Abraham Lincoln and the Rothschilds: The Real Cause of the Civil War
Charles E. Coughlin (1940)
One of the most controversial and difficult-to-find Civil War conspiracy pieces ever published, this short work originated as two articles printed in Social Justice in February 1940. In just a few dozen pages, Coughlin presented a dramatic alternative narrative of the Civil War, arguing that the conflict was not primarily about slavery but was driven by international financial interests seeking profit, debt, and control.
President Abraham Lincoln challenged powerful banking interests when his administration issued hundreds of millions of dollars in government-backed “greenbacks” during the war rather than relying entirely on private lenders. Coughlin claimed this threatened the profits and influence of major European financiers, particularly the Rothschild family, and he cited an alleged 1863 letter warning that government-issued money could undermine the existing financial order. The pamphlet presents Lincoln’s monetary policies as the true source of conflict between the administration and international banking interests.
The book goes further, connecting these financial disputes to Lincoln’s assassination. It argues that powerful forces had a motive to remove a president who demonstrated that a government could finance itself without becoming dependent on private banking interests. Later reprints expanded the narrative with discussions of John Wilkes Booth, Lincoln’s ancestry, and other controversial subjects.
What makes it especially provocative is its focus on details that have fueled speculation for generations: the missing pages from Booth’s diary, the decision to try the accused conspirators before a military tribunal rather than a civilian court, the remarkable security failures that allowed Booth access to Lincoln, the disputed evidence against some defendants, and lingering questions about whether every participant in the conspiracy was ever identified. Coughlin presents these events as pieces of a larger hidden story involving finance, politics, and power.
He also highlights the little-known arrival of Russian naval fleets in New York and San Francisco during the Civil War, portraying Alexander II of Russia as an ally of the Union who allegedly helped deter foreign intervention at a critical moment in the conflict.
Whether viewed as a forgotten piece of political literature, a controversial monetary critique, or a classic example of twentieth century conspiracy writing, the pamphlet remains one of the most direct attempts to connect Lincoln, the Civil War, international banking, and the assassination into a single overarching narrative.
Nearly a century after its publication, it continues to circulate among collectors of rare and controversial historical works, ensuring that the debate surrounding its claims has never entirely disappeared.
Lincoln and the kikels
