Edward Alfred Pollard was a leading journalist and author during the period of the Civil War and Reconstruction. He can justly be called one of the earliest historians of the Civil War and the first historian of the Confederacy. Although an able and prolific writer, Pollard produced works that were decidedly partisan in favor of the South and bitterly critical of Jefferson Davis and the Confederate government. As an associate editor of the Richmond Examiner during the Civil War, Pollard played a significant role in influencing public opinion and disseminating information. He is noteworthy as a historian primarily because of the works he produced on the Civil War, such as The Lost Cause (1866) and Southern History of the War (1862-1866). These books are not widely read today, but they were quite popular in their day and have had a substantial impact upon subsequent Southern thought and historiography.

Edward...