“The most comprehensive review to date of Stephens’ personal life and political career. . . . This volume will be the standard biography of Alexander H. Stephens for years to come.”—Journal of American History

Alexander H. Stephens (1812–1883) was a celebrated Whig-turned-Democrat who served as congressman from 1843 to 1859, and an antisecessionist who became vice-president of the Confederacy. Thomas E. Schott has written the first scholarly biography that analyzes the interplay between the public and private Stephens and between the state and national politics during his contradictory career.

“A solid biography, a balanced, perceptive examination of an able but flawed Georgian who struggled with forces far beyond his control.”—American Historical Review