn Robinson's great novel, Gilead, alluded frequently and powerfully to the cause of abolition here in Iowa. What I also knew from talking with her is that she was herself greatly taken with the abolitionists, most of whom, like John Brown, were profoundly religious.
Modernism once determined that religion was a vestige of barbarism that contemporary life was, thankfully, abandoning. What humanity had awakened to was the realization that we had no need for God. Where people worshiped some spiritual being, they did so out obligation to ritual to non-existent ancient mythologies.
But the nature of the conflict in the heart and soul of the story of John Brown remains the heart and soul of the conflicts in this country today, a country, most say, as divided in spirit and temper and character as it has been any time since the Civil War. Religion not only continues to play a role in our lives, it often still determines behavior. A clerk of court chooses jail to freedom because of her religious views. Candidates for office need to parade their religious affiliations as if they were awards for bravery. Today, six years into his second term as President, 54% of Republicans still consider Barack Obama is Muslim. Religion is the base from which many of us--most of us--operate and by which we identify ourselves.
A devout Christian presidential candidate says no Muslim should be President of these United States. Some condemn him. Others--many--run to his side in his support.
How do we balance our own contrary commitments--our commitment to God with our commitment to America? How do we give unto Caesar that which his and etc.? How have we determined such questions in the past? Was John Brown hideously insane or, as he himself determined, someone identifiably chosen by God to destroy the sinful, hideous American institution of slavery? As I said just a few days ago, the man was strengthened by scripture: "in all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct they paths" is a verse he quoted often and even used as a testimony.
I'm no historian, but I'm betting that To Purge This Land With Blood: A Biography of John Brown, by Stephen B. Oates, published way back in 1970, remains the gold standard on the life of the most famous American abolitionists. I found Oates's study utterly captivating and relentless in its determination not to leave the records unturned. Aligning sources and marching them out in an orderly fashion is an epic job all by itself in any retelling of the John Brown story, but Oates was working with one of this nation's most incredible narratives when he chose to follow the life of a man whose body, a'moulderin' in the grave, begat the music sung around a thousand Union Army campfires.
The life and times of John Brown is a story I'm glad to know better--righteous anger creating bloody violence. Brown was a radical, a terrorist, a murderer, and a madman who did it all in the name of Jesus because what he was fighting for--an end to slavery--was right there on the paths of righteousness for His name sake. His death, which he deliberately shaped into national martyrdom, probably did more to begin the bloody surgery required to end slavery in these United States. His death mobilized both sides, making Civil War more even inevitable than it already was.
There are no easy answers to the life of John Brown. Nothing is black and white, and that's what make the story so richly human. If you'd like to know more about John Brown, start with Stephen Oates' nearly fifty-year old abundantly researched biography. It's a story from heart of who we are.
August 10, 2021
To Purge This Land with Blood is a biography about the life and actions of John Brown, detailing from his upbringing to his death by hanging after the raid of Harper's Ferry. Stephen B. Oates attempts to handle his character and actions as balanced as he could, given how much of a controversial figure he was. I was going through some lectures of historian David Blight about the Civil War, and he summarized it quite well.
The most important thing about John Brown, as I tried to say the other day — and I want to conclude with several comments about that now — is in how he died and in the aftermath of his death. The United States was a Christian country. Europe was essentially a Christian civilization. John Brown would be filtered through a Christian imagination. Either way, whether people came to admire and sort of agonizingly love him, or agonizingly hate him.
To elaborate on Oate's attempt as a balanced biography, it is important to mention that his historiography has been affected, from praise as a martyrdom to a crazed insane man (although he was not). From here we see both the megalomania and his failings as well as his unflinching character who thought that he was doing the right thing. The narration of his life is very engaging and is well researched.
The most important thing about John Brown, as I tried to say the other day — and I want to conclude with several comments about that now — is in how he died and in the aftermath of his death. The United States was a Christian country. Europe was essentially a Christian civilization. John Brown would be filtered through a Christian imagination. Either way, whether people came to admire and sort of agonizingly love him, or agonizingly hate him.
