When did Virginia join the Confederacy?

Determining precisely when Virginia joined the Confederacy is a complex issue. President Abraham Lincoln’s administration maintained that the Union was “indivisible” and that secession was illegal. According to this view, a state could not leave the Union under any circumstances. Therefore, those taking up arms against the federal government were considered rebels or insurrectionists, while the states themselves, at least de jure if not de facto, remained part of the Union.

However, the Reconstruction Acts of 1867 and 1868 seemed to contradict this position by requiring former Confederate states to meet specific conditions before being readmitted to the Union—implying that these states had, at some point, actually left. Further complicating the issue, the Supreme Court ruled in Texas v. White (1869) that unilateral secession was unconstitutional.

The existence of a Unionist government in Virginia, known as the Restored or Reorganized Government of Virginia, further muddies the waters. Unionists regarded state government positions held by secessionists as vacated. Lincoln recognized the Restored Government as the legitimate government of Virginia and a continuation of the existing state government, but in practice, it held no authority beyond areas occupied by the Union Army. Meanwhile, nearly all state officials in 1861, including Governor John Letcher, considered Virginia officially out of the Union following the secession referendum on May 23, regardless of their personal opinions on the matter.

All of this underscores the fact that the United States never officially recognized the Confederate States of America as a sovereign nation—nor did any foreign country. From a strict legal perspective, the question of when Virginia seceded and joined the Confederacy cannot be definitively answered; by that logic, it never happened.

However, historians must grapple with historical realities. The Confederacy functioned as an independent government in 1861, much like the Continental Congress did during the American Revolutionary War, despite lacking formal recognition from Britain. Had the Confederacy won the war, it would have compelled the U.S. government to acknowledge its sovereignty and legitimacy.

So what steps did the secessionists in Richmond take to remove Virginia from the Union, align with the Confederate government, and formally become part of the Confederacy? And when did these steps occur? The following is a rough timeline based on available primary sources.

January 21, 1861	The General Assembly of Virginia adopted a resolution stating that, if the differences between North and South could not be reconciled, then “every consideration of honor and interest demands that Virginia shall unite her destiny with the slave-holding State of the South.” –O.R. Series IV Volume I, Section 1
February 13, 1861	The Virginia Convention of 1861 opened in Richmond with 152 delegates to debate secession.
April 4, 1861	Initial vote on secession in the Virginia Convention failed 88 to 45. –Convention Proceedings Volume III
April 17, 1861	Virginia Convention passed a resolution 88 to 55 repealing ratification of the Constitution of the United States of America. –O.R. Series IV Volume I, Section 1
April 25, 1861	Virginia Convention passed a resolution expressing a desire to enter into an alliance with the Confederate States and placed control of Virginia’s militia in the hands of the Confederate president, and invited the Confederate government to move its capital to Richmond. –O.R. Series IV Volume I, Section 1
May 7, 1861	Provisional Confederate Congress enacted a law admitting Virginia into the Confederacy. –O.R. Series IV Volume I, Section 1
May 23, 1861	Statewide secession referendum passed.
June 6, 1861	Governor John Letcher signed General Orders, No. 25, transferring control of Virginia’s Provisional Army and Navy to the Confederate government. –O.R. Series I Volume II
June 14, 1861	Governor John Letcher issued a proclamation stating the official results of the secession referendum as 125,950 for – 20,373 against*. –Richmond Enquirer, June 22, 1861
June 19, 1861	Virginia Convention (2nd Session) formally adopted the Constitution of the Confederate States. –Journals, Volume II

Virginia’s integration into the Confederacy was a gradual process rather than a single event. One of the earliest key moments was the Virginia Convention vote on April 17, 1861. The passage of the secession referendum on May 23 was another significant milestone. On July 20, 1861, the Provisional Confederate Congress convened in Richmond, solidifying its status as the seat of the Confederate government. From that point until the Confederate surrender in April 1865, few would dispute Virginia’s role in the nascent Confederacy and its part in what came to be known as the “Great Rebellion.”

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Sources

Freehling, William W. and Craig M. Simpson, ed. Showdown in Virginia: The 1861 Convention and the Fate of the Union. Charlottesville, VA: University of Virginia Press, 2010.

Journals and Papers of the Virginia State Convention of 1861, Vol. 2. Richmond: Virginia State Library, 1966.

Proceedings of the Virginia State Convention of 1861, February 13-May 1, Vol. III. Richmond: Virginia State Library, 1965.

Robertson, James I., Jr. “The Virginia State Convention of 1861” in Virginia at War 1861. Edited by William C. Davis and James I. Robertson Jr. Lexington, KY: The University Press of Kentucky, 2005.

The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. Series I, Vol. II. With additions and corrections. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1902.

The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. Series IV, Vol. I. With additions and corrections. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1902.