Omer Bhatti U.S History I Professor Ojserkis U.S History I: Final Paper In early April 1861, the attack on Fort Sumter marked the beginning of the American Civil War. However, the belligerence of both sides of the war began long before the first shot. There is a great deal of possible causes of the Civil War, and in much disagreement with popular belief the war was not solely fought about the existence of slavery. Unfortunately, there is no simple reason why the war began because there were many sectional differences between the states of the North and of the South. In many ways the Civil War can be described as a war between two different countries instead of a war between two sections of a country. Slavery was perhaps the most noticeable …show more content…
Even though, the causes of the Civil War were various these articles each introduced a cause that they believed contributed greatly to catalyzing the Civil War. The most obvious difference in lifestyles between these two countries was that the South was a slave proponent and the North was a non-slave proponent. In his article, The Way We Weren’t, David Von Drehle, he states the importance of slavery in context of the Civil War, “The once obvious truth of the Civil War does not imply that every soldier had slavery on his mind as he marched and fought. Many Southerners fought and died in gray never having owned a slave and never intending to own one. Thousands died in blue with no intention to set one free. But it was slavery that had broken one nation in two and fated its people to fight over whether it would be put back together again.” (Von Dehle, 1). This statement makes clear that slavery was a major factor in instigating the Civil War. The article also mentioned that slavery’s influence on the belligerence of both regions is also distinct with the violence in Kansas, which was later properly labeled “Bleeding Kansas.” This battle displayed the fight over the acceptance of slavery since, it involved Missouri residents, called Border Ruffians,” to journey to Kansas to forcibly persuade the people of Kansas to become a slave state. This highlighted the dissension over slavery since it was so important to the
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.
Industry, slavery, and territorial disputes were just 3 of the multiple different causes of the Civil War. After the election of Abraham Lincoln, the people of the U.S. began to realize that the country is a whole and not two different territories. Understanding the causes of the Civil War are important to understand because the entire idea of unifying the North and South was to grant equal rights for all U.S. citizens regardless of their skin color or ethnicity. It is important to be able to look back on the past so we can change our future for a greater
Soldiers of the American Civil War were overwhelmed by a time where weaponry and technological developments were thriving. This brutal war changed the soldiers, both mentally and physically, and continued to have an impact throughout their entire lives. There were not only many deaths during the war, but also prior to the war as many soldiers took their own life. They would experience disturbing thoughts and events in their mind that could not be explained until they became known as mental illnesses. The exploration of psychological disorders following the Civil War improved medical diagnostic tools and the way patients were treated which transformed the treatment of mental illness by creating new ways of discovering illnesses, treating patients, and developing the foundation for the future of psychology throughout America.
A Civil War is a battle between the same citizens in a country. The American Civil War was fought from 1861 to 1865 to determine the independence for the Confederacy or the survival of the Union. By the time Abraham Lincoln was elected president in 1861, in the mist of 34 states, the constant disagreement caused seven Southern slave states to their independence from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America. The Confederacy, generally known as the South, grew to include eleven states. The states that remained devoted to the US were known as the Union or the North. The number one question that is never completely understood about the Civil War is what caused the war. There were multiple events that led to the groundbreaking, bloody, and political war.
Abraham Lincoln once stated “America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.” Abraham Lincoln is a hero for the citizens of America because his determination and courage to ending slavery even if it meant war caused peace in this nation. Slavery was the vital cause of the American Civil War. The north and the south both had their differences on how to run the country. People in the North believed in unity and that slavery should not exist because “all men are created equally.” On the other hand, the South believed in continuing slavery. People tried to talk it out and come to a middle ground after both sides compromising, however that didn’t work and caused war. Ideological differences were a vital role to making the American Civil War an inevitable event.
The Civil War was caused by many several pressures, principles, and prejudices, fueled by sectional differences, and was finally set into motion by a most unlikely set of political events. From economic differences to political differences all the way up to cultural differences, the North and the South opposed each other. These tensions were further increased after the western expansion of the United States. By the early 1850’s a civil war was known to be likely coming soon.
The American Civil War is also referred to as the war between the Northern and Southern States or the Rebellion War that began in 1861. Slavery was regarded as the main cause leading to the start of the war, as a high level of discrimination against the African Americans existed upon their arrival in the United States. The African Americans were either sold and traded by the elders in their villages or plucked from their native countries for a sometimes deadly transatlantic journey to serve wealthy southern families. They were not viewed as peers but as laborers and farmers. Americans who were rich and owned large plantations took the African Americans as their slaves. They suffered as if they were not worthy of compensation including working without pay and the standard consequence was lynching. During the period, they fought for their freedom, which was not given to them until the Civil War was fought. Consequently, they aligned themselves with the white men who were also soldiers in fighting for their freedom.
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.
Another major cause of the Civil War was representation in the government. The North and South both wanted the power to pass laws that would benefit their section. The more states that became "free" or "slave" meant more votes, both in the House, Senate, and Electoral College for that section. The issue of
The Civil War happened due to the many differences between the North and the South. For example economic, social, cultural and political differences. These all helped lead America to a Civil War. But to an extent, the most important cause was the fact there were many disagreements with states' rights versus federal rights.
To what extent was the Civil War fought over African American freedom ? What were political issues that dominated U.S. politics in the 1850’s ? What factors led to the split of political parties leading up to the war ? What major events heightened sectional conflicts ? What political wartime strategies did both sides use to win the war ? These are some points and questions that will be discussed in this paper. These questions will be answered to find out why the civil war was fought
Have you heard many interesting facts about the civil war? Where were the dead buried? What happened to the prisoners of the civil war? Where was the civil war fought? How and why did it start? The war began when confederates sprung an attack on the union soldiers at Fort Sumter, on April 12, 1861.
In 1861, a horrific war began. Nobody had any idea that this war would become the deadliest war in American history. It wasn’t a regular war, it was a civil war opposing the Union in the North and the Confederate States in the South.. The Civil War cost many people’s lives on the battlefield and beyond. In addition it cost an extreme amount of money for the nation which possibly could have been avoided if the war had turned to happen a little differently.
The American Civil War created the nation of the United States as we know it today. The bloodiest war in the history of the nation, the victory was a combination of many factors and many battles that finally resulted in a Union victory. But why would a nation engage in combat so fiercely that more Americans were lost in the one war than in the American Revolution, WW1, WW2 and the Vietnam War combined?
The American Civil War, was a civil war fought from 1861 to 1865 to determine the survival of the Union or independence for the Confederacy. Among the 34 states in January 1861, seven Southern slave states individually declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America. The Confederacy, simply called the South, grew to include eleven states. Although they claimed thirteen states and additional western territories, the Confederacy was never recognized by any foreign country. The states that remained loyal and did not declare secession were known as the Union or the North. The war had its origin in the fractious issue of slavery, the extension of slavery into the western territories. After four years of combat, which left over 600,000 Union and Confederate soldiers dead and destroyed much of the South’s land, the Confederacy collapsed and slavery was abolished. They soon began the Reconstruction and the processes of restoring national unity and guaranteeing civil rights to the freed slaves.