Apostle of Union

Starred review from August 1, 2016

It is common knowledge that, in the years prior to the American Civil War, there was a fierce ideological struggle between pro-slavery and abolitionist forces. Yet in this eloquent biography of Massachusetts statesman Edward Everett (1794-1865), Mason (history, Brigham Young Univ.; Slavery and Politics in the Early American Republic) demonstrates that Unionism, a devotion to the preservation of the Union and the Constitution, was a crucial yet often overlooked third power in the strife of the antebellum period. Tracing Everett's varied career as a minister, congressman, orator, and secretary of state, Mason illustrates how an overriding desire to protect the Union led Everett to push for compromise and conciliation during the sectional crisis despite his own moral aversion to slavery. Although this moderate stance was often an unpopular one, earning Everett the ire of abolitionists and slave holders alike, Mason convincingly argues that Everett's Unionist sentiments helped prepare the Northern populace for the very conflict he had long anticipated and worked assiduously to prevent. VERDICT A solid choice for American history buffs and those with a penchant for politics in the antebellum era.--Sara Shreve, Newton, KS

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