To elaborate on Oate's attempt as a balanced biography, it is important to mention that his historiography has been affected, from praise as a martyrdom to a crazed insane man (although he was not). From here we see both the megalomania and his failings as well as his unflinching character who thought that he was doing the right thing. The narration of his life is very engaging and is well researched.
June 12, 2017
I recently became interested in John Brown, the man, after doing a section hike of the Appalachian trail, and passing through Harper's Ferry - site of his raid which helped to precipitate the Civil War. I wanted a thorough, yet balanced biography, one that does more than simply uphold commonly held caricatures. I desired to have a clear snapshot of the times in which he lived, how he thought, and something of what motivated his actions. This biography by historian, Stephen B. Oates, does all that and more. It is well-researched, thoroughly objective, and empathetic without being fawning. I highly recommend it to anyone who interested in is this period in American history, and/or the character of John Brown.
February 3, 2023
It is a fairly objective and unbiased biography of John Brown's life and does not praise nor condemn Brown's actions at Harper Ferry's but provides a detailed understanding of what Brown believed was his life's purpose and the rational behind it. The historical and sociological context of his ideologies and principals are clearly laid out and as a reader, Oates's description of Brown's intractable life from childhood to death was relatable. My only criticism of the novel is the countless number of pages dedicated to describing, in detail, where in the Northeast John Brown traveled to ask for money and the exact dollar amount he received or how many people pledged donations but would retract on their offers only a few months later. It was unnecessary in providing greater detail to the narrative of Brown's life and I would have enjoyed if Oates had spent a larger amount of time on Brown's interactions and conversations with Frederick Douglass and other abolitionist leaders. Overall, 4.25/5.
July 7, 2007
I first read about John Brown in 5th grade. The subject was American history and as much as my teachers wanted me to believe the civil war began over "ecnomic issues." I knew that was a crock of crap. John Brown knew it too. Sure, slavery is an economic issue and the biggest known sin/hypocrisy/violation of human rights this country has ever committed and continues to commit nominally or otherwise. This is a technical, yet very readable biography of the man who felt he was called by God to lead a revolution. Crazy? Maybe. Committed to his cause, definitely. Could we use a smidgen--and I mean smidgen of John Brown today (at least the part that was willing to organize and demand change, his methods were a little questionable)? Most definitely.
August 19, 2023
Highly informative!... a great read! Mostly objective, but not always so. Because the author is for the most part objective, when he slips in material that is subjective, it seems interjected and out of place (and easy to spot to those people that are critical readers). In general, author sometimes slips in some subjective comments that somehow belittle people who deem John Brown in high esteem... comments appear judgmental and out of sorts with his usual objectivity. I think the author had a hard time with people in the book who believed Brown to be an admirable person and he felt the need to put them down a bit. I was very surprised to read several thoughts on slavery that were down right offensive. These ideas seem to appear out of the blue. They were incongruent with author's usual fairly objective stance, and as a result they appeared interjected. For example the author supports the fantasy platitude that there existed slave owners who were not cruel or sadistic. He states that "some" slave holders were cruel and sadistic, while others fit the opposite stereotpye of God fearing men who loved their slaves like children. As if owning human beings as property was not always cruel or sadistic if you had a nice master.. ouch! And that it is possible for a slaveholder to actually treat his slaves like his children, when he owns them like property? I was so surprised to see these ideas validated as viable. The author also goes on to suggest his agreement with another writer who says that the whip was not used in sadism. I was shocked to read further the explanation that the whip as actually being primarily used as a symbolic tool The whip is used as a "symbol " to strike fear not to strike back. He even goes so far to discuss that the slaveholders secretly felt guilty about slavery and know that's its an abomination. I was disgusted by these efforts to explain away the horrors involved in being a slaveholder. I took off a star for these offensive platitudes. That said, I got a great deal from the book. I would read more of his biographies, as the information he gave in this book was excellent!
