The Demon of Unrest: A Saga of Hubris, Heartbreak, and Heroism at the Dawn of the Civil War

By Erik Larson

Crown Publishing 2024

Reviewed by Matthew McDonough

A tense political environment, exacerbated by radicals declaring opponents’ “traitors,” sporadic bouts of violence that flare up around the country, an unprecedented election where the winner is not acknowledged by a sizable portion of the population as legitimate, and a pervasive sense of imminent doom falls upon the United States. Although the imagery is heartbreakingly familiar to current observers, Erik Larson’s newest foray into high drama is situated in the 1860’s.

Larson sees his role as storyteller. “Whenever I search for a book idea, I look first for a subject that is inherently suspenseful and lends itself to being told as a story with a beginning, middle, and end,” he writes. “I think of this central arc as a narrative spine, a Christmas tree, the fun part is finding and hanging the shiny ornaments, the revealing details hidden deep within archives, diaries and memoirs.”

Although Larson’s newest tome is just shy of 500 pages, it is a joy to read, thanks in large part to his flowing prose and colorful cast of characters. The era itself is also a critical component to the story. Modernization is quickly changing the industrial character of the United States, and the South stubbornly refuses to come along. Using the Code Duello (rules for dueling) as a narrative device, Larson showcases the South’s obsession with honor and slavery. His literary comparisons are also illuminating. He argues that Miss Havisham in Great Expectations was “the perfect embodiment of South Carolina … Jilted at the altar of the railroad age, South Carolina retreated into its own world of indolence and myth.”

The Demon of Unrest is aptly titled, as Larson does an outstanding job of recreating the tension of the last few months that preceded the American Civil War and the initiation of hostilities at Fort Sumter. He vividly reconstructs the chaos of the time-period and the frantic attempts to either initiate or prevent the dissolution of the United States. Readers immediately appreciate the weight on Major Anderson as he attempts to do his duty to the United States and safeguard his men holed up in a besieged fort surrounded by a hostile public as his supplies quickly run out. The fear as South Carolinians begin constructing defenses in Charleston for a war that had yet to be declared, the hope that Lincoln and his cabinet could carefully navigate the tightrope of trying to keep the Union together … all this was underpinned by a fanaticism prevalent in a Southern aristocracy seeking to spark a war of “liberation.”

While the story itself is compelling, what really makes The Demon of Unrest stand out are Larson’s point-of-view characters. Using their own words, Larson brings these long-dead participants back to the forefront: the calm and cautious commander of Ft. Sumter, Major Robert Anderson, Abraham Lincoln, the warm and engaging storyteller with an unwavering dedication to preserving the Union, William Seward, the steadfast abolitionist and career politician. Opposing these voices are the southern aristocrats: Mary Chestnut, a Charlestonian socialite who is an eyewitness to major events, James Henry Hammond of South Carolina who coined the phrase “Cotton is King” and whose unabashedly pro-slavery views helped set the stage for secession, Edmund Ruffin a Virginia planter and fire-eater who eagerly pushed for war and carried around a pike from John Brown’s raid to remind southerners of the bloody “abolitionist agenda.” Through their eyes, readers get a front row seat as the countdown to Civil War looms ever closer.

Ultimately, Larson’s The Demon of Unrest is an outstanding piece of historical non-fiction and should not be missed by any fan of Civil War history. Larson uses a wealth of primary source letters and diaries to paint a vivid and harrowing picture of a nation on the brink. The story is engaging, suspenseful and filled with lesser-known events and discussions. The true gravity of the situation was not lost on many of these top players. They did not blunder into war but actively sought to instigate or prevent it. This is perhaps illustrated best by Lincoln, who was warned of a potential assassination attempt prior to his inauguration. He downplayed the rumor and instead dreaded “The second Wednesday of February when the votes should be officially counted.” He feared the nation could be thrown into true chaos as Southern states refused to certify the election and cause the collapse of both American institutions and the belief in peaceful transfer of presidential administrations. Such a collapse, he thought would demonstrate to the world that American democracy and self-governance was built on a sandy foundation. An eerily prescient warning for our current age.

Dr. Matthew McDonough is a 19th century historian residing in Alabama.