Thaddeus Stevens: Nineteenth-Century Egalitarian

One of the most controversial figures in nineteenth-century American history, Thaddeus Stevens is best remembered for his role as congressional leader of the radical Republicans and as a chief architect of Reconstruction. Long painted by historians as a vindictive 'dictator of Congress, ' out to punish the South at the behest of big business and his own ego, Stevens receives a more balanced treatment in Hans L. Trefousse's biography, which portrays him as an impassioned orator and a leader in the struggle against slavery.

Trefousse traces Stevens's career through its major phases: from his days in the Pennsylvania state legislature, when he antagonized Freemasons, slaveholders, and Jacksonian Democrats, to his political involvement during Reconstruction, when he helped author the Fourteenth Amendment and spurred on the passage of the Reconstruction Acts and the impeachment of Andrew Johnson. Throughout, Trefousse explores the motivations for Stevens's lifelong commitment to racial equality, thus furnishing a fuller portrait of the man whose fervent opposition to slavery helped move his more moderate congressional colleagues toward the implementation of egalitarian policies.

Author: Hans L. Trefousse
Publisher: University of North Carolina Press
Published: 04/30/2005
Pages: 336
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 1.13lbs
Size: 9.21h x 6.14w x 0.75d
ISBN: 9780807856666

Review Citation(s):
Ingram Advance 09/01/2005 pg. 150

About the Author
Trefousse, Hans L.: - Hans L. Trefousse (1921-2010), whose many books include a biography of Andrew Johnson and a study of the radical Republicans, was Distinguished Professor of History at Brooklyn College and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York.