Speilberg’s “Lincoln” nit-picked by a history nerd, part 5

The real Seward-Lincoln relationship was far more nuanced and interesting than the rather two-dimensional relationship depicted in this movie.

William Seward’s relationship with Abraham Lincoln started off on the wrong foot. Seward was the heir-apparent to the Republican presidential nomination in 1860 – only to be outmaneuvered by the gangly lawyer from the middle of nowhere whose existence he had, up to that point, barely acknowledged.

As Lincoln’s Secretary of State he treated the new President as a kind of constitutional monarch, and he was the Prime Minister with the real power. Like the proverbial princess and the pea he threatened to resign early on because he didn’t get his way, only to be put in his place firmly but politely by the one who really was his boss [“If a change is to be made, I must do it.”]

That was the sledge hammer between the eyes Seward needed, and the relationship between the two men was solid from those early days of the Lincoln Administration to Lincoln’s death. In fact theirs was as sincere a friendship as any to be found in American political history. They genuinely enjoyed, and relaxed in, one another’s company, often regaling one another with wildly funny, occasionally bawdy, stories and jokes into the wee hours. Each was a tonic for the other.

The movie, by contrast, depicts Seward in two roles.

First, as a kind of foil to Lincoln’s urge to get this 13th Amendment through the House although the votes weren’t to be had. [“It simply can’t be done” versus “I like our chances.”] The reality was more interesting: both men were passionately opposed to slavery, and eager to secure this final nail in the slavery coffin. Seward as foil to Lincoln was more for dramatic effect than historical accuracy.

The second function Seward plays in the movie is as a kind of lackey employed to do Lincoln’s dirty work for him – in effect, “get the votes by any means necessary, and when you’re done burn your notes.”

Is that the way it played out, Seward as Lincoln’s lackey? Possibly; the notes did in fact get destroyed, so we will probably never really know.