David,

I don't know if I've posted this resource before, but I believe Richard B. Latner's "Crisis at Fort Sumter" website is the best internet resource I've seen for a thorough presentation of the events, many of them stumbling or politically motivated, on both sides, that led to the deaths of 620,000 Americans.

Crisis at Fort Sumter

I view both Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis as consummate politicians driven by motivations to preserve party and position more than to preserve peace and unity. I think if you'll read the documents on this website, you'll come away with the same view.

My heroes are not the politicians and generals, but the common soldiers, North and South, who fought, suffered and died for what they thought were noble and virtuous causes.

Jim