Reply #88: Mot of the confederate soldiers just fought [View All]

[Yupster]

because their states were invaded.

Some of the best Confederate soldiers were against secession itself.

One example would be Jubal Early who was a Virginia lawyer before the war who was elected as a delegate to the Virginia secession convention. He was one of the most vocal voices at the convention against secession.

However, he agreed that states had the right to secede so once the vote was taken, he fought just like everyone else and during the Gettysburg campaign he led one of the nine divisions of Lee's army actually taking the city of York, Pennsylvania (check a map and be surprised). Anyway, he was one of the bitterest warriors who fought right till the end even though he was against secession

As was the Vice-presidency of the Confederacy, Alexander Stephens. He led the anti-secession forces at the Georgia secession convention, but lost that vote and was elected VP of the Confederacy.

Though a large chunk of the southern voters were against secession, they almost all thought it legal and constitutional, so once the decision was made to leave, they defended their new country.

It wouldn't have seemed so extraordinary especially to Texans who in less than 30 years lived under Mexican, Texan, US,Confederate and US flags. They joined the US by a popular vote of the voters, and left the US the same way. Why wouldn't they think they had a right to a government of their choosing?