Lincoln Douglas Debates

[Rob Wick]

"On the whole, any attempt to add luster to Lincoln’s fame by belittling Douglas or by exaggerating the seriousness of differences between the two men, would be a perversion of history. In the sequel, when the severe national crisis came, Douglas “defended the Inaugural address of Mr. Lincoln against the assault of opposition senators,” and stood firmly with Lincoln in upholding the union."

One thing that must be remembered about Randall is that he often tried to make Lincoln out to be as conservative as Douglas, which just doesn't fit the reality of the situation. There was a SERIOUS difference between them. To be sure, when the question of Civil War went from hypothetical to all too real, Douglas showed his support for the Union, but one would expect that from any citizen.

Randall took a lot of heat after he wrote "The Blundering Generation," saying that slavery was not enough of a reason for the sections to fight. He never meant to downplay slavery as an institution but rather as a cause of the war. I presented a paper on Randall's creation of his thesis at the Conference on Illinois History, which you can find here.

As much as I admire and respect Randall, his leanings were too pro-Southern, even drawing a rebuke from Allen Nevins when Randall wrote The Civil War and Reconstruction.

Best
Rob