The president of the Confederate States was the

head of state A head of state is the public persona of a sovereign state.#Foakes, Foakes, pp. 110–11 "

he head of state He or HE may refer to: Language * He (letter), the fifth letter of the Semitic abjads * He (pronoun), a pronoun in Modern English * He (kana), one of the Japanese kana (へ in hiragana and ヘ in katakana) * Ge (Cyrillic), a Cyrillic letter cal ...

being an embodiment of the State itself or representative of its international persona." The name given to the office of head of sta ...

and

head of government In the Executive (government), executive branch, the head of government is the highest or the second-highest official of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presid ...

of the unrecognized breakaway

Confederate States The Confederate States of America (CSA), also known as the Confederate States (C.S.), the Confederacy, or Dixieland, was an unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United States from 1861 to 1865. It comprised eleven U.S. states th ...

. The president was the

chief executive A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

of the federal government and commander-in-chief of the

Confederate Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fi ...

and

Navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...

. Article II of the Constitution of the Confederate States vested executive power of the Confederacy in the president. The power included execution of law, along with responsibility for appointing executive, diplomatic, regulatory and judicial officers, and concluding treaties with foreign powers with the

advice and consent Advice and consent is an English phrase frequently used in List of enacting formulae, enacting formulae of bill (proposed law), bills and in other legal or constitutional contexts. It describes either of two situations: where a weak executive ...

of the senate. He was further empowered to grant reprieves and pardons, and convene and adjourn either or both houses of

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

under extraordinary circumstances. The president was

indirectly elected An indirect election or ''hierarchical voting,'' is an election in which voters do not choose directly among candidates or parties for an office ( direct voting system), but elect people who in turn choose candidates or parties. It is one of the o ...

by the people through the

Electoral College An electoral college is a body whose task is to elect a candidate to a particular office. It is mostly used in the political context for a constitutional body that appoints the head of state or government, and sometimes the upper parliament ...

to a six-year term, and was one of two nationally elected Confederate officers, the other being the

vice president A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...

. On February 18, 1861,

Jefferson Davis Jefferson F. Davis (June 3, 1808December 6, 1889) was an American politician who served as the only President of the Confederate States of America, president of the Confederate States from 1861 to 1865. He represented Mississippi in the Unite ...

became president of the

provisional government A provisional government, also called an interim government, an emergency government, a transitional government or provisional leadership, is a temporary government formed to manage a period of transition, often following state collapse, revoluti ...

, as well as the only person to assume the position. On February 22, 1862, he became president of the permanent government and served in that capacity until the Confederacy's military collapse. The Confederate States cabinet declared the Confederacy dissolved May 5, 1865, after which Davis stopped attempting to exercise his office's powers and duties. May 5 is therefore generally considered to be the day the Confederate States of America (and its presidency) were formally abolished. Davis himself was captured by elements of the

United States Cavalry The United States Cavalry, or U.S. Cavalry, was the designation of the mounted force of the United States Army. The United States Cavalry was formally created by an act of United States Congress, Congress on 3 August 1861 and ceased as a dist ...

five days later.

Powers and duties

The constitutional powers of the president of the Confederate States were similar to those of the

president of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

. The permanent Confederate States Constitution made him commander-in-chief of the Army, Navy, and

militia A militia ( ) is a military or paramilitary force that comprises civilian members, as opposed to a professional standing army of regular, full-time military personnel. Militias may be raised in times of need to support regular troops or se ...

of the confederated states when called into service of the Confederate States. He was also empowered to grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the Confederate States. He was authorized to make treaties; to nominate and appoint diplomatic representatives, judges, and other officers of the Confederate States (including the heads of the executive departments) by and with the consent of the Confederate States Senate; and to remove such representatives and officers. During a Senate recess, he could fill vacancies but not reappoint persons previously rejected by the Senate. He was to supply Congress with information, recommend legislation, receive ambassadors and other public ministers, see that federal laws were faithfully executed, and commission all officers of the military and naval forces of the Confederate States.

Election and oath

ConfederateElectoralBallotVirginiaNov6186

On February 9, 1861, the provisional congress at Montgomery unanimously elected

president and

Alexander H. Stephens Alexander Hamilton Stephens (February 11, 1812 – March 4, 1883) was an American politician who served as the first and only Vice President of the Confederate States of America, vice president of the Confederate States from 1861 to 1865, and l ...

vice president. Stephens, who was a delegate to Congress from

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, was inaugurated on February 11. Davis was inaugurated on February 18 upon his arrival from

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

, where he had gone upon his resignation from the U.S. Senate. Confederate presidents were to be limited to a single term. Davis and Stephens were elected on Wednesday November 6, 1861 for six-years terms, as provided by the permanent constitution. The capital had been moved in June 1861 to Richmond and the inauguration took place at the statue of Washington on Capitol Square on February 22, 1862. Before Davis entered on the execution of his office as President of the Confederate States, he was constitutionally required to take the following oath or affirmation:

Compensation

In 1861, the president of the Confederate States earned a CS$25,000 annual salary, along with an expense account, and a nontaxable travel account. The President's Office was located on the second floor of the

Custom House A custom house or customs house was traditionally a building housing the offices for a jurisdictional government whose officials oversaw the functions associated with importing and exporting goods into and out of a country, such as collecting ...

on Main Street, a structure which also housed the Cabinet Room and the

State State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

and

Treasury A treasury is either *A government department related to finance and taxation, a finance ministry; in a business context, corporate treasury. *A place or location where treasure, such as currency or precious items are kept. These can be ...

Departments. The City of Richmond purchased the White House of the Confederacy ( Brockenbrough House) for presentation to the Confederate government for use as an executive mansion. Davis declined to accept the gift, but the mansion was leased for his use. Referred to as the "White House of the Confederacy" or the "Grey House," the mansion was used by Davis until Richmond fell to the Union Army in early April 1865. The residence later became a repository for documents, relics, and pictures, and in 1896 it was redesignated the Confederate Museum.

Notes

Office of the Confederate President

As of 1864, Davis had a private secretary, Burton N. Harrison, of Mississippi, and five aides-de-camp: Col. William M. Browne of Georgia, Col. James Chestnut of South Carolina, Col. William P. Johnston of Kentucky, Col. G. W. C. Lee of Virginia, and Col. John T. Wood.

Fictional Confederate presidents

References

External links

The Papers of Jefferson Davis
at

Rice University William Marsh Rice University, commonly referred to as Rice University, is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas, United States. Established in 1912, the university spans 300 acres. Rice University comp ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:President Of The Confederate States 1861 establishments in Alabama 1865 disestablishments in Virginia Commanders in chief Government of the Confederate States of America Heads of government of former unrecognized countries Jefferson Davis

Confederate States of America The Confederate States of America (CSA), also known as the Confederate States (C.S.), the Confederacy, or Dixieland, was an List of historical unrecognized states and dependencies, unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United State ...

1861 introductions