Journal of the Congress of the Confederate States of America 1861-1865

Description

The Confederate Congress: Journals 1861-1865

Timeline of Events:

• 1861:
• February: The Provisional Congress of the Confederate States of America convenes in Montgomery, Alabama. (Based on mention of the Constitutional Convention in Montgomery).
• February-Early Spring: The Provisional Congress establishes the Provisional Constitution of the Confederate States. (Based on “an appendix containing the Provisional and Permanent Constitutions”).
• Spring-Summer: The Provisional Congress proceeds to establish a Confederate government and address the unfolding events related to the start of the Civil War. (Based on “hundreds of topics dealing with the Civil War, politics, and the creation of a new government”).
• Unspecified: The Constitutional Convention is held in Montgomery, Alabama and the Permanent Constitution is adopted (Based on “proceedings of the Constitutional Convention in Montgomery, Alabama, and an appendix containing the Provisional and Permanent Constitutions”).
• Summer/Fall: The Confederate government begins moving to Richmond, Virginia (Implied by the Senate sessions being held in Richmond).
• 1861-1863:
• Ongoing: The 1st Confederate Congress operates, with the Senate holding four sessions in Richmond (Based on “Journals of the Senate, 1st Congress of the Confederate States of America… in volume 2 (1st and 2nd sessions) and volume 3 (3rd and 4th sessions)”) and the House of Representatives holding four sessions (Based on “Journals of the House of Representatives of the 1st Congress of the Confederate States of America are found in volume 5 (1st and 2nd sessions) and volume 6 (3rd and 4th sessions)”).
• Ongoing: The Confederate Congress addresses matters of war, politics, and governance, including communication to and from Jefferson Davis. (Based on “hundreds of topics dealing with the Civil War, politics, and the creation of a new government” and “…communications to and from the Congress, including those relating to Jefferson Davis and his cabinet.”)
• Ongoing: The Congress records ordinances of secession from state legislatures; lists of delegates and their credentials; proceedings of open and secret sessions; texts of bills and resolutions; and records of votes cast. (Based on “Included are ordinances of secession from state legislatures; lists of delegates and their credentials; proceedings of open and secret sessions; texts of bills and resolutions; records of votes cast;”)
• 1863-1865:
• Ongoing: The 2nd Confederate Congress operates, with the Senate holding two sessions (Based on “Journals of the Senate, 2nd Confederate Congress, are found in volume 4 (1st and 2nd sessions)”) and the House of Representatives holding two sessions (Based on “Journals of the House of Representatives of the 2nd Confederate Congress are found in volume 7 (1st and 2nd sessions)”).
• Ongoing: The Confederate Congress continues to address war and governance issues, with both open and secret sessions (Based on “The Journals document the proceedings of the House, including both open and secret sessions.”)
• 1865:
• Spring: With the end of the Civil War, the United States Department of War seizes the journals of the Confederate Congress. (Based on “At the conclusion of the Civil War, the United States Department of War seized the journals of the Confederate Congress.”)
• 1904-1905
• January 28, 1904: A Senate Resolution directs the secretary of war, Elihu Root, to transmit copies of the journal to the U.S. Senate (Based on “A Senate Resolution dated January 28, 1904, directed the secretary of war, Elihu Root, to transmit to the U.S. Senate a copy of the Journal of the Provisional Congress and of the 1st and 2nd Congresses of the Confederate States of America.”)
• The Journal of the Congress of the Confederate States of America is printed in a seven-volume set. (Based on “The Journal of the Congress of the Confederate States of America, 1861-1865 was printed in a seven-volume set between 1904 and 1905.”)

Cast of Characters:

• Jefferson Davis: President of the Confederate States of America. He is referenced as someone who had communications with the Congress, suggesting a key role in the Confederate government (Based on “communications to and from the Congress, including those relating to Jefferson Davis and his cabinet.”).
• Elihu Root: Secretary of War of the United States. In 1904, he was tasked with providing copies of the Confederate Congress journals to the US Senate, (Based on “A Senate Resolution dated January 28, 1904, directed the secretary of war, Elihu Root, to transmit to the U.S. Senate a copy of the Journal…”)
• Delegates of the Provisional Congress/Constitutional Convention: Numerous individuals (approx. 14,000 according to the general index) who represented the seceding states in establishing the Confederate government, (Based on “lists of delegates and their credentials” and “The general index has the names of approximately 14,000 individuals.”). These individuals would have been instrumental in drafting the Confederate constitution and establishing governmental infrastructure.
• Members of the 1st Confederate Congress: Individuals serving in the Senate and House of Representatives during the first term of the Confederate Congress (Based on the Journals of the Senate and House in volumes 2,3,5, and 6).
• Members of the 2nd Confederate Congress: Individuals serving in the Senate and House of Representatives during the second term of the Confederate Congress (Based on the Journals of the Senate and House in volumes 4 and 7).

Note: This is a necessarily brief character list based on the source material. The journals themselves contain the details on thousands of specific individuals involved. The document mentions a general index with approx. 14,000 names, implying many more individuals had a role in the events being discussed within the journals.

Journal of the Congress of the Confederate States of America 1861-1865

The collection comprises 5,700 pages documenting the proceedings of the Confederate States of America Congress from 1861 to 1865. An index lists around 14,000 people mentioned within these records. After the Civil War ended, the U.S. War Department took possession of the Confederate Congress’s journals. In 1904, a Senate order instructed Secretary of War Elihu Root to provide the Senate with a copy of the journals from the Provisional Congress and the first two Congresses of the Confederacy. These records were then published as a seven-volume set between 1904 and 1905 under the title “Journal of the Congress of the Confederate States of America, 1861-1865.” This journal is a record of the Civil War era activities of the Confederate States of America’s Provisional Congress, House, and Senate.

The content of the journals spans numerous subjects related to the Civil War, political matters, and the establishment of a new government. Included are declarations of secession from various states, lists of representatives and their qualifications, records of both public and private meetings, the wording of proposed laws and resolutions, voting tallies, correspondence to and from the Congress (including communications with Jefferson Davis and his advisors), and a record of the Confederate States of America’s Constitutional Convention.

The first volume includes the record of the Confederate States of America’s Provisional Congress, the minutes from the Constitutional Convention in Montgomery, Alabama, and a supplemental section with both the temporary and finalized constitutions of the Confederacy. Volumes two and three contain the Senate’s journals from the first Confederate Congress, covering the first and second sessions, and the third and fourth sessions respectively. These Senate journals detail the activities of their public, private, and closed-door meetings, all of which took place in Richmond, Virginia. The fourth volume holds the Senate’s journals from the second Confederate Congress, including its first and second sessions.

Volumes five and six document the House of Representatives’ journals from the first Confederate Congress, with the first and second sessions in volume five and the third and fourth in volume six. Volume seven contains the House journals from the second Confederate Congress, covering its first and second sessions. These House journals record the proceedings of both open and confidential meetings.