Clement Vallandighman was a U.S. Representative from Ohio, representing the Democratic Party. He was a leader of anti-war Northern Democrats known as "Copperheads" in Congress. Look at the picture above. How are these Copperheads pictured? Who are they threatening? This cartoon was from the popular magazine Harper's Weekly in 1863.
On May 1st, 1863, Vallandigham gave a speech in Mount Vernon, Ohio in which he allegedly said that the war was being fought to free blacks and enslave whites, and that the war was not being fought for the preservation of the Union. The full charges against Vallandigham can be found here.
Imagine you are Abraham Lincoln, and you have two advisors telling you different ways this situation should be handled. What should you do? Please go to the following link to determine this.
On May 1st, 1863, Vallandigham gave a speech in Mount Vernon, Ohio in which he allegedly said that the war was being fought to free blacks and enslave whites, and that the war was not being fought for the preservation of the Union. The full charges against Vallandigham can be found here.
Imagine you are Abraham Lincoln, and you have two advisors telling you different ways this situation should be handled. What should you do? Please go to the following link to determine this.
http://constitutioncenter.org/lincoln/html/chapter_10.html
Lincoln sided with the argument advocated by Welles. Vallandigham faced a military trial, rather than a civilian trial. The main difference in the trials is that in a military trial the accused person has less opportunity to call witnesses to defend himself, and his options for defense and appeal are more limited. To see a fuller description of the differences please click here. Do you think a civilian, even a U.S. Congressman like Vallandigham should face a military court during a time of war?
Vallandigham ended up getting convicted of violating Burnside's Order #38, specifically for...
"Publicly expressing, in violation of General Orders No. 38, from Head-quarters Department of the Ohio, sympathy for those in arms against the Government of the United States, and declaring disloyal sentiments and opinions, with the object and purpose of weakening the power of the Government in its efforts to suppress an unlawful rebellion"
President Lincoln immediately came under heavy criticism from supporters of Vallandigham, as well as those concerned that the United States was sliding into a Lincoln/Military tyranny. For the last document, we will examine how Lincoln handled the Vallandigham case and defended his suspension of civil liberties. It is important to note there were many stories like Vallandigham or Merryman's. For a good overview of Civil Liberties in the Civil War, please go here.