- Growth of the Abolition Movement
- Election of 1860
The Causes of The Civil War
Differences between the North and the South
The Southerners were usually rural farmers who took pride in serving the country's military, which is why they had superior officers. The Northerners were urban people for the most part, so they had sheer numbers over the South and much more railroad, canals, and technology. But they had weaker officers. But slavery was the main cultural difference. The North also had a huge influx of Irish and German immigrants who fought for the Union in the Civil War in exchange for an immediate citizenship, and there were a number of Free Blacks who made up regiments in the Union Army, and they fought bravely. I believe the North had a stronger central government, and the South had dispersed it's power to the States.
States Versus Federal Rights
There were a variety of issues that led to the Civil War, but they all pretty much centered on this theme. The southern states always maintained the position that a strong federal government was a threat to local norms and traditions. This came from the colonial days and the debates that took place with the debate over the U.S. Constitution. Ultimately, the southern states, being less populated, were concerned that the more highly populated northern states would use their influence to force their will on the south through federal influences. The issue of slavery became one of the key issues, not because the northern population in general wanted to do something about it, but because it was the most divisive issue of the time. The federal government began a series of policy changes that the south did not agree with regarding taxation and trade. The southern states, being threatened by this, began to withdraw from the union on the grounds that they had the right to do so under the Constitution and Declaration of Independence. The slavery issue came to the forefront later, and many in the south were discussing the possibility of freeing the slaves on their own. Basically, the south believed that the states should have more control over their own destiny while northern states believed the federal government should have more power to deal with state level issues.
The Fight Between Slave and Non-Slave State Proponents
As America began to expand, first with the lands gained from the Louisiana Purchase and later with the Mexican War, the question of whether new states admitted to the union would be slave or free. The Missouri Compromise passed in 1820 made a rule that prohibited slavery in states from the former Louisiana Purchase the latitude 36 degrees 30 minutes north except in Missouri. During the Mexican War, conflict started about what would happen with the new territories that the US expected to gain upon victory. David Wilmot proposed the Wilmot Proviso in 1846 which would ban slavery in the new lands. However, this was shot down to much debate. The Compromise of 1850 was created by Henry Clay and others to deal with the balance between slave and free states, northern and southern interests. One of the provisions was the fugitive slave act that was discussed in number one above. Another issue that further increased tensions was the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854. It created two new territories that would allow the states to use popular sovereignty to determine whether they would be free or slave. The real issue occurred in Kansas where proslavery Missourians began to pour into the state to help force it to be slave. They were called "Border Ruffians." Problems came to a head in violence at Lawrence Kansas. The fighting that occurred caused it to be called "Bleeding Kansas." The fight even erupted on the floor of the senate when antislavery proponent Charles Sumner was beat over the head by South Carolina's Senator Preston Brooks.
Growth of the Abolition Movement
Increasingly, the northerners became more polarized against slavery. Sympathies began to grow for abolitionists and against slavery and slaveholders. This occurred especially after some major events including: the publishing of Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin, the Dred Scott Case, John Brown's Raid, and the passage of the fugitive slave act that held individuals responsible for harboring fugitive slaves even if they were located in non-slave states.
Election of 1860
Even though things were already coming to a head, when Lincoln was elected in 1860, South Carolina issued its "Declaration of the Causes of Secession." They believed that Lincoln was anti-slavery and in favor of Northern interests. Before Lincoln was even president, seven states had seceded from the Union: South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas.