Jefferson Davis was elected as the sole president of the Confederate States of America on February 9, 1861.
Davis was born on June 3, 1808, in Kentucky and grew up on a successful cotton plantation in Mississippi. He was the youngest of ten children born to Samuel and Jane Davis. His education included Transylvania University. After graduating in 1828 from West Point, Davis served in the infantry. In 1835 he married Sarah, the daughter of Zachary Taylor. They moved from Wisconsin to Mississippi. Within 3 months, Sarah and Jefferson contracted malaria. Sara died of the disease. Davis recovered, but the combination of illness and injury left him in ill health that plagued him his entire life.
For the next 10 years, Davis lived on his cotton plantation and became more active in politics. In 1845 he married Varina Howell and the Davises went to Washington DC where he served in the House of Representatives. They made a good team, with their entertaining prowess and their eloquence.
Jefferson and Varina were the parents of six children, two of whom died in infancy.
Davis left Congress to serve as an officer in the Mexican War. Returning from the war, he was appointed to the United States Senate. He lost a close race for governor of Mississippi, but was later appointed Secretary of War for Franklin Pierce. Davis was serving as a senator again when Mississippi seceded from the Union in January 1861.
He was invested on February 18, 1861 and, after the permanent adoption of the constitution, again elected by popular vote for a period of 6 years and again invested on February 22.
Davis didn’t seek out the office, but he lived up to the call. He felt better prepared for leadership on the field. His distinguished careers as a soldier and civilian led many to believe that he was a natural leader for the new Confederacy.
He wholeheartedly supported a peace conference designed to create a plan to reconcile the Union and the Confederacy. But his failure made war inevitable.
The first capital of the Confederacy was in Montgomery, Alabama. The capital changed to Richmond in May 1861, when Virginia joined its sister states in secession.
By April 1862 he had convinced the Confederate Congress to authorize the first draft draft. Davis also initiated martial law, Railroad regulation, property printing, harsh tax laws, and diplomacy with France and England with the intent of gaining trade and recognition of Confederate independence.
Davis is criticized for micromanaging military exercises from his distant Confederate White House, rather than leaving the tactical details to his generals. As a president with a formidable cause, Davis was not a particularly low-key person, often perceived as authoritarian and uncompromising.
General Robert E Lee surrendered on April 9, 1861 without the consent of President Davis. Davis hoped to continue the war, but was captured on May 10 as he fled to Florida. He was jailed for two years before he was allowed to post bail.
He lived 12 years after the Civil War and had much public support from his fellow Southerners. He retired to write his memoir Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government, (2 vol. 1881) and wrote A Short History of the Confederate States of America, published after his death.
Davis died in New Orleans of pneumonia on December 6, 1889.
President Jefferson Davis appears in two paintings by popular Civil War artist Mort Kunstler: Lee Takes Command and White House Strategy.