Civil War in the United States

Introduction 

The question as to what led to the emergence of the U.S. Civil War has been subjected to many debates since the end of that horrifying event in 1865. As it is the case with many wars, no single cause can be associated with it. Rather, the Civil War resulted from numerous unending disagreements and tensions concerning politics and life in America. For almost a century, politicians and individuals of the Southern and Northern states conflicted over things that led the war to emerge. They clashed over issues, such as cultural values, economic interests, the federal government’s power in regulating states, and the slavery, which dominated the American society. Whereas it was possible to address some of the existing differences in a peaceful manner by deploying diplomacy, slavery did not serve as among them. The American lifestyle followed age-old traditions whereby the whites dominated the society while the agrarian economy relied on cheap slave trade, thereby leading the states based in the South to consider slavery as vital for survival (Detweiler, 2014) . Thus, the paper revolves around the diverse events that propelled the United States toward the Civil War.

Slavery in Society and Economy 

When the 1776 Declaration of Independence was in place, slavery was considered legal in the 13 American colonies that the British governed. It kept playing a significant role in their societies as well as economies. Before the American Revolution, the slavery institution in American was solidly established while it targeted individuals of African ancestry. This kind of atmosphere led to the emergence of white supremacy. Even with the ratification of the U.S. constitution in 1789, only a limited number of African Americans were permitted to own property and vote. The slaves did not have such rights. Nevertheless, a movement started growing with the need for abolishing slavery. It led a considerable number of states in the North to introduce abolitionist laws and end slavery. Since the North mostly relied on industry as opposed to agriculture, it realized a constant European immigrants’ inflow. Since most of the refugees were impoverished because of the potato famine that occurred between the 1840s and 1850s, most of the new immigrants would work as factory employees (Lothrop, 2015) . They would work at low wages, thereby leading the North to support the idea of ending slavery.

Concerning the states in the South, the longer seasons of growing as well as the fertile soils led to the emergence of an economy that relied on agriculture. Numerous plantations that the whites owned relied on slave labor to handle numerous duties. With the invention of the cotton gin by Eli Whitney in 1793, cotton business because significantly profitable. The machine had the capacity of minimizing the time taken for removing the seeds from cotton. It also led to a rise in plantations’ number, which wanted to shift to cotton and abandon other crops, thereby leading to a rise in the demand for slaves (Storie, 2012) . The economy of the South emerged as a one-crop economy. It became increasingly reliant on cotton, and thus on slavery. Whereas the diverse economic and social classes supported it, not all whites based in the South owned slaves. In 1850, the South’s population was approximately 6 million whereas just around 350,000 owned slaves. This comprised of most of the wealthiest families, some of whom had tremendously large plantations (Cole, 2018) . When the Civil War commenced, millions of slaves together with their descendants were coerced to work as well as live in the plantations based in the South.

By contrast, industry dominated the North while no significant emphasis was accorded to agriculture. Most of the industries in the North purchased raw cotton from the South and converted it to finished products. The economic disparity also resulted to conflicting differences in political and societal viewpoints. For the North, the rising number of immigrants, most of whom came from nations that had ended slavery, led to emergence of a society in which individuals of distinct classes and cultures lived and worked together. When it comes to the South, nonetheless, it continued following the white supremacy social order in political and private life (Detweiler, 2014) . For both the South and the North, the existing differences affected the views of persons concerning the federal government’s power in regulating the cultures and economies of states.

Federal versus States’ Rights 

Since the American Revolution’s time, two key sides emerged regarding the government’s role. Certain individuals required states to have greater rights whereas others supported the need for the federal government to exercise more control. The initial organized government within the U.S. when the Revolution ended followed the Articles of Confederation. The 13 states established a loose confederation while the federal government was considerable weak. Nonetheless, as problems emerged, the weaknesses prevalent in the Articles led the leaders to hold a meeting at the Constitutional Convention to establish the U.S. Constitution in secret. The strong supporters of the rights of the states, such as Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson were absent in the meeting (Cole, 2018) . Most argued that the newly established constitution failed to recognize the states’ rights for acting independently. They felt that states needed to have rights of deciding whether they would support certain actions of the federal government. This issue resulted to the emergence of the nullification idea. Here, the states wanted to have rights of ruling the acts of the federal government as unconstitutional although the government failed to offer them that right. Nevertheless, proponents, especially John C. Calhoun, supported the nullification idea vehemently (Detweiler, 2014) . In case the nullification did not work while moat states in the South felt that their rights were not respected any more, they started thinking of secession.

Non-Slave and Slave States 

When America started expanding, beginning with the lands acquired from the Louisiana Purchase and the Mexican War that followed, questions emerged as to whether the newly established states would be free or slave. The initial attempts aimed at making sure that the slave and free slates numbers received equal admission to the Union, although the initiative presented challenges. The 1820 Missouri Compromise led to the establishment of a rule that hindered slavery in states acquired through the Louisiana Purchase in the North with a latitude of 36 degrees and 30 minutes, while Missouri serves as the only exception. When the Mexican War was taking place, debates emerged on the status of new territories, which the U.S. anticipated acquiring after becoming successful. David Wilmot suggested the 1846 Wilmot Proviso that targeted hindering slavery in the new regions (Storie, 2012) . This led to emergence of considerable debate.

