The year is 1865, Lincoln is dead, and through some convoluted, insane process I am now the President. God help us all. I am faced with the challenge of uniting a fractured nation, war-torn, weary, and directionless. For all the guff Lincoln gave about preserving the union, he did a terrible job. Yes, we are physically one nation, but dominion under continual threat of violence is precisely what our forefathers fought against in the Revolution.
If I had been president, this would never have been an issue. The South would have left quietly and peacefully, as I believe self-determination is paramount to a free society. Of course, there was the moral dubiousness of slavery, and while I don’t support the institution, the eventual progress and industrialization of the western world would push slavery into the Northern-styled wage-slavery which exists in factories at this time, and eventually overseas to India and Pakistan, where it exists into the 21st century. Can society exist without slavery? Morally, I hope so. Pragmatically, I doubt it, but that is not the battle I’m fighting today. Besides, the loss of 600,000 lives and copious casualties coupled with the loss of basic life liberty due to the horrid practice of drafting, is objectively worse than the abomination that is slavery. If choosing between two evils, one of which involves actively promoting that evil, I can not in good faith claim that action was justified. Slavery is violence, war is violence. Adding violence to
The name Civil War is misleading because the war was not a class struggle, but a sectional combat, having its roots in political, economic, social, and psychological elements. It has been characterized, in the words of William H. Seward, as the “irrepressible conflict.” In another judgment the Civil War was viewed as criminally stupid, an unnecessary bloodletting brought on by arrogant extremists and blundering politicians. Both views accept the fact that in 1861 there existed a situation that, rightly or wrongly, had come to be regarded as insoluble by peaceful means.
The civil war began early in the spring of 1861 after the South’s secession from the Union and ended during the same season four years later in 1865. Though the war lasted for a rather short amount of time, for the ones it affected it seemed to be never-ending. The impact that the war had on Southerners was rather traitorous, them being the ones who suffered most. Many men lost their homes and property while many, many more men lost their lives fighting for them. There were many types of Southerners in 1861, the war affecting all of them differently, with some of the richer and higher members of society having an easier time both before and after the war. One amazing author, Margret Mitchell, created an in depth story of a southern-belle
Lincoln would have been able to maintain control the Radical Republicans, at least that is what is thought to be true. Lincoln 's death, however, left a blank space in
The civil war, reconstruction, and Redemption era does serve as a unique moment in American history because it shaped what kind of nation US would become. All wars are the result of social change, talks of revolution, institution of slavery and connection to power and liberation. There are many reasons that attribute to the institution of slavery becoming a big determinant in the Civil War and in American History. A consistent reason is that the states have always been dependent upon themselves and relying on their own kind to create a sense of power. The institution of slavery gave white men a sense of power in which was stripped away from them by the government. They no longer could control and have an opinion in state nor federal government decisions. Throughout all these eras of history the enslaves Africans were never seen as equal, therefore were never treated as equal. They were always seen as the black labor workers. The focus point of this paper will be the institution of slavery. After the civil war and reconstruction, America changed drastically in defining slavery and what would become of the institution.
The Civil War was a trying time in American History; societies crumbled, lives were lost, and a nation was torn apart in order to be made whole. However, was this conflict inevitable? Were the North and the South destined to battle out their differences? Were the decisions made by President Abraham Lincoln to make war on the CSA justified? While there is much deliberation on this topic, the final answer is yes to each and every question. The North and the South, though they shared many similarities, were irreparably divided over the slavery issue, such that conflict could not be avoided. Lincoln’s deliberations on the situations of the day were the only acceptable response to the issues at hand. Disagreement caused by the slavery issue
Throughout the entirety of United States history, no conflict form the Revolution to Vietnam, was more deadly in terms of American lives lost, then the Civil War. Fought over the very principles of states’ rights, exclusively in the form of slavery, this conflict would cost over 600,000 lives and the devastation of the southern landscape and economy for many years to come.1 Under the capable leadership of President Abraham Lincoln, the Union was to be his utmost priority, and he would do all that was in his power to maintain its integrity. Lincoln relayed this authority to his generals, allowing them virtually
The northern abolitionists may have wanted to end all slavery, but Lincoln did not, and he was in command of the Union army. He considered it his duty to put down a rebellion, and admitted that any government would put down open rebellion regardless of the reasons that began it. He repeatedly pleads with the southern states to work with him on preserving their right to use slavery, and argues that a union of states who are against the idea of a union is untenable. To him, it is a matter of preserving the Union and its collective strength by not allowing valuable territories to separate themselves of their own accord. Especially when, as he puts it, those territories worries “have no real existence”.
The Civil War started in 1861, and though it was more than a century ago, there is still controversy and many questions arising about the subject. What were they really fighting over? Should the South have been able to succeed? What were the South’s true reasons for succeeding? Was the North’s only reason to go to war to free the slaves? Were Slaves truly treated as cruelly as we are to believe they were? Did the Abolitionists have other motives hidden behind tightly shut doors, which were not made public? These are only a few questions people want to know the answers to regarding the American’s War against themselves. Some of these questions are hard to give a definite answer to, and say what is exactly is
The purpose of this paper is to show the events surrounding the end of the American Civil War. The two sides which were at war was the union and the confederacy. Which was basically the United States separated into 2 sections going at war with each other. In this document, I will speak about those people who were involved on the battlefield towards the end of the war.
The battle between armies did not begin until 1861, however the conflict within the Country began at its founding. When Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence which included “all men are created equal; and they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” he unintentionally yielded abolitionists stimulation in contradicting the institution of slavery. Despite the controversy slavery faced at the Constitutional Convention, the inclusion of the fugitive slave law, the extension of the African slave trade and the three-fifths clause were added with compromise, in anticipation of founding a Constitution and securing the Union, however it would
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.
The legacy of the Civil War included, changes in the institution of slavery, changes to the role and powers of the federal government, and economic changes. Before the Civil War the United States was divided on the issue of slavery. Some states permitted, even encouraged, slavery. While others outlawed it completely. This difference was due to a difference in the economic structure of the states. The Northern states that had outlawed slavery didn’t rely on them for finance. The North was dependent on manufacturing, which allowed them the opportunity to hire workers. The South relied on farming, which encouraged slavery. Furthermore, Eli Whitney’s invention of the cotton gin promoted slavery even more. The polar opposite views on slavery eventually caused the Civil War. Secession of eleven Southern states caused the The Civil War. Their secession was due to Abraham Lincoln’s election, even though he had not appeared on their ballots. Why hadn’t he appeared on their ballots? It was because he thought that slavery was immoral and he was on the “other” political party. The one that the South opposed. The Republican party. At the end of the war, Lincoln passed the 13th amendment,
The aftermath of the Civil War shook the nation. A new way of life was beginning for the people of America. A way of life that was beautiful and free to some and absolutely devastating to the rest. The country had changed and nobody did a better job at documenting this change than the authors. The authors used this new world to explore new and unique stories as well as capturing what it was actually like living in the post-Civil War times. This paper will examine post-Civil War Literature and its importance to documenting this period in history.
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.
What challenges did the “new immigrants” face (those arriving between 1877 and 1914) that previous waves of immigrants did not? (Discuss at least 2 challenges.)