The Attorney General of the Confederate States of America was a member of the Confederate cabinet. The office of Attorney General of the Confederate States was created by the statute which established the Department of Justice.[1] By the establishing statute, it was "the duty of the Attorney General to prosecute and conduct all suits in the Supreme Court, in which the Confederate States [was] concerned, and to give his advice and opinion upon questions of law, when required by the President of the Confederate States, or when requested by any of the heads of departments, touching any matters that may concern their departments on subjects before them." In this respect, his duties were the same as those of the United States Attorney General. But additionally, he had "supervisory power over the accounts of the marshals, clerks and officers of all the courts of the Confederate States, and all claims against the Confederate States."[2] The Supreme Court was never established because of "fierce opposition" by white supremacists to a federal court that could abolish slavery.[3]

Though the United States had established their office of Attorney General by the Judiciary Act of 1789, this act establishing the Confederate States Department of Justice predated and preceded the establishment of the United States Department of Justice by almost a decade, making it an earlier Department of Justice that was not in the United States and that failed to create a Supreme Court .

List of attorneys general

# Picture Name Term began Term ended Political party
1 Judah P. Benjamin February 21, 1861 September 17, 1861 Democrat
Wade Keyes
(Assistant Attorney General)		 September 17, 1861 November 21, 1861 Democrat
2 Thomas Bragg November 21, 1861 March 18, 1862 Democrat
3 Thomas H. Watts March 18, 1862 October 1, 1863 Democrat
Wade Keyes
(Attorney General ad interim)		 October 1, 1863 January 2, 1864 Democrat
4 George Davis January 2, 1864 April 24, 1865 Democrat

References

  1. ↑ Act of February 21, 1861.
  2. ↑ Act of February 21, 1861 at Act § 2.
  3. ↑ Peterson (2016) p.32

Bibliography

  • Peterson, Dennis (2016). Confederate Cabinet Departments and Secretaries. McFarland. ISBN 978-1476625140.


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