Three Main Causes Of The Civil War

719 Words2 Pages

Three Main Causes of the Civil War By April 1861 America was at a breaking point. Tensions had been rising for years and things had finally boiled over. Americans were at war with each other. What had caused this once united nation to become so bitterly divided? There had been many contributors leading up to the outbreak of the Civil War. Things like the Fugitive Slave Act had enraged Northerners and caused a deeper divide between states. The book Uncle Tom’s Cabin had fired up both the Fire-Eaters and the Abolitionists alike. Though many events lead to the outbreak of the Civil War, three stand out in particular. These events were the catalyst that lead to the explosion of the Civil War. The Kansas-Nebraska Act, the California Gold …show more content…

This discovery would change the course of history. Over the next few years the population of California skyrocketed. People with dreams of striking it rich all flocked to the west. This drastic increase in population brought to light the question of whether California was going to enter the Union as a free state, or a slave state. This caused tensions between the existing free states and slaves states who were both grappling for the upper hand. Although the actual California Gold Rush didn’t directly contribute to the outbreak of the Civil War, the indirect consequences will be astronomical. The tensions over whether California would enter as a free state or slave state lead to the Compromise of 1850. The Compromise of 1850 states that California will enter the Union as a free state, Utah and New Mexico will decide if they want to enter as a free or slave state themselves, and the Fugitive Slave Act will be put into place. The Fugitive Slave Act caused deep divisions between states, and was a critical contributor to the outbreak of the civil war, but without the California Gold Rush it would have never happened. The Compromise of 1850 also introduced the idea of Popular Sovereignty, which will become an enormous problem …show more content…

By 1850 many people wanted to move to the area we now know as Nebraska. Southern representatives in congress didn’t want to admit Nebraska into the Union because it would become a free state under the Missouri Compromise. Stephen Douglas pushed for the Kansas-Nebraska Act, that states each territory will decide by popular sovereignty whether it wants to be a free or slave state, because he wanted to build a transcontinental railroad. The possibility of Kansas being a slave state violated the Missouri Compromise, and the compromise would be repealed. The bill was passed and there was outrage from the Northerners. Pro-slavery and anti-slavery supporters flocked to Kansas to vote. People from Missouri known as the “Border Ruffians” went to Kansas to vote threatening violence against those who opposed slavery. In the territorial election for pro-slavery candidates only 50% of the vote came from legal residents. Violence was rampant in Kansas during this time. This mini Civil War happening in Kansas was a foreshadowing of what would eventually happen. What was happening in Kansas set the precedent for what would happen later, and that is why the Kansas-Nebraska Act was the straw that broke the camel's back when it comes to the Civil

Show More
Related

  • Bleeding Kansas Pros And Cons

    251 Words  | 1 Pages

    To put it simply (as I recall and it's been years since I've had to read about this subject)a new territory was opened to settle in. It was decided that the settlers of these states would decide whether or not slavery would be permitted. This gave birth to the new Republican Party which opposed slavery. The Act was designed by Stephen A Douglas a Democratic senator from Illinois (the same who would later defeat a young Abraham Lincoln for the senate in 1858) and repealed the Missouri Compromise of 1820. Thousands of settlers both pro and anti slavery rushed into Kansas particularly and bloody, murderous fights broke out among the groups hence the nickname "Bleeding Kansas". It was actually one territory but this Act divided it into two states.

    Read More

  • What Caused The Civil War Dbq

    554 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the 1860’s the United States weren’t united because of the issue of slavery. The civil war was never just about getting the union back together, but about making it count and getting rid of slavery. The south wanted their slaves and would say they are “-the happiest, and in some, the freest people in the world”. (Doc 5) However, the north knew that was not true because of Harriet Beecher Stowe's “Uncle Tom’s Cabin”. In 1854 when the Kansas-Nebraska act was passed it caused some issues. Anti-slavery supporters were not happy because they did not want expansion of slavery, but the pro-slavery supporters weren’t happy because they wanted slavery everywhere for sure. (Doc. 7)The Kansas-Nebraska act caused trouble before it was even passed, Senator Charles Sumner argued against and attacked pro-slavery men causing Preston Brooks to beat Sumner with a cane. The south praised Brooks while the north felt for Sumner. (Doc 8) In 1858 during his acceptance speech Lincoln said his famous line, “A house divided

    Read More

  • Why Did The South Secede In 1860 Research Paper

    1422 Words  | 3 Pages

    The seeds of secession had been sown early in American history; quite literally with the fundamental differences in agriculture and resultant adoption of slavery in the South. From early days, the thirteen states had grown up separately, and each had their own culture and beliefs, which were often incompatible with those held in other states. The geographical and cultural differences between north and south would manifest themselves at regular and alarming intervals throughout the hundred years following the drafting of the constitution. Tension reached a peak during the 1850s, over the right to hold slaves in new territories. The Wilmot Proviso of 1846, roused bitter hostilities, and vehement debate turned to physical violence during the period of 'Bleeding Kansas'. The election of Lincoln, who the South perceived to be an abolitionist, in 1860 was the final straw, and the secession of seven Southern states followed soon after.

