Causes of the Civil War Essay -- Papers Usa American History Essays

Causes of the Civil warAlthough some historians feel that the Civil War was a result of political blunders and that the issue of slavery did not cause the conflict, they ignore the two main causes. The expansion of slavery, and its entrance into the political scene. The North didnt guard about slavery as long as it stayed in the southeast. South Carolina seceded, because Abraham Lincoln, a Republican, was voted into office. The Republican society threatened the Souths expansion and so southerners felt that they had no other choice. The United States was divided into three groups by the time the Civil War began those who believed in the complete abolition of slavery, those who were against the expansion of slavery, and those who were pro slavery. The Republican party was formed in opposition to southern expansion. Their views were Free Soil, Free Men and Free Labor. The Republicans were anti-South but they were in not abolitionists. They believed that slavery was a flawed est ablishment that made the south ineffective and because the Norths free labor system was superior it must be guarded from southerners.When the Republican candidate, Abraham Lincoln was elected in 1860, the South felt threatened, and because expansion was vital to the survival of slavery they also felt their way of life was being threatened. Because slavery was such an important part of Southern society, the South felt that they could not survive without it. Thats why they were not willing to compromise with the north. To own slaves was a sign of wealth and social prestige and unequal farmers who could not afford slaves had a goal to work for. In the election of 1860 you can see that Lincoln only secured 4% ofthe popular vote in the South, only wi... ...BibliographyCoffey, Thomas M. The Long Thirst. New York WW Norton and Co., 1975Dumenil, Lynn. Modern Temper. New York Hill and Wang, 1995Hintz, Martin. Farewell, John Barleycorn. Minneapolis Lerner Publications, 1996Karl, Barry D., The Uneasy State. Chicago University of Chicago Press, 1983.Kerr, K. Austin, Organized For suppression. London Yale University Press, 1985Lee, Henry, How Dry We Were restriction Revisited. New Jersey, Prentice-Hall, 1963Organized Crime . Comptons Interactive Encyclopedia 1996 SoftKey International Inc. and its licensors. Parrish, Michael E., Anxious Decades. New York WW Norton and Co., 1992.Prohibition. Comptons Interactive Encyclopedia 1996 SoftKey International Inc. and its licensors.Severn, Bill. The End of the Roaring Twenties Prohibition and Repeal. New York Julian Messner, 1969