The Demon of Unrest: A Saga of Hubris, Heartbreak, and Heroism at the Dawn of the Civil War by Erik Larson (2024)

During my move to Singapore this month, I wanted a book to which I could cling throughout the long hours of airports, airplanes, and endless initial bus rides. Thankfully, this book by Erik Larson plopped in my lap via a Little Free Library. Despite its size, I knew this was the book for me.

I’m not one to chase new releases, so I hadn’t yet heard of this particular book, though as of this writing, it’s been out for nearly 2 years. But I have enjoyed Erik Larson before, an historian with the unique talent of weaving historical tidbits into a narrative so engaging, you almost feel like you’re reading a novel. That’s what I anticipated with this book, and he did not disappoint.

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Brief Summary of The Demon of Unrest

This volume traces the earliest stages of the American Civil War, from Abraham Lincoln’s election in November 1860, through his inauguration and the beginnings of Southern secession, up to the barrage of South Carolina’s Fort Sumter and the fallout in April 1861. Six months of rising tensions, fascinating real-life characters, and a long-awaited yet shockingly bloodless battle. This book details it all.

Three Lessons I Learned from This History

First, I was shocked to read so much about the Southern view of slavery in this book and from the Southerner’s own mouths. Multiple times, we read how the Southerners viewed slavery as a holy institution and sign of moral superiority over the North. Some claimed this was so because of slavery’s presence in the Bible. Others claimed that God prepared the Negroes with darker skin so they could work more comfortably in the blistering South, and thus fulfill their God-given roles. Others went to the depths of depravity, considering the blacks as not-fully-human and thus fit to be bought and sold and abused—and, oddly enough, also taken as mistresses.

Second, I was pleased to read from Larson a very direct statement of fact, that the Civil War was truly and entirely about slavery, not “states’ rights” or anything else our modern-day revisionists want to tell us:

The seven clauses [of the proposed 13th Amendment to the Constitution] underscored the fact that for all of the South’s efforts to blame the crisis on Northern tyranny in imposing tariffs, collecting revenue, and ordaining “internal improvements,” the crux of the crisis was in fact, slavery. This was obvious to all at the time, if not to members of a certain school of twentieth century historiography who sought to cast the conflict in the bloodless terms of states’ rights. As famed historian Samuel Eliot Morison observed, “I wish that some of our evasive historians, our mufflers of great passionate issues, who are trying to persuade the American public that Negro slavery had nothing to do with a Civil War, would read the debates in this Peace Convention.” (274)

Third, as I was finishing the book, I was amazed at President Lincoln‘s resolve not to let the matter of secession rest. He knew full well what it would cost both sides for the Union to counter the confederacy’s attempts to secede as an independent nation, yet he made the decision to battle it anyways. It reminded me of some prophetic advice that Horace Greeley shared with him earlier on in the book:

Let the Union slide – it may be reconstructed; let Presidents be assassinated – we can elect more; let the Republicans be defeated and crushed – we shall rise again; but another nasty compromise, whereby everything is conceded, and nothing secured, will so thoroughly disgrace and humiliate us that we can never again raise our heads, and this nation becomes a second edition of the Barbary States as they were sixty years ago. (Horace Greeley to Abraham Lincoln, 122)

With these three lessons in mind, let me pontificate for a moment. It’s inconceivable to me how such massive populations of “the Christian South” could be so deceived to accept as morally good something so obviously wicked—but then I remember abortion today, how it remains not only legal but celebrated in so many states. I’m sure you’ve seen, for example, that recent photo of the Massachusetts women smiling and clapping as their female governor signs into law the acceptance of abortion up till birth. If we ever have another Civil War, folks, let’s pray that it’s over something as morally reprehensible as slavery—whether it’s abortion, sex slavery, or the mutilation of so-called “trans kids.”

Take a lesson from Horace Greeley and ask yourself: can we really continue compromising with such moral wickedness within our borders and expect to survive as a nation (or “empire”) for another hundred years? Thank God for his mercy on our depraved land—and for those who now vocally oppose such sin—but we need more Christians to stand up against this wickedness. We need more people praying against the strongholds. We need more Gospel to be lived and shared and more sinners to be loved into the Kingdom.

God has never promised America “a new golden age,” no matter what President Trump says. If Lincoln hadn’t stood up to the wickedness of slavery 150-ish years ago, America would not exist as a nation today. If we don’t fight the demonic moral decay in our culture currently, we cannot reasonable expect a brighter tomorrow.

My Very Thin Readings on the Civil War

I grew up in Wisconsin, and although our state apparently sent off some regiments to fight for the Union, virtually no one in Wisconsin reminisces about the Civil War today. For that reason, it’s never really been on my radar as a favorite time period to read. In fact, until I picked up this book, the only excitement about this time period I find is when I find a “Civil War era” coin or bullet whilst metal detecting. That’s not saying much.

My main interest in the era has been with the Lincoln assassination. For a great two-book study of this massively important event, I recommend you read first Killing Lincoln by Bill O’Reilley and Martin Dugard (2011) and then Manhunt: The Search for Lincoln’s Killer by James L. Swanson (2006). I have also read _ by _, which fictionalizes a particular battle during the War, which was at least mildly entertaining. Next up for me, though, is a very fitting Newberry-winner that’s also made it onto our Sibling’s Book Club list this year, Rifles for Watie by Harold Keith (1957).

Conclusion

The Demon of Unrest has a massive cast of characters that were truly fun to get to know—people like the courageous Major Robert Anderson, the flirtatious Southern belle Mary Chestnut, and the bloodthirsty secessionist Edmund Ruffin. They’re all worth knowing more about historically, and Erik Larson’s the perfect man to have make your introductions.

This book has certainly whetted my appetite for an era of American history I’ve otherwise avoided, though that’s not surprising. Larson’s a master storyteller, whose skill and research methods admittedly me a bit jealous. I feel I must close with this paragraph describing his process, because it needs to be recorded and shared:

Whenever I search for a book idea, I look first for a subject that is inherently suspenseful and lends itself to being told as a story with a beginning, middle, and end. I think of this central arc as a narrative spine, a Christmas tree; the fun part is finding and hanging the shiny ornaments, the revealing details hidden deep within archives, diaries, and memoirs. The search for these invariably becomes a journey full of unexpected surprises and revelations no matter how much a subject has been studied before—because every writer in every time brings to the field a unique lens through which to view the world, formed by his personal experiences and the character of his era. (493)

©2026 E.T.

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