The Three Main Causes Of The Civil War

In 1861, a Civil War broke out in the United States when the South declared their independence from the Union. There is a great amount of reasons that people can argue how the Civil War was started. However, what most people don’t understand, is that most of the events leading up to the Civil War were related to slavery. Slavery was the core of the North and South’s conflict, which led to a very vicious feud.

Arguments that slavery was undesirable for the nation had long existed, and the northern states all abolished slavery after 1776. In the interest of maintaining unity, politicians had mostly moderate opposition to slavery, resulting in numerous compromises such as the Missouri Compromise of 1820 and the Compromise of 1850. However, The compromise that was reached (the Kansas-Nebraska Act) outraged too many northerners, which triggered violent uprisings from the North. These uprisings angered the Southern states greatly.

Where the conversation of if a slave made it north would he be considered free. But he lost of course and they said if you are a slave and moved north you are still a slave, basically making every state a possible slave state. Therefore going against the Missouri compromise where for every slave state there is a free state. There were other problems with compromises such as the compromise of 1850 which was unconstitutional but still accepted later. It was first approached and the south told the north to stop trying to abolish slavery and the bill did not make it through. Then it was split into several bills so each congressman could vote on them. Thus making it pass and put into place on the Mexican-war territory. Only fueling the fire in the south and pushing them farther towards a civil war. The final straw was the Kansas Nebraska act leaving them the choice of slavery being allowed or not. This going against the Missouri compromise. Which stopped slavery north of the latitude 36’30. Angering the north and making them feel like their laws mean nothing to the south.

The causes of the Civil War were complex and have been controversial since the country began. Some causes include; states’ rights, economics, and slavery. The most recognizable and popular cause is slavery. The freeing of the slaves was an important moral issue at the time and one of the greatest causes of the civil war. "It was only by carefully avoiding the moral issue involved in slavery that Northerners and Southerners could meet on any common ground." (Goldston, 79). The time came in which our great country would finally address the moral issue of slavery. Although there are many different causes to the American Civil War, the main cause was slavery because other causes are rooted in the issue of slavery.

The Civil War was fought in the United States of America between the northern and southern states starting in 1861 and ending in 1865. The Civil War was the most significant time in the history of America. The Civil War was to be thought as the shaping of the American individual. The northerners and the southerner’s views on this war were different. The northerners viewed it as a revolutionary war and the southerners viewed it as rebellion. The war started out due to the many differences between the northern and southern states. Between these two regions laid economic, social and political differences, with slavery being the main root of the differences. As the war ended it caused many social and economic changes. One huge change was the abolishment of slavery. Race relation and slave confusions were tearing up the country’s political and social architecture. I believe that the Civil War has changed the way we look at this world today because once the Civil War came to an end it abolished slavery.

The South had distinctly separate political views. So much so that South Carolina felt the need to secede from the Constitution, which resulted “from the nature of a compact between sovereign parties” (Doc. E). However, the North had different views on such a decision; they did not want South Carolina to leave the Constitution, and they asserted that “in contemplation of universal law and the Constitution, the Union of these States is perpetual” (Doc. F). Other political conflicts, such as the bitter contest between pro-slavery and anti-slavery due to the Kansas-Nebraska Act passed in 1854 -which organized the Kansas-Nebraska territories on the principle of popular sovereignty- (Doc. J); the speech given by Senator Charles Sumner over the Kansas-Nebraska bill in which he attacked pro-slavery men and insulted South Carolina and one of its senators, the well-liked Andrew Butler -to which Preston Brooks responded to by busting into the Senate chambers and beating Sumner with a cane- (Doc. K); the Dredd Scott Decision, in which Dredd Scott, a slave whose owner had taken him from a slave state to the free North, returned to Missouri and sued for his freedom, which set off even more controversy over slavery (Doc. L); and Abraham Lincoln’s speech when accepting the Republican nomination for US Senator in June 16, 1858, in which he stated that the pro-slavery/anti-slavery conflict

From 1861 to 1865 our nation had suffered a major crisis. One nation divided into two sides due to the different views on slavery and economic conflicts. The North wanted to abolish slavery while the South wanted to keep slavery. The North's economy was growing and getting better due to industrialization while on the other hand, the South’s economy was slowly starting to decrease since they were mostly based on agriculture. But the 3 major events that caused the civil war were slavery, social differences, and economic differences.

