1

The American Civil War

Name

Institution

Date
 2

The American Civil War(Cause)

Introduction

 Slavery was one of the main causes of the American civil war but not the sole cause.

Wars are complex, just like their causes. Numerous factors that precipitated the war are vital in

understanding America's history. The reasons that brought about the civil war that destroyed

crops, cities, railroad lines, and loss of lives are varied. The critical political reasons for the civil

war comprises the secession of the southern States from the Union, the bleeding Kansas

the election of Abraham Lincoln as the Nation’s president and the rise of the Abolitionist

movement. As opposed to the belief that Slave trade was the sole cause of the Civil war, the

paper addresses the numerous other cause.

The economics of the cotton industry also exacerbated the American civil war. The socio-

economic impact of the cotton industry during the period was unmatched. The cotton industry

can be compared to the impact of the oil industry to current global dynamics. The discovery of

the cotton gin in late 18th century and the growth of slavery, the Southern States morphed into the

leading exporters of Cotton across the globe; the Southern States were exporting more than 70%

of their produce to Britain, the economic giant of the period. The white farmers who had black

slaves gained immense affluence and influence during the period and were ever ready to

undertake untold measures to safeguard their interests (Shattuck, 2003). There were growing

tensions between the Southern and Northern States. Banking on the fact that several global

economic giants were dependent on the Cotton produced by the Southern states, a majority of the

southerners were of the idea that global players would intercede on their behalf, giving them the

self-assurance to take on the more potent North.

 3

Another core reason for the Civil war was the territorial expansion of the Union. The

politics of slavery began to grow with the expansion of the Union (Shattuck, 2003). Given that

there was an unequal number of Slave owning States in the South compared to free States in the

North, it was deemed that joining of more slave States to bring a given equilibrium. The new

entrants into the Union, redefined the power dynamics as to whether it entered as a Free or Slave

owning State. The Northern citizens believed that if Slave trade continued to multiply to new

States, they would automatically join the Southern Slave owning the Southern States rendering

the North States inapt, and the Union would automatically go into the hands of the wealthy

Southern merchants. The cotton-growing and slave-owning States viewed slavery as a lifeline for

economic growth. The expansion of slavery into new entrant States produced an avenue for the

merchants to grow their political and economic standing. The friction resulted in the formulation

of the Missouri pact of 1820 (Zettl, 2014). The Missouri Pact stated the territories west of the

Mississippi and had an average temperature as the Slave States and those North of the

Mississippi as free States. The political friction between the Northern and Southern States

continued to grow, as witnessed in the Wilmot Proviso Discourse of 1846, victory in the

Mexican-American war, the formulation of the fugitive State law, and the Concession of 1850,

and the Lincoln Doulas Discourses of 1858 (Zettl, 2014). The frictions finally resulted in a point

where the Civilian war ware could not be avoided.

The rise of the abolitionist movement during 1830 was precipitated by religious

convictions that deemed slavery a religious sin, and the only way for salvation was through

emancipation. The movement spread its convictions across the Union. The movement faced

opposition from Slave owning States and other National religious institutions. A leading

abolitionist started publishing the liberator (Higginbotham & Royster, 2016). The publication
 4

received immense ideological and financial support from emancipated Slaves. William Lloyd

and other associates established a movement to champion emancipation in Philadelphia in 1833

(Higginbotham & Royster, 2016). Over the following years, they established numerous branches

across the Union, relaying pro-emancipation publications and petitions calling for the Union's

legislative arm to illegalize slavery. The abolitionist played a crucial part in the underground

railways, a system of furtive escape ways, and safe residences for Slaves who had run away to

free States. The abolitionist movement aided a significant number of Slaves escape.

The landmark decision in Dred Scott Vs. Sanford is deemed to have exacerbated the

American civil war. In 1833, the Slave Dred Scott was procured by the United States military

medical practitioner and then transported to Wisconsin, which was a free State. In 1840, Dred

Scott and his family relocated from Louisiana to St. Louis with Scott (Higginbotham & Royster,

2016). After the passing away of the owner, Scott and his family came under the ownership of

the surgeons' wife, Sanford. The working relationship became hostile when Dred Scott attempted

to purchase his freedom after working for a year, but she refused (Barney, 2002). The district's

legal dispute ruled in favor of Dred Scott, but the supreme court overturned the decision. In two

years, the case was argued at the Supreme Court. In its landmark ruling, the court ruled that a

black person whose descendants had been traded in to the United States sold as Slaves, whether

enslaved or emancipated, was not an American citizen and had no power to bring grievances to

the court.

Upon the election of Abraham Lincoln as the Union's commander, the Southern States

led by South Carolina called for a State convention where they elected to secede from the Union.

The other Cotton growing States followed up the action to elect to succeed. The seceding States

decided to form their federation naming it Confederate America. After the confederate’s decision
 5

to attack Fort Sumter, the Union President called upon the remaining States to send military

forces to help recapture the federal properties (Barney, 2002). Four others unsure of attacking

their neighbors also decided to leave the Union. In his inauguration speech, the Union president

termed secede illegal. While Abraham Lincoln had no intent to attack the Southern States, nor

was he bent on ending slavery where it existed, he was ready to use military force to recapture

federal property. The war was inevitable.

Conclusion

The idea that the American civil war was solely caused has been reiterated in literature

for years. However, the cause of the civil war needs a more comprehensive, intricate

comprehension. The civil war was precipitated by many causes, not solely or mainly because of

the slave trade. Moving from socio-economic differences and Cotton as fundamental causes

results in many intricate reasons why the war was fought.

 6

References

Barney, W. (2002). Apostles of Disunion: Southern Secession Commissioners and the Causes of

the Civil War (review). Civil War History, 48(4), 366-367.

https://doi.org/10.1353/cwh.2002.0050

Higginbotham, D., & Royster, C. (2016). The American Civil War. Reviews In American

History, 10(1), 44. https://doi.org/10.2307/2701793

Shattuck, G. (2003). When Slavery Was Called Freedom: Evangelicalism, Proslavery, and the

Causes of the Civil War (review). Civil War History, 49(3), 288-289.

https://doi.org/10.1353/cwh.2003.0071

Zettl, H. (2014). Garibaldi and the American Civil War. Civil War History, 22(1), 70-76.

https://doi.org/10.1353/cwh.1976.0006