    Read More

  • Election of Lincoln and Civil War

    1277 Words  | 3 Pages

    In 1860 Abraham Lincoln was elected as president of the United States of America, the repercussions of which led to civil war. However it was not only Lincoln’s election that led to civil war but also the slavery debate between the northern and southern states and the state of the economy in the United States. Together with the election of Lincoln these caused a split, both politically and ideologically, between the North and South states which manifested into what is now refereed to as the American Civil War.

    Read More

  • The Breakup of the Union

    841 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the years paving the way to the Civil War, both north and south were disagreeable with one another, creating the three “triggering” reasons for the war: the fanaticism on the slavery issue, the Kansas-Nebraska Act, and the separation of the Democratic Party. North being against the bondage of individuals and the South being for it, there was no real way to evade the clash. For the south slavery was a form of obtaining a living, without subjugation the economy might drop majorly if not disappear. In the North there were significant ethical issues with the issue of subjugation. Amazing measures to keep and dispose of subjugation were taken and there was never a genuine adjusted center for bargain. Despite the fact that there were a lot of seemingly insignificant issues, the fundamental thing that divided these two states was bondage and the flexibilities for it or against. With these significant extremes, for example, John Brown and Uncle Tom's Cabin, the south felt disdain towards the danger the Northerners were holding against their alleged flexibilities. The more hatred the South advanced, the more combative they were to anything the Northerners did. Northerners were irritated and it parted Democrats over the issue of bondage and made another Republican gathering, which included: Whigs, Free Soilers, Know Nothings and previous Democrats and brought about a split of segments and abbreviated the street to common war. Southerners loathed the insubordination of the north and started to address how they could stay with the Union.

    Read More

  • Sectionalism In The United States:

    1378 Words  | 3 Pages

    There were many problems, events, and situations that led to the Civil War. One of the major reasons for the outbreak of the war was sectionalism. Once the United States was split, many of the country's fundamental issues were disputed, with slavery being at the top of the list. Some of the other major issues in dispute were representation, tariffs, and states' rights. Sectionalism is defined as, the sharp socio-economic differences that divided the Northern and the Southern states in the U.S.

    Read More

  • The End Of The Antebellum Era

    838 Words  | 2 Pages

    As the country continued to expand westward, the United States developed the belief of Manifest Destiny, where expansion across the continent was justified and inevitable. Congressman Robert Toombs of Georgia had given his speech on the House floor in December 13, 1849, addressing that the westward expansion should allow slavery on the new territories that were claimed through war and purchased land. In his speech, Toombs had also acknowledged that the North was trying to prevent the spread of slavery and that he would work hard to preserve slavery, even if there will be disunion (Doc B). A year had later passed, where the Compromise of 1850 had been created, reasserting the Missouri Compromise line and that California had been admitted as a free state. In the map of Document C, it shows unorganized territory that would later become states when the population was enough; however, the unorganized territory was above the Missouri Compromise line in 1850, possibly allowing slavery to expand towards the north (Doc...

    Read More

  • The Civil War Was Inevitable

    1367 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Civil War began on April 12, 1861 at Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor when the Confederate army attacked Union soldier and ended on May 9, 1865 with a Union Victory. There are many events, laws, and people that provoked the Civil War. The two most important causes are slavery and the expansion of the United States causing an unbalance of free and slave states. This essay examines major events that initiated the war starting from the Compromise of 1820 to the election of 1860 and proves how the Civil War was inevitable.

