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A portrait of Arkansas's political and social struggle on the Civil War frontier.

Confederate Arkansas: The People and Policies of a Frontier State in Wartime by Michael B. Dougan offers a landmark examination of Arkansas's experience during the American Civil War, illuminating the political, social, and economic challenges faced by a frontier state caught in the turmoil of national conflict. Drawing upon newspapers, letters, diaries, legal records, military reports, songs, and personal recollections, Dougan reconstructs the complex realities of life in Arkansas as its citizens grappled with secession, war, and the demands of Confederate government.

Rather than focusing solely on military campaigns, the book explores how ordinary Arkansans responded to the upheaval of wartime. Dougan examines the state's divided political loyalties, noting that only a minority of the population initially supported secession, and traces the policies that shaped daily life as Arkansas became part of the Confederacy. He analyzes the effects of military occupation, economic hardship, political conflict, and governmental administration on communities across the state, revealing the distinct character of a frontier society under extraordinary pressure.

Confederate Arkansas fills an important gap in Civil War historiography and provides valuable insight into the Trans-Mississippi Confederacy. It remains an essential resource for understanding the complexities of wartime Arkansas and the broader Confederate experience in the American South.

The American presidency has long tested the capacity of the system of checks and balances to constrain executive power, especially in times of war. While scholars have examined presidents starting military conflicts without congressional authorization or infringing on civil liberties in the name of national security, Stuart Streichler focuses on the conduct of hostilities. Using the treatment of war-on-terror detainees under President George W. Bush as a case study, he integrates international humanitarian law into a constitutional analysis of the repercussions of presidential war powers for human rights around the world.

Putting President Bush’s actions in a wider context, Presidential Accountability in Wartime begins with a historical survey of the laws of war, with particular emphasis on the 1949 Geneva Conventions and the Nuremberg Tribunal. Streichler then reconstructs the decision-making process that led to the president’s approval of interrogation methods that violated Geneva’s mandate to treat wartime captives humanely. While taking note of various accountability options—from within the executive branch to the International Criminal Court—the book illustrates the challenge in holding presidents personally responsible for violating the laws of war through an in-depth analysis of the actions taken by Congress, the Supreme Court, and the public in response. In doing so, this book not only raises questions about whether international humanitarian law can moderate wartime presidential behavior but also about the character of the presidency and the American constitutional system of government.