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"War is the unfolding of miscalculations." - Barbara Tuchman Lasting from 1861 to 1865, the Civil War is considered the bloodiest war in American history. However, the Civil War had seemingly been a long time coming. There were many events that took place within the fifteen years leading up to the Civil War that foreshadowed the eventual secession of seven “cotton states” from the Union. The end of the Mexican-American War in 1848, the publication of Uncle Tom’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 all helped contribute to southern secession and the start of the Civil War; they each caused conditions that either strengthened the abolitionist cause, strengthened the pro-slavery cause, or strengthened both causes respectively; although the conditions made many Southerners want to leave the United States, the Northerners were adamant on going to war to preserve the Union. After winning the Mexican-American War in 1848, the United States gained the western territories, which included modern-day California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, as well as parts of Wyoming, Colorado, Kansas, and Oklahoma. However, controversial topics, that helped cause the Civil War, arouse with the addition of these new territories. Primarily, the people of the United States wanted to know whether the new territories would be admitted as free states or slave states. In order to avoid fighting between the slave states of the South and the free states of the North, Henry Clay (Whig) and Stephen Douglas (Democrat) drafted the Compromise of 1850. Although the compromise was created to stop conflict ... ... middle of paper ... ...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).
Over the course of decades, the issue of slavery, a prominent topic that attributed to countless problems and controversies, served as a significant role in the United States by establishing a division of the anti-slavery North and pro-slavery South. Due to these distinct viewpoints and years of simmering tensions between the northern and southern sectors of the United States, the two apprehensive regions collided and conducted the Civil War, the deadliest conflict in American history. The outbreak of the American Civil War comprised of a series of events, but the four most significant events that triggered the rise of the war were the death of Elijah Lovejoy, the supreme court decision of Dred vs. Scott, the Harper’s Ferry takeover, and the
The Civil War was the bloodiest war in American History. Even though the war was a
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.
Near the end of the Antebellum Era, tensions and sectionalism increased as the states argued over what was constitutional. The South had later seceded from the United States and had become the Confederacy of America while the North had remained as the Union. The South had fully supported states’ rights while the north had strongly disapproved it. However, westward expansion, southern anger with the abolitionists, and the secession of the South that had destroyed the feeling of unity in the country because of the disagreement over slavery had been the main factors to the cause of the Civil War. Therefore, since slavery was the primary reason for the discontent in the country, it had been the primary cause of the Civil War.
President Polk desired expansion, which lead to many conflicts. Polk had added Oregon, California, New Mexico, and Texas. To the union, the most problematic was Texas, for it had instigated war with Mexico. Annexing Texas was a difficult task for many reason. One, it took a while before the Senate finally agreed to annex Texas. This caused a little disorder within Mexico, since they did not accept Texas’ independence from Mexico and were afraid that the Americans in New Mexico and California will also rebel (claim independence).
During the height of westward expansion and the ideas of ‘manifest destiny”, the United States began to gain a substantial amount of territory which did help increase the power of the young republic but also spark sectional tensions over slavery. These tensions would continue to be prevalent throughout the 1850’s as national politics kept debating the issue of the expansion of slavery. Acts such as the Kansas-Nebraska Act and the Dred Scott Decision helped to increase sectional tensions even more. Eventually this all culminated in the Election of 1860 with a Republican victory, and a couple months later; states had began to secede due to conflicting societal differences. The argument can be made that the causation of the American Civil War
These differing beliefs on slavery and constitutional rights are the undeniable cause of the war. “In 1820, Congress passed the Missouri Compromise, which created Missouri as a slave state, and Maine as a free state”. (Divine 344-345) This compromise was done in order to preserve the balance of power between North and South. However, in “1854, the Missouri Compromise was repealed by the Kansas-Nebraska Act”. (Divine 345) This was the later compromise which stipulated that the issue of slavery would be decided by the settlers of each territory, an idea known as popular sovereignty. The Act was passed in spite of the best efforts of Abraham Lincoln, who railed against it in his “Peoria Speech.” After the passage of the bill, violence increased between pro- and anti-slavery settlers in Kansas, in an event that signaled the battles of the Civil War. “According to the 1857 Supreme Court ruling in Dred Scott v. Sanford, Congress did not have the authority to prohibit slavery in the territories”, (Divine 345) That was the reason why Missouri Compromise was rendered unconstitutional. This ruling pleased Southern slaveholders, and angered their Northern
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.
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.
In addition, during Polk’s term he expanded the United States’ border to the west coast. His desire to enlarge the country stemmed from his belief in “manifest destiny” which was the idea that the United States was destined to stretch to the Pacific Ocean. His presidency; his decisions for the country were influenced by manifest destiny. In the article titled “Mexican-American War,” James K. Polk wanted to acquire California and the southwestern land of the United States. Polk’s movement of troops into the conflicted zone between the Rio Grande and Nueces River initiated a conflict with Mexico. The conflict developed into a war, with hefty Mexican losses, but finally ended with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo with the U.S. as the victor. In the treaty, Mexico decided to sell all the land north of the Rio G...
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.
When discussing the causes of the Civil War, it’s typical for researchers and students to suggest that slavery was at the forefront, or perhaps even the single primary cause. While slavery is an undeniable factor that divided the North and South, it is also true that series of events that happened long before the outbreak of violence were extraordinarily important in setting the scene for future conflict. The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, John Brown’s raid on Harper’s Ferry in 1859, and the election of President Abraham Lincoln in 1860 are three examples of events that, while related to the larger issue of slavery, contributed to the climate that allowed a devastating Civil War to develop.
...ers mobilized in 1860 behind moderate Abraham Lincoln because he was most likely to carry the doubtful western states. In 1857, the Supreme Court's Dred Scott decision ended the Congressional compromise for Popular Sovereignty in Kansas. According to the court, slavery in the territories was a property right of any settler, regardless of the majority there. Chief Justice Taney's decision said that slaves were, "...so far inferior that they had no rights which the white man was bound to respect." The decision overturned the Missouri Compromise, which banned slavery in territory north of the 36°30' parallel.
The American civil war was fought in the united states from 1861 to 1865. War broke out in April 1861, when confederates attacked Fort Sumpter in South Carolina. The nationalists of the union remained loyal to the U.S constitution, and the secessionists of the confederate states fought for rights to expand slavery. Virginia was a confederate state, where 110 battles were fought, and 32,512 Virginians died.
The Civil War (April 12, 1861- May 9, 1865) was a severe conflict that took the