American Civil War: The Conflict That

Divided a Nation in Two

In the mid-19th century, the sentiment of nationalism was intense in the
United States. The Northern states and the Southern states had different
ideas regarding the balance of power and the abolitionist movement, which
aimed to end slavery. Both the North and the South also sought rights to the
best lands for cultivation. They were like opposing and conflicting
civilizations. These were the causes of the American Civil War.

Slavery divides the United States

In the South, whose economy was based on tobacco and cotton, plantation
owners wanted to continue using slaves. In the 1850s, the number of slaves
in the South exceeded 3 million individuals of African descent. In the
North, whose economy relied on industry and small farms, slave labor was
not as significant.
The Abolitionist Cause
Every time a new state became part of the Union, there was a debate
regarding the use of slave labor. In 1855, in the territory that would later
become the states of Kansas and Nebraska, citizens voted to decide
whether the region would be abolitionist or pro-slavery. Many people
already living there wanted it to be abolitionist, but thousands of people
came from neighboring states to vote for a pro-slavery regime. It was the
final straw for an abolitionist reaction.
The abolitionist John Brown organized
demonstrations in which several people
were killed. Hundreds of others met the
same fate that summer, during a period
known as the "Bleeding Kansas". Brown led
an attack on an arsenal in Virginia with the
aim of arming slaves. The attack was
unsuccessful, and he was sentenced to death,
but he became a hero of the abolitionist
cause.
Signature of John Brown
 Frederick Douglass, a fugitive slave, wrote multiple autobiographies,
including "Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass" (1845). He traveled
throughout the country sharing his painful experiences as a slave. Douglass
informed Abraham Lincoln, the sixteenth President of the United States
elected in 1860, about the issue of slavery. He also persuaded Lincoln to
allow African-Americans to fight in the Civil War. Many divisions of
African-Americans, including the 54th Regiment, contributed to the North's
victory in the war.
Signature of Frederick Douglass

Lincoln believed that the disagreements

regarding slavery were a risk to the stability
of the government. Initially, he was not in
favor of completely abolishing slavery but
believed that it should not spread beyond the
states where it was already practiced and
that it could be gradually phased out.
The Dred
Scott case:
Dred Scott, a
slave, sought
legal action
to be recognized as a free man following his
owner's death. In 1857, the Supreme
Court ruled that Scott, despite residing in an
abolitionist state where his owner had
relocated, was not an American
citizen and should remain the property of
the widow. This decision served to
bolster the abolitionist cause
Signature of Dred Scott

The Confederation
]