The Pathfinder and the President

"A colorful and distinctive narrative." --Robert W. Merry, author of Decade of Disunion Uncover the tumultuous clash between John C. Fr?mont and Abraham Lincoln as they navigated the politics of emancipation and the Civil War's shifting tides In 1856 the fledgling Republican party nominated as its first candidate for president John C. Fr?mont, the dashing explorer of the American West known as the Pathfinder and a radical opponent of slavery. He lost, but when the Civil War broke out, Lincoln tapped him for high command in the important border state of Missouri, setting the two on a collision course over how to deal with slavery. Faced with vicious guerrilla warfare, Fr?mont proclaimed the emancipation of all rebel slaves. Lincoln reacted swiftly, fearing that the move would drive border states to secede, revoked the order, and soon fired the recalcitrant general. But he had made his mark. His emancipation edict would influence Lincoln's own famous proclamation, and the president would later compare Fr?mont to Moses and praise him as a pioneer for emancipation. The Pathfinder and the President explores this volatile relationship in all its political and military dimensions as well as its effects on the Civil War and the battle for emancipation.