When It Was Grand: The Radical Republican History of the Civil War

The birth of the Republican party in the mid-1800s came on the back of a fracturing of the Democratic party, which was being split along sectional lines, and the death of the Whigs. With few places available for people who were against slavery and who advocated for abolition, they needed a new place to go, which led to the formation of what would eventually become, in 1856, the Republican party.

This book looks at the more radical Republicans, although they did not get that name until after the Civil War, and the influence they had on the movement. All the characters were active in politics, albeit for other parties and political factions. They only really came together so they could find the strength to go against the slave-holding oligarchy.

Trying to tell this entire story in one book is almost impossible, as there are so many names, characters, and organizations spread across the North and parts of the South. LeeAnna Keith tries her best, but often gets bogged down in focusing on one specific part of the United States before moving on to another and, at times, completely ignoring large areas. Also, most of the book is not about the Civil War, but rather about the lead up to it, including Bleeding Kansas.