Three quarters of a million people dead in the Civil War. A country separated in to two. How do you join it back together? Do you punish the secessionists? How do you grapple with the question of enslavement? And who do you choose to be at the controls?
When Abraham Lincoln was assassinated in 1865, his Vice President, Andrew Johnson, became President. Johnson was a Southerner who had sided with the Union during the war. To hear how his standpoint impacted on his policy in the aftermath of the war, Don speaks to Erik B Alexander.
Erik is an Associate Professor of American History at Souther Illinois University.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Get a subscription for $1 per month for 3 months with code AMERICANHISTORY sign up at https://historyhit/subscription/
You can take part in our listener survey here.
A History of New York in 3 Hotels
The Battle of Valcour Island
Jamestown
The First American in Space
Yellowstone
The Fall of J. Edgar Hoover
The Rise of J. Edgar Hoover
Ellis Island
Dr Martin Luther King Jr
Charles Dickens in America
Inside Benjamin Franklin's House
Lessons from the Civil War
Downton Abbey
The First Americans
The French & Indian War with Dan Snow
The War of 1812
The Assassination of President McKinley
Pearl Harbor
Start of the Space Race
Capturing Lincoln’s Assassin
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
History Extra podcast
Dan Snow’s History Hit
Everything Everywhere Daily
History Daily
WW2 Pod: We Have Ways of Making You Talk