American Civil War



American Civil War

Introduction

The American Civil War began on April 12, 1861, when confederate forces opened fire on Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina. It lasted until May 26, 1865. The war caused more than 600,000 deaths, destroyed over $5 billion in property, and brought freedom to four million African-American slaves. Some of the core issues raised by the war are still unresolved, meaning that the political and social legacies of the conflict have not been completely resolved over 140 years later. This research paper discusses the chronology of American civil war and its outcomes on American civilization.

Causes of American Civil War

Slavery was the main and immediate cause of the war. The southern states, particularly the eleven states of the Confederacy, depended on slavery to support their economy. Slave labor produced crops, particularly cotton and tobacco, maintained domestic households, and accounted for almost all manufacturing in the South. Southern slave-holding males also maintained a state of polygamy on their plantations, allowing them sexual dominance over African-American females and their own wives. Even though slavery was illegal in the Northern states, few Northerners actively opposed it. (Moorhead)

In 1860, cotton was the chief crop of the South, representing 57 percent of all U.S. exports. Revenue derived from cotton completed the South's dependence on the plantation system, which relied heavily on chattel slavery. The dominance of the plantation system in the South was an impediment to industrialization. Southerners had to import almost all manufactured goods. Before the Civil War, loyalty to one's state often took precedence over loyalty to the country. Many considered the Union a voluntary compact entered into by independent, sovereign states. In the nation's early years, neither North nor South had any strong sense that the Union was permanent. New Englanders considered seceding, or leaving the Union, when the War of 1812 cut off trade with England. As the slave system developed, the South became less dependent on the federal government than did other regions. Therefore, Southerners felt no need to strengthen it. Southern planters also feared that a strong central government might interfere with slavery. (Vinovskis)

By Abraham Lincoln's first term in Congress, it had been clear that he was opposed to slavery. This proposal never came before Congress, but it exemplified his opposition to slavery. Lincoln did not believe that Congress had the power to abolish slavery in individual states. However, where Congress had the power, as in Washington, and where the electorate was agreeable, he thought that it should abolish slavery. He became an antislavery leader after the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act in 1854. He feared that taking direct action against the Confederacy would lead to the secession of Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Arkansas. (Miller)

On the surface, the war should have never lasted as long or caused as many casualties as it did. The Union had vastly superior war potential. For example, there were 23 states in the Union (3/4 of the territory) to 11 in the Confederacy (1/4 of the ...