June 29, 2024
Book explores Brown's early years and the various trials and misfortunes that molded his character, leading up to his infamous actions in Kansas and beyond. Oates presents a detailed account of Brown's life, offering insights into the motivations and experiences that drove him to take such extreme measures in his fight against slavery.
A significant portion of the book is dedicated to Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry in 1859, which is considered one of the pivotal events leading up to the American Civil War. The raid, though initially successful in capturing the federal armory, quickly unraveled due to a series of mishaps. Brown and his followers were eventually surrounded and captured by U.S. Marines led by then-Lieutenant Colonel Robert E. Lee.
The biography also covers Brown's subsequent trial and execution. Brown was found guilty of murder, treason, and inciting slave rebellion, and was hanged on December 2, 1859. His final words, as quoted in the book, were prophetic: "I, John Brown, am now quite certain that the crimes of this guilty land will never be purged away, but with blood."
Oates' work examines the complex legacy of John Brown, exploring how he was viewed as both a hero by Northerners and a villain by Southerners. The book provides a nuanced look at Brown's impact on the national debate over slavery and his role in intensifying the sectional divide that ultimately led to the Civil War.
This biography, published in the 1970s, was the first full-scale examination of John Brown's life in over three decades at the time of its release, offering a fresh perspective on this controversial historical figure.
I particularly appreciated that he was not alone as a white man who understand that slavery was evil and committed his life to abolishing the institution.
A significant portion of the book is dedicated to Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry in 1859, which is considered one of the pivotal events leading up to the American Civil War. The raid, though initially successful in capturing the federal armory, quickly unraveled due to a series of mishaps. Brown and his followers were eventually surrounded and captured by U.S. Marines led by then-Lieutenant Colonel Robert E. Lee.
The biography also covers Brown's subsequent trial and execution. Brown was found guilty of murder, treason, and inciting slave rebellion, and was hanged on December 2, 1859. His final words, as quoted in the book, were prophetic: "I, John Brown, am now quite certain that the crimes of this guilty land will never be purged away, but with blood."
Oates' work examines the complex legacy of John Brown, exploring how he was viewed as both a hero by Northerners and a villain by Southerners. The book provides a nuanced look at Brown's impact on the national debate over slavery and his role in intensifying the sectional divide that ultimately led to the Civil War.
This biography, published in the 1970s, was the first full-scale examination of John Brown's life in over three decades at the time of its release, offering a fresh perspective on this controversial historical figure.
I particularly appreciated that he was not alone as a white man who understand that slavery was evil and committed his life to abolishing the institution.
July 18, 2025
John Brown is really one of the most interesting figures in U.S. history. He seems to be a guy that could only have existed in our country. He was completely nonsensical in his business practices, puritanically religious, and extremely steadfast in his moral beliefs. He is also a man who is almost alien to our times today. He was more liberal than many people in today's time on his views on race in this country, yet still religiously about 2000 years more conservative than what is considered acceptable today. This book sheds light into the emotional causes of the civil war. I would say it helps dispense the false claim that the civil war was not about slavery you see so many people make. Reading this book he is certainly a man that I found both easy to root for, and confounding to understand. He makes many decisions in his life that seem very idiotic, but in the end he did get his way. The author does a great job mixing quotes from John Brown, and his contemporaries into this biography. I would highly recommend this book to anyone.
July 23, 2023
After taking a class this summer titled "Following John Brown Across Iowa" I checked my shelves and discovered I had this book, probably purchased in a used book store back in the 80's. Oates captures the complexity of who John Brown was without turning him into a hero or a demon. Through careful documentation, Oates presents Brown warts and all. His religious background and beliefs, coupled with his many business failures, sometimes difficulty with the truth, and his sense of a prophetic call to end slavery. An excellent biography of Brown.
