Essay about Civil war

Among the economies of the north and south arose many conflicts that led to the tension of the Civil War in 1861. In the 1800s, slavery was a major sectional issue. Northerners were strongly opposed to slavery unlike the south's belief that slavery was economically beneficial.

Cities grew and flourished and soon it was apparent that money was needed to support the exploding population. The North supported tariffs, unlike the South. Tariffs are taxes that are placed on imported goods by the government. The North supported any tariffs on imported goods for a few reasons insomuch they did not feel threatened. Industry was running rampant, so finished goods did not have to be brought over from England. There was no more need to import from England. If imports were brought in, they were more of a luxury than a necessity. All necessities were made on Northern soil by their own factories. Another reason that the North favored taxes was because they hoped that with higher import taxes, the South would then purchase goods from Northern factories instead of England. For instance, if the price of a finely woven, imported shirt plus the tariff caused the price to jump too high, Southerners would be forced to buy the shirt from a Northern factory. Railroads were being established mainly between all the major cities of the North. The network of these railroads meant that goods were able to travel faster. This considerably shortened the time from raw goods to finished products. The North’s transition to industry proved to be soundly lucrative. It evolved, expanded and laid a firm foundation for the future.

The increasing Northwest Territory, which included the present-day Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Minnesota, was distant from the markets for its grain and cattle. It required inner progression for survival, and so supported the Northeast's demands for high tariffs. The Northeast maintained most federally economic enhancement in the Northwest Territory.

The North and South were very different from each other. Industrialization was happening in the North, while large-scale cotton planting was happening in the South. The South sold their crops to England in exchange for inexpensive factory-made goods produced in Europe. As a result of industrialization, Northern Factories began producing many of the goods that were already being produced in Europe. Thus, the North started to tax the South on any goods imported from Europe, so that the South would buy goods from the North. These unfair taxes angered the South, and contributed largely to its anti-North attitude (Civil War

There were several issues that contributed to the split between the northern and southern states. Among these were the deep social, economic and political differences. The split could be traced as far back as the early 1800’s, just as the industrial revolution was beginning. It’s effects on the north and the south caused the economic split. As the north was becoming more industrialized; the south began to rely heavily on slave labor. This was one of the main reasons, as the southern view on slavery differed greatly from the North. These views were based on drastically different interpretations of the constitution.

One thing that South did that the North did not do was that it used slaves to tend its large plantations and other duties. The south also made a business of this and rented, traded and sold slaves to pay debts. Therefore, slaves were seen as property of individuals and businesses and represented the largest part of the region’s personal and corporate wealth. But not only did the North and South became divided economically because of manufacturing and railroad differences. It also became divided due to tariffs. When a protective tariff was established in 1828 to promote the industry of northern industrialists, many Southerners felt it unfairly targeted their agricultural-based economic system.This ultimately led to conflict between the two different economic

Since the Civil War brought extensive economic change to the United States, civilians in the North and South faced many economic challenges. "In the North the arms, metalworkings, boot making, and shipbuilding industries boomed, but the scarcity of cotton caused widespread layoffs and closures in the textile industry" (Keene, 391). Even though workers' salaries rose by forty percent, prices increased even faster, resulting in inflation that averaged fifteen percent. Despite the North's economic hardships, the problems the South faced were far worse. "The Southern economy was hit hard by the cessation of trade with the North and Europe due to the Union blockade" (Keene, 391). Southern industry and agriculture were limited by persistent

While the United States worked hard to set up a working government, a heavily debated topic was states’ rights. “When high protective tariffs were passed by Congress in 1828 and 1832, South Carolina, led by John Calhoun, threatened to nullify them, making them null and void within that state” (What Caused the Civil War). Nullifying the law means that the state would ignore it. The Southern states were angered by the tariffs because they benefited the North and made it more difficult for the South. Hinston Helper states, “It is a fact well known to every intelligent Southerner that we are compelled to go to the North for almost every article of utility and adornment, from matches, shoepegs and paintings up to cotton-mills, steamships and …; that almost everything produced at the North meets with ready sale, while at the same time, there is no demand, even among our own citizens, for the productions of

Economic conflict became a major cause of the Civil War because the South objected to unfair tariff levels. With tariffs in place that caused taxes on goods brought into the country, the South started to feel as though this was very unfair to them since they didn’t have as many industries as the North and were more dependent goods imported from Europe. As the taxes went up, so did the price of the items and resulting in every day, normal priced items becoming overpriced for people who couldn't afford the higher prices. This anger among the people of the south caused by this inflation was the source of economic conflict. John Calhoun of South Carolina claimed that he was going to end this practice,

Unlike the Confederate South, the North decided to not utilize slave labor like the South did because their economy did not call for farming that required large amounts of labor for rapid production. The Union also decided to not utilize slave labor because slave labor was against many of the northerner’s morals. Since the North was industrialized and they manufactured goods, they had to compete with other manufactures overseas. To demolish competition from the imported goods from overseas, the northerners demanded high tariffs on the imported goods so that more people will buy the manufactured goods from the North instead of the now more expensive imported goods from overseas. The

The Civil War was unlike any other war ever fought in America and had many effects on the home front for both the North and the South. It is stated to be the first ever total war, which is a war against not only the civilians but also the armies. The Civil War is also considered the first modern war fought by the U.S. troops. Lincoln asked volunteers to sign up for only three months. Many people thought the war wouldn’t last long. However, the war continued on for four years. The Union armies had around 2,500,000 to 2,750,000 men and the Confederate army had approximately 750,000 to 1,250,000 men. The entire North and South society was affected by the war and desired for many social and economic assets. The Civil war brought new military

The westward expansion also played a part in the tension between the North and the

In 1861, the American Civil War commenced after many years of tension building between the Northern and Southern states. The main reason of the tension was said to be the debate of slavery between the North and South, and although some documents support this claim, it is false. The war had been brewing since 1607, before slavery was even introduced to the colonies that would become the United States of America. The debate of slavery did play a major part in the civil war; however it did so in supporting the true cause of the civil war. The main cause of the American Civil War was not the debate of slavery, but rather Europe’s role in the American economy.

In the Civil War the North had many advantages over the South. The South was outnumbered, out supplied, and pushed into a corner using military tactics. Many things changed because of the Civil War. The military tactics used by the North changed how war was fought from then on. Many changes were made politically; some were only temporary, while others were permanent. After the war was over, the country was reunited and the image of the soul and duty of our country redefined.

Slavery was something that became interwoven into the South’s economy considering it was a one crop economy that depended on cotton. Therefore it depended on slaves, even if only a fraction of the population actually owned slaves. Meanwhile, the northern economy was more focused on industry rather than agriculture. Their industries would purchase raw cotton and turn it into a finished good. The North and South therefore also had major differences in their economic attitudes. The dispute over slavery and the future of it led to secession, which brought a war where the Northern and Western states fought to preserve the Union and the Southern territories fought to establish their independence as a new confederation under a constitution of its own.