The Revolution of 1861: The American Civil War in the Age of Nationalist Conflict

This study demonstrates that there are still fertile fields of inquiry about a much-studied war. Highly recommended. Most levels/libraries.–Choice This book is a welcome addition to a small but rapidly expanding shelf in the massive library of the Civil War.–Journal of Southern History Offers a wonderful point of departure for future studies of nationalist rhetoric in the Civil War era. As historians continue to discuss the war and its various manifestations, hopefully Fleche’s work will be one of many that will place the war in its proper international context.–Bowtied and Fried Makes a great contribution by showing us how the Civil War functioned not as the culmination of history but as an instrument for Americans and Europeans who dared to make nationalism safe for the world.–Register of the Kentucky Historical Society Fleche’s sparkling new book comes during the sesquicentennial as a welcome harbinger of a new international interpretation of the Civil War. Smoothly written, well-grounded in primary sources, and cogently argued.–The Historian Essential reading for anyone interested in placing the American Civil War in broader international patterns of ideology and politics.–Journal of American History A wide-ranging and thought-provoking reconsideration of America’s bloodiest conflict. Fleche is to be commended for making it much more difficult for future scholars to view the Civil War through a narrow national lens.–North Carolina Historical Review [This book] will provoke much thought among scholars of nationalism in nineteenth-century America.–Journal of American Studies The Revolution of 1861 has much to recommend; it combines clear writing with a successful argument for an international interpretation of the war.–West Virginia History

Andre M. Fleche is assistant professor of history at Castleton State College, USA.