Who was the Secretary of State of the Confederacy?

Answer 1

The Confederate States of America (CSA) had three Secretaries of State during its short existence:

Robert Toombs (1861)

Robert M T Hunter (1861-1862)

Judah P Benjamin (1862-1865)

Robert Toombs was appointed by Confederate President Jefferson Davis to be the Confederacy's first Secretary of State due to Toombs' political prowess and popularity among the people. However, Toombs was constantly at odds with Davis, and in July of 1861 he resigned from Davis' Cabinet to become a Brigadier General in the Confederate Army. He continued serving in the Army and later the Georgia Militia until 1863, when he switched to being a full-time critic of President Davis and the Confederate government. After the war, he resumed his law practice in Georgia, his home state.

Robert M T Hunter was appointed to the post following Toombs' resignation, but also found himself in contention with the Cabinet and President. Hunter left the Cabinet to become a Confederate Senator from Virginia and President Pro Tempore of the Confederate States Senate in 1862.

William M Browne served as Acting Confederate Secretary of State for one month between Hunter's resignation and Judah P Benjamin's appointment.

Judah P Benjamin served previously as the Confederate Attorney General and Secretary of War prior to his appointment by President Davis to Secretary of State. Benjamin secured war loans from France and tried to entice Great Britain into the war on the Confederacy's side, but was ultimately unsuccessful. After the CSA's defeat, Benjamin fled to London, where he embarked on a successful law career, and later Paris, where he died and is interned in the famous Pere Lachaise Cemetery.

Answer 2

Stephen Mallory was the secretary of the Confederate navy. He was appointed to this position in light of his experience as the Chairman of the Senate Naval Affairs Committee prior to the US Civil War. Mallory's home state was Florida.