ABOUT THE BOOK

In a book that has served as a standard source for more than three generations of Civil War scholars, Albert Burton Moore uses conscription to illustrate a central paradox of the Confederacy-in order to protect its commitment to states rights, the Confederacy was forced to adopt tactics of centralized government. He examines the system's daily operations, troublesome substitution and exemption procedures, and ultimate collapse. Although he credits Confederate conscription with a high degree of success, he blames it for causing dissension between state and national officials and for creating bureaucratic problems of colossal proportions.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Albert Burton Moore (1887-1967), Born and raised in Alabama, in his 45-year teaching career was the embodiment of a Southern scholar-gentleman. He was a descendant of Confederate veterans, and he wrote and taught at a time when many of them were yet alive. His teaching career, except for four years in Iowa, was entirely in the South. He loved the fair play of sports (he served two terms as president of the NCAA), and he loved the South. His respect for his native region was duly reciprocated, and in his old age Moore served as executive director of the Alabama Civil War Centennial Commission and director of the Confederate States Centennial Conference as well as the Jefferson Davis Foundation.