The man who led the Confederacy and survived a treason indictment
In short: After the fall of Richmond in April 1865, Confederate President Jefferson Davis fled south, hoping to establish a government in exile. Instead, he was captured by Union cavalry, imprisoned for two years, and faced a legal battle that the federal government was too afraid to actually prosecute.
Jefferson Davis's downfall began on April 2, 1865, when he learned that Union General Ulysses S. Grant had broken Robert E. Lee’s defenses at Petersburg. As Richmond faced evacuation, Davis and his cabinet fled toward Danville, Virginia, carrying the entire Confederate treasury. Following Lee's surrender on April 9, the war's end left Davis devastated and a fugitive. The evacuation was prompted by the fact that Union forces had breached Lee's defensive lines less than twenty-five miles from the capital. This sudden collapse forced the entire government to move along the only remaining operational railroad line.
A unit from the 4th Michigan Cavalry apprehended him, ending his flight. Davis was held at Fort Monroe, Virginia, for two years. While he was officially indicted for treason, the federal government ultimately decided not to proceed with a trial. Legal experts feared that a jury might actually find the Southern secession of 1860 to 1861 to be a legal act, which would have undermined the entire prosecution. During his period of detention, Davis was kept at Fort Monroe. The government's hesitation stemmed from the risk that a jury might rule the secession was a lawful action.
Released on bail in May 1867 thanks to the financial support of wealthy Northerners and his wife, Varina, Davis struggled through several failed business attempts. He eventually retired to Beauvoir, his home near Biloxi, Mississippi. In his later years, he authored a two-volume history detailing the rise and fall of the Confederate government before passing away in New Orleans in December 1889. Following his release, he lived out his final years in retirement.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: What Ever Happened to Confederate President Jefferson Davis?
- Also: Jefferson Davis | Biography, Quotes, Civil War, Death, & Facts | Britannica
- Also: Who was Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederate States?
- Also: Confederate President Jefferson Davis captured by Union forces | May 10, 1865 | HISTORY
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