The article begins by describing what entailed the American Civil War. According to the author, it was a military conflict fought between 1861 and 1865 pitting the United States of America also known as the Union and the 11 Southern States that had seceded to form the Confederacy. The article emphasizes that the war was a culmination of deep-rooted differences between the North and the South touching on virtually every social, economic, and political aspects. The South largely depended on an agricultural-based economy with major crops such as sugarcane, tobacco, and cotton which they exported to the North or Europe. Therefore, to keep the economy running the institution of slavery took center stage in the region with a population of almost 4 million enslaved blacks. However, the North became critical with the issue leading to the opposition of the expansion of slavery into the new territories. The slavery matter gained widespread attention in the political discourse of the country in the mid-1850s. The Congress was opposed to the idea of expanding slavery with politicians such as Abraham Lincoln gaining political mileage for their opposition to the issue.
In further providing an outlook of the genesis of the war, the article remains keen to describe the secession path undertaken by the South. A total of seven states openly showed intent to secede including Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Texas. The states formed the Confederate States of America and appointed Jefferson Davis as their inaugural president. However, Lincoln maintained that it was illegal for the states to engage in secession. He further held that he would ensure that the South was part of the larger federal government by any means possible. In 1861, the Southerners opened fire to oppose the federal installation of Fort Sumter. Lincoln reacted by calling Union troops to mitigate the rebellion. However, this called for three more states to join the Confederacy including North Carolina, Arkansas, and Virginia. The article continues by further painting a picture of the resources owned by both the North and South. It is, however, important to note that the two sides were not prepared for the war in 1861. The North had leverage going into the conflict given that it had a large population of about 22 million people. On the contrary, the South had a paltry 9 million people out of which 4 million were slaves.
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Additionally, the 4 million slaves had a questionable loyalty to the rest of the Southerners. Therefore, the south engaged in several strategies to draft people to join the army and fight in the war. They relied on volunteers and a forced military draft to recruit army members. In a bid to paint the picture of why the South failed, the author explains that the South had accumulated 900,000 white men compared to the 2 million men on the side of the Union. 1 Furthermore, the North had material advantages in various areas including finances, food supply, factories, transport, and mineral resources amongst others, all which proved decisive in the outcome of the war. Some of the factors that implicated on the South’s ability to fight include the shortage in necessary elements such as food, medicine, clothing, and artillery. Although it relied heavily on its black labor force, their unpredictability played a significant role in their failure. The article also illustrates that despite its superiority, the North did not receive a straightforward victory as would have been expected. It also proved difficult for the military force to incorporate the inexperienced volunteers and to find the right leadership to steer the troops to war. Although the South had few men, it had some of the most experienced soldiers that gave the North a run for its money.
One major advantage that the South had was the fact that it fought the war on familiar terrain. Also, the war was in such a way that the North attacked while the South remained on a defensive front. Therefore, the North focused on paralyzing the South's capacity to fight thereby compelling them to surrender. Therefore, the North primarily focused on the Richmond, the capital of the Confederacy. It was a widely held belief amongst the Northerners that targeting the attacks on Richmond would eventually demoralize the southerners hence bringing the war to a close. The Northern leadership however differed significantly on the best course of action to take. The military advisers convinced Lincoln to implement an “Anaconda Plan” where the Confederacy would be surrounded by a naval blockade hence preventing it from the European supplies. Part of the strategy also involved the invasion of Mississippi and the division of Confederacy into two. With all odds against it, the South was eventually defeated leading to the reclamation of the states that had seceded back into the Union.
The author also documents that the war had an attachment with the foreign relations. The Southerners wanted to make their bid for independence legitimate and credible by seeking recognition and support from powers such as France and Great Britain. However, the both Britain and France declared their neutrality in the American Civil War, a significant blow on the side of the Confederates. The Union was therefore preserved following the defeat of the South leading to an end to slavery following the declaration of the emancipation. The nation was therefore set in the path of reconstruction and the incorporation of the slaves into the society.
Bibliography
“ Civil War, American.” 2017. Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, 1p. 1. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=funk&AN=CI149300&site=eds-live.
1 “Civil War, American.” 2017. Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, 1p. 1.
