The Bishop of the Old South: The Ministry and Civil War Legacy of Leonidas Polk

The controversial and tragic Civil War career of Leonidas Polk has cast a long and obstructive shadow over the life of one of the antebellum South's most significant religious leaders. The son of a wealthy, slaveholding veteran of the Revolutionary War, Polk graduated eighth in the West Point class of 1827. Although he seemed destined for martial service, he abruptly and unexpectedly resigned from the military to pursue a ministerial career that culminated with his selection as the first Episcop…