The American Civil War : The Most Significant Turning Point?

During the post-civil war era, America, specifically the south, was undergoing a period of reconstruction. The general goal of reconstruction was to successfully readmit the former Confederacy back into the Union as smoothly as possible, as well as enacting specific safeguards of freedmen’s liberties. The social and constitutional developments in America between 1860 and 1877 were very minor. The lack of change between pre and post civil war status could hardly be considered a revolution.

Throughout the course of history, one of the most pivotal points was the American Revolution. The independence the colonies gained from England allowed for the creation of the way we live today. However, it is important to know that while some aspects of our country today are based on rules set during the revolution, America, as we know it today, was shaped drastically by the Civil war. The Civil war acted as a second revolution in our country, pushing us closer to how society is now. Historians have wondered what caused the Civil War, was it a matter of slavery? Politics? Or another underlying issue? Historians such as James McPherson, William Gienapp, and Susan-Mary Grant have explored events that occurred before the Civil war and ultimately describe why the South succeeded.

Frederick Douglass once said “What a change now greets us! The Government is aroused, the dead North is alive, and its divided people united…The cry now is for war, vigorous war, war to the bitter end, and war till the traitors are effectually and permanently put down” (Allen, 2005). In 1861, the start of the Civil War was needed by the Confederacy and the Union. Ever since the American Revolution and the birth of the United States, seventy-eight years earlier, there were many disagreements that began to tear apart the country. The main issues that were debated were state rights, unfair taxation, and slavery. Slavery was the main issue because it caused a separation between the north and the south. The north had mostly abolished slavery by this time because it became an industry driven economy, while the south was made up of plantations that grew crops. Almost half of the southern population was made up of slaves because about one-third of families owned slaves. The southern states wanted to break away to start their own establishment and we able to have slaves if they wanted. The Civil War began with the Battle of Fort Sumter. Fort Sumter is located in the Charleston, South Carolina harbor, three and a half miles from the shore. Many events occurred leading up to, during, and after the battle to mark it as an important part of the Civil War.

The Civil War was a turning point in both American and World history. Many believed that America could not support democracy but this war showed that with resilience and perseverance one can achieve anything. The Civil War took over 1 million lives, destroying cities and farmland throughout the war. This was the deadliest and most destructive war in American history because all of the battle were fought amongst Americans on American soil. At the end of the Civil War, slaves were free but they were not given equal rights. With the end of the Civil War, many significant changes occurred. Some of these changes include Black Codes, discrimination, and peace between the North and the South.

The Civil War marked a defining moment in United States history, the Civil War started in April 1861. Some of the groups that were in the Civil War were the Unions, Confederates, and the Cherokee Indians. They all had different ideas on how to live their lives, some thought that what one side was doing was

“Death created the modern American union, not just by ensuring national survival, but by shaping enduring national structures and commitments. The work of death was Civil War America 's most fundamental and most demanding undertaking”— Drew Gilpin Faust. Death in the Civil War was indeed a principle in creating the America we know and love today. This was the bloodiest war in United States military history. Within the war was the Battle of Gettysburg, a battle that was engulfed in massive suffering and loss of life. July first through the third 1863, A rural town in the eastern United States, Gettysburg Pennsylvania, is host to the largest, most fierce, battle ever to occur on American soil. At the start, Rumors were circulating that Lee was marching his army over the Potomac river and into southern Pennsylvania. Eventually, solid military intelligence confirmed this, and with an equally sized army, under the command of Gen. George G. Meade, the Union began on a collision course with the confederate army, and so began the Battle of Gettysburg. Gettysburg was a turning point because, the south’s morale declined while the north’s increased; northern casualties were lower than the south’s; and the north gained a geographical advantage from the battle.

The American civil war began in 1861 and ended in 1865. It was a War in which people were probably suffering the most. With a total death people close to 620,000 and million more injured. This event was a decisive one, according to the United States history. Through the North to the South, and the East to the West, that period of battle and civil War let engraved marks in population minds, which turn out is a watershed for Slaves and Freeman. One of the important turning points of the civil War was the importance to finance it. It cost a lot to both part of the United States to entertain war and battle during approximately four years. For example, the national debt rose from $65 million in 1860 to $2.6 billion in 1866. Nevertheless civil

The Civil War is known as a turning point in America, the road to ending slavery, while first turning a nation against each other.

After the Civil War, the nation witnessed two major social-economic movements: Reconstruction and Industrialization, which changed the country completely and made it one of the greatest industrialized countries in the world. However, it changed not only the country, but also, the society, its way of life and traditions.

The Civil War was one of the many major turning points in American history. John Bell Hood, John Reagan, Francis Lubbock, John Magruder, Thomas Green were all significant individuals that fought in the Civil War. The United States was rife with conflict in the years leading to the Civil War. The blood of many soldiers was spread all over the U.S.

After the Civil War, the United States went through a period of rapid industrialization which affected the nation dramatically. Industrial growth, the spread of railroads, the rise of big businesses, and the appearance of labor unions during these decades created a modern industrial economy, and American workers and farmers faced new challenges in adapting to these changes.

The American Civil War was a time wrought with peril. Families were split along party lines and took up arms against one another to fight for what they believed was right. Yet there was one group of people who had more to gain than any other present in the war, and that was the African American slave. This war was one of the biggest turning points in the morality of America all because of what happened to the slave in this war. They enlisted in the army, fought bravely, and after long last, gained their freedom.

The civil war was a monumental moment for the United States. Whether the citizens at the time realized this or not, this event would change America forever. Firstly, and most obviously, we have come from a country that was free for white, male, christian, Americans, to a country that is equal for all people. The civil war started this movement of reinforcing the basis of the constitution that everyone is created equal. To the extent that we as a country were able to do after the country was in shambles because of the war is quite remarkable. How we were able to create the 14th amendment arguably the most important one in our constitution today, and is being tried as of right now with homosexual marriage rights. We were willing to help people get out of the destruction of the war. With acts that helped educate, feed, and shelter the poor. However not all was good. The south, unwilling to accept the changes so rapidly, took the first chance they got of taking away the liberties and rights of the African Americans, as you later see. As Frederick Douglass had put it “Civil war was not a mere strife for territory and dominion, but a contest of civilization against barbarism”.

Before the Civil War, tensions between the North and South were rising. The North put protective tariffs on the South for their own benefit and Lincoln planned on abolishing slavery in the expanding territories. Those actions made the South angry and viewed them as a threat to their lifestyle. As a result, this led to the Civil War. As the war went on, Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered to Union General Ulysses S. Grant at the Appomattox Courthouse on April 9, 1865.

The decades after the Civil War rapidly changed the face of the United States. The rapid industrialization of the nation changed us from generally agrarian to the top industrial power in the world. Business tycoons thrived during this time, forging great business empires with the use of trusts and pools. Farmers moved to the cities and into the factories, living off wages and changing the face of the workforce. This rapid industrialization created wide gaps in society, and the government, which had originally taken a hands off approach to business, was forced to step in.