Confederate States of America Confederacy, immediately following Fort Sumter the Confederate Congress proclaimed that "war exists between the Confederate States and the Government of the United States, and the States and Territories thereof". A state of war was not to formally exist between the Confederacy and those states and territories in the United States allowing slavery, although Confederate Rangers were compensated for destruction they could effect there throughout the war. Concerning the international status and nationhood of the Confederate States of America, in 1869 the United States Supreme Court in ruled Texas' declaration of secession was legally null and void. Jefferson Davis, former President
Great Seal of the Confederate States of America statue cast by Clarence P. Towne, dedicated in 1916. Washington was a model for the Confederacy due to his importance in founding a new nation. He was a paragon of personal character, a military leader who secured independence, and a new nation's political leader. Washington is surrounded with a wreath, which is made of some of the main agricultural products of the Confederacy: wheat, corn, tobacco, cotton, rice and sugar cane. The top margin of the seal features the words "The Confederate States of America: 22 February 1862". This date on the seal commemorates the establishment of the Confederate government