Edward A. Pollard | |
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 Portrait of Pollard, 1866 | |
| Born | Edward Bob Pollard February 27, 1832 Nelson County, Virginia, U.S. |
| Died | December 17, 1872 (aged 40) Lynchburg, Virginia, U.S. |
| Education | University of Virginia College of William and Mary |
| Occupation | Writer |
| Political party | Democratic |
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Edward Alfred Pollard (February 27, 1832 – December 17, 1872) was an American author, journalist, and Confederate sympathizer during the American Civil War who wrote several books on the causes and events of the war, notably The Lost Cause: A New Southern History of the War of the Confederates (1866) and The Lost Cause Regained (1868),[1] wherein Pollard originated the long-standing pseudo-historical ideology of the Lost Cause of the Confederacy.
Written after the war, these works advocated white supremacy, supported the relegation of blacks to second-class status, and accused the U.S. government of alleged excesses committed both during and after the war.[2] The books gave two different descriptions of the causes of the war and the nature of Southern society: The Lost Cause claimed the main reason for the war was the two opposing ways (largely slavery) of organizing society, and viewed slavery as key to the nobility of the South, while The Lost Cause Regained argued that the primary reason for secession was not slavery, but the preservation of state sovereignty.[3] The latter viewpoint reflects much of Pollard's post-1867 attempts to reconcile former pro-Confederacy ideas with new realities, patriotism, and free-labor unionism.
- ^ Meacham, Jon (August 23, 2020). "The South's Fight for White Supremacy". The New York Times. ProQuest 2436243247. Archived from the original on August 24, 2020.
- ^ "The Lost Cause." The Sun (1837–1989). August 13, 1866.
- ^ Pollard, Edward Alfred. The Lost Cause Regained /. New York :, 1868.