January 12, 2025
John Brown may be one of the most consequential figures of the 19th century, and this biography is exceptional. Oates does a wonderful job of painting Brown’s rich interior and mental world as well as his harsh physical reality, both of which shaped him tremendously. Oates is sympathetic but not hagiographic or dismissive. It is quite well done. John Brown was a crazy mf-er, but damn if he wasn’t morally upright and painstakingly consistent in his anti-slavery beliefs and his fundamental beliefs about the equality of humankind — in a time where that was exceedingly rare.
October 19, 2021
Recently I read James McBride The Good Lord Bird and watched the miniseries staring Ethan Hawke by the same name. Having enjoyed that artistic & fascinating view of John Brown I wanted to delve deeper into the man himself. Stephen Oats masterfully accomplishes this in his biography of John Brown. Mr Brown was the bellwether to the coming troubles of our Civil War, & best captured by the song Old John Brown's Body that Oates mentions in the final page of his book.
September 30, 2020
I took a college class about the History of the Civil War. That's when I learned of John Brown and the Harper's Ferry raid. Rohrbach Library had this amazing book that tells John Brown's life story. It's chock full of history and the connections between slavery, religion, and the American Civil War. To be continued....
May 26, 2025
A balanced look at John Brown
This is a remarkably balanced look at John Brown’s life. It does not try to gloss over the ugly parts of Brown’s life, like the Patawatomie Massacre in Kansas. It does not try to present him as a bumbling fool. It does not try to present him as an abolitionist saint. It is a very readable narrative.
This is a remarkably balanced look at John Brown’s life. It does not try to gloss over the ugly parts of Brown’s life, like the Patawatomie Massacre in Kansas. It does not try to present him as a bumbling fool. It does not try to present him as an abolitionist saint. It is a very readable narrative.
September 16, 2022
A well researched and well written book about a fascinating man and time in history. As a lover of American history (and American religious history in particular) I can say this was one of the most captivating books I've ever read.
March 31, 2021
Good read.
August 8, 2021
Detailed, factual, worthwhile read.
February 12, 2023
Great historical context for the raid and on the vibe at that time. It's also an excellent bio on Brown. A bit of a hard read that slogs over the details at times. Mostly good!
May 9, 2023
I learned so much from this book. In my opinion it offers a very balanced view of a complex man.
October 7, 2024
The tale of John Brown. Hero of the North
March 25, 2025
John browns body lies a mouldering in his grave!
John browns body lies a mouldering in his grave!
John browns body lies a mouldering in her grave!
BUT HIS SOUL GOES MARCHING ON!!
John browns body lies a mouldering in his grave!
John browns body lies a mouldering in her grave!
BUT HIS SOUL GOES MARCHING ON!!
October 5, 2025
He’s awesome but he’s really scary like I think he kind of accidentally did the right thing, idk if he’d be good guy if he was born today lol
May 7, 2024
A wonderfully written and carefully sourced work, its reputation precedes it as the authoritative work on a man who has largely eclipsed worldly descriptions and seems to exist only in superlatives - be it wholly good or wholly evil.
John Brown was many things, but most importantly he was a Calvinist. A zealot perhaps, his faith was a bedrock of his life and guided his thinking more than any other single thing. He was confident, argumentative, egotistical, bigoted (though never racially) and energetic in whatever task he deposed himself of. From the year 1856 on, that task was the elimination of slavery from America via violent means. Through fits and starts, Brown had always been a convinced abolitionist and beyond that, a true believer in the equality of all men regardless of race. His opinions and views both matured and hardened with time and from an early age he was a firm believer that slavery would have to be overthrown with force of arms. It wasn't until the crisis of Kansas that Brown actually got to the work of combatting slavery head on. And from there, immortality would await him.
It is remarkable that Brown still holds so much passion and emotion to a contemporary society - sure the world and religious views he embodied are completely alien - yet his universal views of equality transcend all time and his acts of violence still evoke a range of emotions among the populous. John Brown's Soul will continue to march on.