    Read More

  • Causes of The American Civil War

    2128 Words  | 5 Pages

    ...om’s Cabin in 1852, the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, the Dred Scott Decision of 1857, John Brown’s raid on Harper’s Ferry in 1859, and the outcome of the Presidential Election of 1860—created conditions where Southerners felt the need to secede from the United States (they felt that their “way of life” was being threatened), as well as created conditions where the Northerners decided to go to war against the Southern Confederacy in order to maintain the Union. It is not surprising, however, that the Civil War occurred; since the Industrial Revolution, the Industrial North had always been different than the Agricultural South. If each region paid more attention to resolving the issues that separated them, instead of trying to prove themselves right, they could have stopped the bloodiest battle in American history (even though this is using hindsight knowledge).

    Read More

  • Westward expansion

    763 Words  | 2 Pages

    During the period between 1815 and 1861 the political issues that occurred within the states caused separation and Unity at the same time. With the mass movement of people out west into Texas and California many of the disputes occurred because of slavery. The southern states wanted the new states to be slave states, while the northern states believed they should be free states. This argument continued to rage until 1850, when Henry Clay formed the Compromise of 1850. The compromise essentially decided that the disputed land of New Mexico was not part of Texas, and that California was not to be split into a slave and free state, it was to remain as just a free state. With this new compromise, and the Missouri Compromise that split the slave and free states at the 35th Parallel, the nation was split down the middle, creating two distinct sides of the country. This set the stage for the two sides of the Civil war. However the expansion west also created some unity between the states. For the most part, both the northern and southern states wanted to expand the United States boundaries to the Pacific Ocean. This led both sides to support the Mexican war and to accept the annexation of Texas. Westward expansion caused both ...

    Read More

  • Differences Between the North and South that Led to the Civil War

    1460 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Southern and Northern states varied on many issues, which eventually led them to the Civil War. There were deep economic, social, and political differences between the North and the South. These differences stemmed from the interpretation of the United States Constitution on both sides. In the end, all of these disagreements about the rights of states led to the Civil War. There were reasons other than slavery for the South?s secession. The manifestations of division in America were many: utopian communities, conflicts over public space, backlash against immigrants, urban riots, black protest, and Indian resistance (Norton 234). America was a divided land in need reform with the South in the most need. The South relied heavily on agriculture, as opposed to the North, which was highly populated and an industrialized society. The South grew cotton, which was its main cash crop and many Southerners knew that heavy reliance on slave labor would hurt the South eventually, but their warnings were not heeded. The South was based on a totalitarian system.

    Read More

  • Economic Causes To The Civil War

    991 Words  | 2 Pages

    By the year of 1860, the North and the South was developed into extremely different sections. There was opposing social, economic, and political points of view, starting back into colonial periods, and it slowly drove the two regions farther in separate directions. The two sections tried to force its point of view on the nation as a whole. Even though negotiations had kept the Union together for many years, in 1860 the condition was unstable. The presidential election of Abraham Lincoln was observed by the South as a risk to slavery and many believe it initiated the war.

    Read More

  • Summary And Slavery: The Causes Of The Missouri Compromise

    672 Words  | 2 Pages

    Tempers raged and arguments started because of the Missouri Compromise. The simple act caused many fatal events because of what was changed within the United States. It may not seem like a big thing now, but before slavery had been abolished, the topic of slavery was an idea that could set off fights. The Missouri Compromise all started in late in 1819 when the Missouri Territory applied to the Union to become a slave state. The problem Congress had with accepting Missouri as a slave state was the new uneven count of free states and slave states. With proslavery states and antislavery states already getting into arguments, having a dominant number of either slave or free states would just ignite the flame even more. Many representatives from the north, such as James Tallmadge of New York, had already tried to pass another amendment that would abolish slavery everywhere. Along with other tries to eliminate slavery, his effort was soon shot down. The fact that people couldn’t agree on whether or not slavery should be legalized made trying to compose and pass a law nearly impossible.

    Read More

  • Abraham Lincoln and the Kansas-Nebraska Act

    1503 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Kansas-Nebraska Act was one of the first events that demonstrated Lincoln’s disapproval yet tolerance for slavery. The Kansas-Nebraska Act, proposed by Stephen A. Douglas and signed by Franklin Pierce, divided the region into two territories. The territory north of the 40th parallel was the Kansas Territory and the south of the 40th parallel was the Nebraska Territory, the controv...

    Read More

  • The Secession Crisis

    903 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the years leading up to the Civil War, there was great conflict throughout the United States. The North and South had come to a crossroads at which there was no turning back. The Secession Crisis is what ultimately led to the Civil War. The North and the South disagreed on slavery and what states would be free states. The South despised Lincoln's election and rose up in revolt by forming the Confederate States of America.

    Read More

More about Three Main Causes Of The Civil War

Open Document