studying early American history, it is that the Civil War was an unavoidable tragedy. Often, hindsight allows us to recognize those points at which history could have taken a different direction, if only some person or thing were different in some way. This is not the case with the American Civil War. Four factors support the notion of inevitability. This paper will explore the way that economics, previous compromises, changing social mores and values, and the nature of politics laid a foundation for