Many People don’t realize that there are many things that led up to the Civil War. But what were they? The differences between the Northern states and the Southern states were the main causes that led to the Civil War. They both developed differently from each other. The North developed factories, ways to transport goods, and industry, while the Southerners were mainly farmers and plantation owners.

The most prominent causes of the Civil War were the institution of slavery, the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, Dred Scott v. Stanford, and the election of 1860. The South's reliance on slaves, spurred on by Eli Whitney's cotton gin in 1793, and its cotton's success in international markets divided the nation. Its lands called for mass agricultural development, not the industrial factories of the North. Adding to the divisiveness was the Second Great Awakening's religious split between the pro- and anti- abolitionist churches of the North's and South's churches respectively. This divide over slavery was instrumental in the debate over Western lands, as evidenced by the Kansas-Nebraska Act. Looming threats of secession from the South helped declare

It gave people a strong emotional tie to the war and led southerners to believe they were fighting a war to protect their innate rights. Neither side could find a compromise after the Kansas-Nebraska Act essentially destroyed the delicate balance of slave holding/non slave holding states created by the Missouri Compromise. Northerners were dismayed with the prospect of slavery moving westward, especially since much of that area was neither solely industry or farmland. The south, with its stubbornness and such established traditions, continued to feel threatened. The Civil War was inevitable with such a deep-rooted disagreement in place. Another cause of tension was increasing violence within the abolitionist movement. In 1859 John Brown and his supporters marched to Harper’s Ferry and seized the armory and arsenal, where he then tried to inspire a slave revolt. Brown’s plan failed and he was put to death, but this violence caused led to even greater Southern distrust of the abolitionist

Leading up to Lincoln’s election, the issues in Kansas also strengthened the divide. The state had two separate governments: the legit pro-slavery one and the unofficial antislavery one. These governments caused many problems in congress and led to Sumner’s speech Bleeding Kansas and Brooks’ caning of Sumner in

The Civil War was a devastating time for the United States of America. During this time the United States was divided. The Civil War was a four year long battle. It is known as one of the bloodiest battles ever fought. Consequently it was fought between people of the same country. We were divided between the North and the South. The cause of the Civil War was slavery. The North was against it and wanted slavery abolished. On the other hand the South did not want to part with slavery. Both the North and the South were very divided. Part of the divide was different lifestyles, structures of society, traditions, and political views. The term used to describe the divide between the North and South is sectionalism. This difference in opinions sparked hatred between the North and the South.

The Civil War began when the Southern Slave States seceded from the Northern Free States due to uncompromising polarity and formed the Confederate States of America. This four year war over the power of the national government to forbid slavery in the regions that hadn’t yet become states claimed more lives than any other war in American History. In his book, What They Fought For, 1861-1865, James McPherson examines the feelings and motives of both Union and Confederate soldiers to enlist and fight in the Civil War; most of these soldiers were volunteer soldiers. He proves his thesis that contrary to the popular belief that Civil War soldiers didn’t understand what they were fighting for, McPherson presents evidence that in fact, “a large number of those men in blue and gray were intensely aware of the issues at stake and passionately concerned about them” (4). After the war ended, Ulysses S. Grant also goes on to state, “our armies were composed of men who were able to read, men who knew what they were fighting for” (6). McPherson confirms this through the many personal letters and diaries written by the most literate soldiers in history to that time.

In 1860, the world 's greatest nation was locked in Civil War. The war divided the country between the North and South. There were many factors that caused this war, but the main ones were the different interpretations of the Constitution by the North and South, the Kansas-Nebraska Act, and the arrival of

Generally, it is thought to be the South’s fault for causing the Civil War. Contrary to popular belief, the Civil War was mainly provoked by the North; through using the federal government to overtake the South, removing slavery which would destroy Southern economy, and creating the moral issue of slavery. The North was the primary reason for the start of a war that ripped our country apart.