
Presidents and the Dissolution of the Union
Leadership Style from Polk to Lincoln
Fred I. Greenstein(Author)
Dale Anderson(Co-Author)
Princeton University Press
Published on 12. May 2013
Book
Hardback
200 pages
978-0-691-15199-1 (ISBN)
Description
The United States witnessed an unprecedented failure of its political system in the mid-nineteenth century, resulting in a disastrous civil war that claimed the lives of an estimated 750,000 Americans. In his other acclaimed books about the American presidency, Fred Greenstein assesses the personal strengths and weaknesses of presidents from George Washington to Barack Obama. Here, he evaluates the leadership styles of the Civil War-era presidents. Using his trademark no-nonsense approach, Greenstein looks at the presidential qualities of James K. Polk, Zachary Taylor, Millard Fillmore, Franklin Pierce, James Buchanan, and Abraham Lincoln. For each president, he provides a concise history of the man's life and presidency, and evaluates him in the areas of public communication, organizational capacity, political skill, policy vision, cognitive style, and emotional intelligence. Greenstein sheds light on why Buchanan is justly ranked as perhaps the worst president in the nation's history, how Pierce helped set the stage for the collapse of the Union and the bloodiest war America had ever experienced, and why Lincoln is still considered the consummate American leader to this day.
Presidents and the Dissolution of the Union reveals what enabled some of these presidents, like Lincoln and Polk, to meet the challenges of their times--and what caused others to fail.
Presidents and the Dissolution of the Union reveals what enabled some of these presidents, like Lincoln and Polk, to meet the challenges of their times--and what caused others to fail.
Reviews / Votes
"Greenstein offers a new study of presidential leadership in addition to his numerous existing studies of the U.S. presidency."--Choice "Presidents and the Dissolution of the Union offers an invaluable guide for anyone interested in the do's and don'ts of leadership... Greenstein's style is accessible with a minimum of scholarly apparatus; the result is a highly entertaining text that can be devoured at one sitting."--Laurence Raw, Journal of American CultureMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
New Jersey
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Trade binding
Illustrations
12 halftones.
Dimensions
Height: 203 mm
Width: 127 mm
Weight
255 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-691-15199-1 (9780691151991)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Fred I. Greenstein | Dale Anderson
Presidents and the Dissolution of the Union
Leadership Style from Polk to Lincoln
E-Book
06/2015
1st Edition
Princeton University Press
from
€79.95
Available for download
Persons
Fred I. Greenstein is professor of politics emeritus at Princeton University. His books include Inventing the Job of President: Leadership Style from George Washington to Andrew Jackson (Princeton), The Presidential Difference: Leadership Style from FDR to Barack Obama (Princeton), and The Hidden-Hand Presidency: Eisenhower as Leader.
Content
Chapter 1 The Presidential Difference in the Civil War Era 1 Chapter 2 The Policy-Driven Political Style of James K. Polk 13 Chapter 3 The Rough and Ready Leadership of Zachary Taylor 29 Chapter 4 Millard Fillmore and the Compromise of 1850 43 Chapter 5 Franklin Pierce and the Kansas-Nebraska Act 57 Chapter 6 The Disastrous Presidency of James Buchanan 75 Chapter 7 Abraham Lincoln: Consummate Leader 93 Chapter 8 What Difference Did the President Make? 111 Appendix Background on the Civil War Era Presidents 127 Notes 147 Further Reading 159 Acknowledgments 171 Index 173