Civil War
1865
Hampton
Roads Conference
On this day in 1865,
President Abraham Lincoln meets with a delegation of Confederate officials at
Hampton Roads, Virginia, to discuss a possible peace agreement. Lincoln refused
to grant the delegation any concessions, however, and the meeting ended within
hours.
New York Tribune editor
and abolitionist Horace Greeley provided the impetus for the conference when he
contacted Francis Blair, a Maryland aristocrat and presidential adviser.
Greeley suggested that Blair was the “right man” to open discussions with the Confederates
to end the war. Blair sought permission from Lincoln to meet with Confederate
President Jefferson Davis, anddid so twice in January 1865. Blair suggested to
Davis that an armistice be forged and the two sides turn their attention to
removing the French-supported regime of Maximilian in Mexico. This plan would
help cool tensions between North and South by providing a common enemy, he
believed.
Meanwhile, the situation
was becoming progressively worse for the Confederates in the winter of 1864 and
1865. In January, Union troops captured Fort Fisher and effectively closed
Wilmington, North Carolina, the last major port open to blockade runners. Davis
conferred with his vice president, Alexander Stephens, who recommended that a
peace commission be appointed to explore a possible armistice. Davis sent
Stephens and two others to meet with Lincoln at Hampton Roads.
The meeting convened on
February 3. Stephens asked if there was any way to stop the war and Lincoln
replied that the only way was “for those who were resisting the laws of the
Union to cease that resistance.” The delegation underestimated Lincoln’s
resolve to make the end of slavery a necessary condition for any peace. The
president also insisted on immediate reunification and the laying down of
Confederate arms before anything else was discussed. In short, the Union was in
such an advantageous position that Lincoln did not need to concede any issues
to the Confederates. Robert M.T. Hunter,a memberof the delegation, commented
that Lincoln was offering little except the unconditional surrender of the
South.
After less than five
hours, the conference ended and the delegation left with no concessions. The
war continued for more than two months.
Courtesy: HISTORY.com
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