John Brown was many things, but most importantly he was a Calvinist. A zealot perhaps, his faith was a bedrock of his life and guided his thinking more than any other single thing. He was confident, argumentative, egotistical, bigoted (though never racially) and energetic in whatever task he deposed himself of. From the year 1856 on, that task was the elimination of slavery from America via violent means. Through fits and starts, Brown had always been a convinced abolitionist and beyond that, a true believer in the equality of all men regardless of race. His opinions and views both matured and hardened with time and from an early age he was a firm believer that slavery would have to be overthrown with force of arms. It wasn't until the crisis of Kansas that Brown actually got to the work of combatting slavery head on. And from there, immortality would await him.
It is remarkable that Brown still holds so much passion and emotion to a contemporary society - sure the world and religious views he embodied are completely alien - yet his universal views of equality transcend all time and his acts of violence still evoke a range of emotions among the populous. John Brown's Soul will continue to march on.
May 19, 2020
Read this if you want a gripping account of Bleeding Kansas and Harpers Ferry. The historical scholarship is good, with lots of direct quotes, but that can make it boring, depending on what you are looking for.
January 30, 2017
Interesting bio on John Brown, perhaps the igniter of the Civil War. This book goes into great depth about his network of supporters. He communicated, met with and received money from leaders all across the North with a big concentration in Boston and Cleveland. According to this take, he has been planning this raid for at least 10 years and many in leadership were aware of it. It is interesting that once it took place, politicians on both sides were being blamed and were blaming others. Those in leadership scrambled to deny any knowledge while those in the arts were shouting out that this was a great thing and that Brown was a great leader.
Brown sought out key leaders across the board in the North. Frederick Douglass and John Brown were very close and Douglass came down to Chambersburg before the raid to advise against proceeding. After the raid, Douglass went to Canada and Europe. Brown also consulted with Ms. Tubman for advice on transporting freed slaves and to get an idea of the landscape. It is clear he really did not listen as he went to a spot in Virginia were there were few plantations and chose a day were the field slaves and house servants were given their time off to leave and come back Monday morning (something he did not think was possible.
Well written with insights into the national and local leaders, their views, their actions and their attempts to end slavery (or support) from the 1820's to 1860.
Brown sought out key leaders across the board in the North. Frederick Douglass and John Brown were very close and Douglass came down to Chambersburg before the raid to advise against proceeding. After the raid, Douglass went to Canada and Europe. Brown also consulted with Ms. Tubman for advice on transporting freed slaves and to get an idea of the landscape. It is clear he really did not listen as he went to a spot in Virginia were there were few plantations and chose a day were the field slaves and house servants were given their time off to leave and come back Monday morning (something he did not think was possible.
Well written with insights into the national and local leaders, their views, their actions and their attempts to end slavery (or support) from the 1820's to 1860.
August 28, 2011
It's easy to forget that most famous people in history were people who tried really hard to be famous.
John Brown's scheme was poorly executed, poorly planned, and, if successful, would have resulted in a great deal of unnecessary pain and suffering. As a matter of fact, it did result in a great deal of unnecessary pain and suffering.
Oates manages a fair amount of objectivity on the subject, which is a difficult task these days.
John Brown's scheme was poorly executed, poorly planned, and, if successful, would have resulted in a great deal of unnecessary pain and suffering. As a matter of fact, it did result in a great deal of unnecessary pain and suffering.
Oates manages a fair amount of objectivity on the subject, which is a difficult task these days.
January 11, 2012
John Brown - a dogmatically devoted, self-righteous charismatic monomaniac who recognized the realities on the ground, felt passionate commitment to a moral end, and pushed the levers leading to war, his own sacrifice, and a great leap forward in American civil rights. Oates has presented a wonderfully readable biography of this seminal figure in American History. The summary of his final days in prison and the political context of his trial and hanging are moving!
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