Why They Seceeded: Documents from the formation of the Confederate States of America

by Patrick Henry

As controversy continues about the causes, effects and ultimate meaning of the Civil War, the best source of information about the conflict’s cause comes from the words of the people involved directly.

This compilation of the key documents related to the secession of the Confederate states, and the formation of the Confederate States of America, provide critical insights into the the reasons why the leaders felt secession was justified and imperative.

The documents included in this edition include:

• Secession declarations from South Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi, Texas and Virginia
• Secession acts from the legislatures of the 13 Confederate states
• Lee’s resignation letter from the U.S. Army, and a detailed explanation of his reasons in a personal letter to Gen. Winfield Scott
• Jefferson Davis’ farewell address to the U.S. Senate
• Alexander Stephens' Cornerstone Speech
• Jefferson Davis’ presidential inaugural address
• Lee’s farewell order to the Army of Northern Virginia

These historic documents provide first-hand insights into the political beliefs and personal feelings of the Confederate States’ founding fathers.

91 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 7, 2015

About the author

Patrick Henry was an American attorney, planter and politician who became known as an orator during the movement for independence in Virginia in the 1770s. A Founding Father, he served as the first and sixth post-colonial Governor of Virginia, from 1776 to 1779 and from 1784 to 1786.

Henry led the opposition to the Stamp Act 1765 and is remembered for his "Give me liberty, or give me death!" speech. Along with Samuel Adams and Thomas Paine, he is regarded as one of the most influential champions of Republicanism and an invested promoter of the American Revolution and its fight for independence.

After the Revolution, Henry was a leader of the anti-federalists in Virginia. He opposed the United States Constitution, fearing that it endangered the rights of the States as well as the freedoms of individuals; he helped gain adoption of the Bill of Rights. By 1798 however, he supported President John Adams and the Federalists; he denounced passage of the Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions as he feared the social unrest and widespread executions that had followed the increasing radicalism of the French Revolution.