On Monday, December 7, 1863 both Congresses of the Union and Confederacy convened. In Richmond, Virginia, President Jefferson Davis in his message to Congress acknowledged the “grave reverses” of the last few months but stated that the enemy “has been checked.”
Davis condemned the “savage ferocity” of the Union forces, adding “Nor has less unrelenting warfare been waged by these pretended friends of human rights and liberties against the unfortunate negroes….The hope last year entertained of an early termination of the war has not been realized…[but] the patriotism of the people has proved equal to every sacrifice demanded by their country’s needs.”
If Davis truly believed that the Southern people were up to the task of the war, could he continue to justify the failure of his generals on the battlefield?