Probing a little-explored aspect of Civil War history, this eye-opening volume surveys the ways religious beliefs shaped response to, participation in, and understanding of the war for the North and the South.

This engaging work treats a surprisingly neglected aspect of Civil War history—the role of religious belief. The war called upon soldiers on both sides to die for "God and country," making the conflict, at least to some extent, a religious crusade. This book investigates that premise, providing a concise but comprehensive overview of the ways in which religious belief impacted the war—and the ways in which the war reshaped America's religious landscape.



The study covers all the major faiths in Civil War America and explores the intersection of race and religious belief. It looks at religion's influence on the coming of war and traces the changing nature of faith over the course of the war. The book shows how soldiers from both sides used religion to justify the brutality of war and explain their willingness to fight. It also examines the role of evangelicals, North and South, and sheds light on the "revivals" that became ubiquitous in both armies. The religious lives of the U.S. Colored Troops and contraband laborers are examined, as are the roles of religious minorities during the war, including Jews, pacifists, and Quakers.


• Provides an accessible, lively overview of three critical issues: religion and the coming of war; religion and the fighting of the war; and religion and the war's end

• Probes the role of evangelicals in establishing a chasm over slavery

• Explains how and why soldiers from the rival regions employed religion as a means of justifying killing

• Shows how religion helped shape the Civil War and how the war reshaped American religion

• Draws on new scholarly work and key primary sources