The Field of Blood: Violence in Congress and the Road to Civil War
May 24
10:30AM – 11:30AM
Sterling Law Building | Room: Levinson Auditorium — 127 Wall Street
Joanne Freeman, Professor of History and American Studies
In her path-breaking new book, The Field of Blood: Violence in Congress and the Road to Civil War, historian Joanne Freeman reveals the U.S. Congress as we've never seen it. In the decades leading up to the Civil War, pushing, shoving, fistfights, knives, guns, and mass melees were common enough to seem routine. Most of this mayhem was censored out of the period's equivalent of the Congressional Record. After more than a decade of detective work, Professor Freeman has uncovered this vein of violence, discovering over 70 physically violent incidents on the House and Senate floors – and changing our understanding of the roots of the Civil War in the process.
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2019-05-24T10:30:00
2019-05-24T11:30:00
America/New_York
The Field of Blood: Violence in Congress and the Road to Civil War
Joanne Freeman, Professor of History and American Studies
In her path-breaking new book, The Field of Blood: Violence in Congress and the Road to Civil War, historian Joanne Freeman reveals the U.S. Congress as we've never seen it. In the decades leading up to the Civil War, pushing, shoving, fistfights, knives, guns, and mass melees were common enough to seem routine. Most of this mayhem was censored out of the period's equivalent of the Congressional Record. After more than a decade of detective work, Professor Freeman has uncovered this vein of violence, discovering over 70 physically violent incidents on the House and Senate floors – and changing our understanding of the roots of the Civil War in the process.
Sterling Law Building | Room: Levinson Auditorium — 127 Wall Street