Summary of The Demon of Unrest: A Saga of Hubris, Heartbreak, and Heroism at the Dawn of the Civil War

Larson masterfully chronicles the chaotic period between Lincoln’s election and the Confederacy’s attack on Fort Sumter, a time marked by errors in judgment, miscommunication, inflated egos, and bitter personal ambitions. Lincoln himself would later admit that the pressure during these months was so intense that, had he known what lay ahead, he would not have believed he could survive it.

At the heart of this gripping narrative are key figures: Major Robert Anderson, the commander at Fort Sumter, a former slave owner who was sympathetic to the South but remained loyal to the Union; Edmund Ruffin, a radical whose bloodlust and zealous support for secession fanned the flames of rebellion; and Mary Boykin Chesnut, a planter’s wife torn by conflicting loyalties to both her marriage and the institution of slavery. Throughout it all, President Lincoln struggled against his own cabinet, including the duplicitous Secretary of State, William Seward, as he desperately tried to avert a war he feared was unavoidable—a war that would claim the lives of 750,000 Americans.

Using a wealth of primary sources—from diaries and secret communications to slave ledgers and plantation records—Larson paints a political horror story that reveals how the forces of division and unrest led the nation to the brink of war. The Demon of Unrest serves as a stark reminder of how quickly disaster can unfold, often without us realizing the danger until it is too late.