Henry Clay and others individuals developed the Compromise of 1850, which targeted dealing with balancing free states and slave states. At targeted safeguarding the interests of both the North and the South. After admission of California as a free state, the Fugitive Slave Act, which served as among the provisions held the people who harbored fugitive slaves irrespective of being based in non-slave territories. The 1854 Kansas-Nebraska Act served as an additional issue that led the tensions to increase further. It established two additional territories, which would permit states to utilize popular sovereignty in order to assess whether they would be considered as slave or free. The major issue took place in Kansas where “Border Ruffians,” the Missourians who supported slavery commenced entering the state with the goal of coercing it to support slavery. Problems emerged whereby a violent conflict emerged at Lawrence, Kansas, leading it to be referred to as “Bleeding Kansas (Lothrop, 2015) .” The battle emerged at the Senate’s floor when Preston brooks, Senator of South Carolina beat Charles Sumner, a proponent of anti-slavery, over the head.

The Abolitionist Movement 

The people from the North were becoming increasingly divided against slavery. Sympathies started growing in the case of abolitionist as well as against slaveholders and slavery. Most individuals situated in the North started perceiving slavery as morally wrong and socially unjust (Lothrop, 2015) . The abolitionists presented diverse viewpoints. For example, individuals such as Frederick Douglass and William Lloyd garrison supported instant freedom from slavery. A group of individuals that comprised of Arthur Tappan supported the need for liberating slaves at a slow pace (Detweiler, 2014) . Still, others, such as Abraham Lincoln, wished that slavery would stop growing.

Several events assisted in fuelling the abolition cause during the 1850s. For instance, the work “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” by Harriet Beecher Stowe played a critical role in allowing individuals to gain significant understanding about slavery realities. The Dred Scott Case introduced the problem of rights, citizenship, and freedom of slaves to the Supreme Court. In addition, several abolitionists adopted a less peaceful means of dealing with the slavery issue. For instance, John Brown together with his family supported the anti-slavery option in the case of the “Bleeding Kansas.” They took part in the Pottawatomie Massacre where they murdered five setters who supported the slavery issue. However, the popular fight by Brown was when he supported the invasion of the Harper’s Ferry during 1859 (Detweiler, 2014) . This crime served as his last since it led him to be hanged.

Abraham Lincoln’s Election 

The politics that prevailed at the time were unstable, just as it was the case with anti-slavery movements. The different issues led the prevailing political parties at the time to be divided in line with shaping the two-party system, which featured Democrats and Whigs. The division that prevailed in the case of the Democratic Party comprised of factions in the South and the North. In addition, the conflicts that prevailed in Kansas as well as the Comprise of 1850 led the Whig Party to become the Republican Party. For the North, the newly established party was regarded as anti-slavery while at the same time driven by the urge for advancing the American economy. It supported industry while at the same time supporting homesteading in line with improving opportunities for education (Lothrop, 2015) . Concerning the South, it regarded republicans as more than divisive. The 1860 presidential election would serve as the time that the Union would make a decision. Abraham Lincoln supported the Republican Party whereas Stephen Douglass, a Democrat from the North was considered as the major rival. The Democrats of the South allowed John C. Breckenridge to take part in the election. John C. Bell embarked on representing the Constitutional Union Party, which was comprised of conservative Whigs (Cole, 2018) . These were driven by the urge for avoiding a secession.

The divisions that prevailed in the country became clear during the day of elections. Lincoln emerged as the winner in the North whereas Breckenridge the South. Bell won in the Border States. Douglass emerged as a winner just in Missouri as well as a segment of New Jersey. This was sufficient for Lincoln to acquire popular vote together with 180 electoral votes. Whereas things were almost to become catastrophic with the election of Lincoln, South Carolina availed the “Declaration of the Causes of Secession” in 1860 (Cole, 2018) . They argued that Lincoln did not support slavery while he supported the interests of the North.

The administration of President Buchanan did not apply sufficient efforts of ending the tension, which was later referred to as “Secession Winter.” Between the day of elections and the inauguration of Lincoln in March, seven states including Mississippi, South Carolina, Alabama, Florida, Texas, Louisiana, and Georgia withdrew from the Union. At the time, the South acquired control of installations by the federal government, such as forts in the area that would offer them a basis for war. The major traumatizing event took place when a quarter of the army in the country surrendered when David E. Twigg, who served as the general, commanded them (Detweiler, 2014) . The exchange did not lead to any shot being fired, although they were prepared for the bloodiest war in the history of America.

Conclusion 

In conclusion, the Civil War in America is among the most notable events in the history of the country. Numerous forces led to the emergence of the Civil War, including slavery in society and economy, differences in state and federal rights, issue of slate states and free states, the Abolitionist movement, and Abraham Lincoln’s election. Whereas other forces contributed to the Civil War, these serve as the most notable while they also had the greatest impact. As such, they play a critical role in fostering increased understanding concerning the issues that propelled the war.

References

Cole, T. (2018). Fact or fiction? Researching the causes of the American Civil War. New York: PowerKids Press.

Detweiler, D. M. (2014). The Civil War: The story of the war with map. Mechanicsburg: Stackpole Books.

Lothrop, J. (2015). The Causes of the American Civil War volume 1. Charleston: BiblioBazaar.

Storie, M. (2012). Everything you need to know about political causes of the American Civil War. Ontario: BrainMass Incorporated.