Who was Andrew Johnson, and why did he vow to burn Nashville?
Andrew Johnson (1808–1875) was a native of Tennessee, who served his state as a U.S. congressman, U.S. senator, and governor. In April 1861 the American Civil War (1861–65) broke out when seven Southern states, called the Confederate States of America (the Confederacy), declared war on the United States (the Union). Shortly afterward Tennessee seceded (withdrew) from the Union and joined the Confederacy. Johnson then made a surprising move for a Southerner: he sided with the Union. This show of allegiance was a result of his strongly held belief that the South’s secession violated the laws of the U.S. Constitution. Johnson was rewarded for taking this stand by President Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), who appointed him the Union military governor in Tennessee. When Confederate troops surrounded Nashville and seemed ready to seize it, Johnson…
