Why did Jefferson Davis have a hard time leading the South during the Civil War?

Answer 1

Jefferson Davis had trouble keeping the Confederacy unified because the states did not want to be told what to do. The South was loosely allied with each other for common defense. Jefferson was nervous in leadership and refused to delegate authority.

Ja! Jeff Davis ruled as a Dictator, there weren't any "free elections" during the failed rebellion called, loosely, the Confederated States of America, claiming eleven (11), but only having and credit for seven (7) territories at all. And then, and then, the Union divided into thirds! Sad! The rebellion was a disaster from the first cannon shot to the last shell fired in Texas at "friendly forces!" A oligarchical Dictatorship of rich slave owners, calling themselves 'so-called christians,' and not! Jeff Davis fled one capitol after another in disgrace, and where General Lee regained his Citizenship with honor. Jeff Davis sulked away till his death in treasonous defeat and disgrace, keeping slaves to the end of his days! To this day, no one claims any lineage to the traitor! no 'teabuggers' allowed to disgrace Answer.com!

Answer 2

Chiefly because he was out of his depth.

He was an ex-Army officer who thought he ought to be Confederate General-in-Chief. But his strategies were not sound, and he disagreed sharply with most of his Generals. He was also unable to control his cabinet.

Answer 3

There are a number of reasons that Jefferson Davis had a problem keeping the South unified. One reason was that Davis had taken two jobs. Before the conflict began Davis made it clear that he'd rather be a general than the president of the Confederacy. As it turned out he took on the role of president and general in chief. This was harked back to the Napoleonic example of the political leader who also led the army in the field. Davis did not quite fill Napoleon's role as an active general, however, by filling both positions, it took time away from valuable time from working with Confederate state governors and other Southern political leaders. This situation changed but all too late as Lee was given the task of general in chief in 1865. Very late.Some of the problems, however, were not his fault. The South's large slave population produced in many Southerners a fear of slave unrest, especially if the war continued to continue. On the other hand, in the early stages of the war, slavery allowed for the mobilization of a large number of Southern soldiers.

Then there was the problem of South's conscription laws. One governor declared it was unconstitutional. This was passed in 1862, the North would follow suit a year later.

Another major problem began at the onset of the war. The original strategy called for protecting all the Confederate states from Union invasions. If the Southern states could not be protected, then valuable land would be occupied by Union troops. The problem was clear. There were not enough troops to guard the South's perimeters. Davis had to alter his strategy and instead focus troop concentrations protecting "key" Southern areas.

In contrast, the Union had different unifying problems. One was not a lack of soldiers. It was the tiring of the war that so many would be a short one. As the war dragged on Lincoln was not sure in the Summer of 1864 that his party would renominate him for the November 1864 presidential election. This was a real possibility.