Slavery And The Coming Of The War

America’s transformation into the country we live in today has been formed through numerous events during its short history but the event that will split the United States into North versus South is truly one of the most defining events in American history. Through numerous events leading up to the start of the Civil War, I will attempt to show how the United States was destined for conflict and that the Civil War was inevitable. The first way I will show how the war could not be avoided will deal with the issue of slavery. Slavery should be the first mentioned because many conflicts within the United States leading up to the Civil War and the division of the United States dealt with slavery. The Missouri Compromise should also be talked

As a result, Northerners protested. This caused even more tension before the Civil War would begin. The Kansas-Nebraska Act would allow slavery into

The creator of the act was Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois, who wanted to see citizens be able to settle in these territories. Underlying it all, Douglas’s real desire was to build a transcontinental railroad to go through Chicago. Although opposition was intense, The Kansas-Nebraska Act was finally passed by congress on May 30, 1854. It allowed settlers in the territories of Kansas and Nebraska to decide whether slavery would be legal or not within their borders based on popular sovereignty. Territory north of the 36°30' parallel was now open to popular sovereignty as Northern leaders’ moods grew darker than the midnight sky. This sudden change in affairs largely contributed to the humongous political change that was about to happen next.

There were many different views on slavery in the North and South. This led to tension between pro-slavery and anti-slavery citizens. Lincoln’s election, the Dred Scott Decision, and Bleeding Kansas, are three of the numerous events that led to the Civil War.

Tensions between the North and South had grown steadily since the anti slavery movement in 1830. Several compromises between the North and South regarding slavery had been passed such as the Nebraska-Kansas and the Missouri act; but this did little to relieve the strain. The election of President Lincoln in 1861 proved to be the boiling point for the South, and secession followed. This eventually sparked the civil war; which was viewed differently by the North and the South. The Northern goal was to keep the Union intact while the Southern goal was to separate from the Union. Southern leaders gave convincing arguments to justify secession. Exploring documents from South Carolina’s secession ordinance and a speech from the Georgia

Throughout the 1800s in America, slavery was a controversy between the north and the south. A Slave was one who was the property of another human being under law and was forced to obey them. The North felt that slavery was unfair and inhumane, whereas in the South, they felt as though slavery was crucial to their success. African American slaves were not allowed many rights: they were not allowed to testify in court against a white person, could not receive an education, or even sign contracts. Due to the brutality they faced each day, many slaves escaped with hopes to find freedom. The Underground Railroad, a system utilized by many runaway slaves to help them escape from the South to Canada, played a large role in the downfall of slavery and eventual abolition in the United States following the Civil War.

The Kansas and Nebraska Act was also a major cause of political conflicts. It pressured popular sovereignty over those new territories. Kansas, according to the Northerners, was being pressured into becoming a slave state by having acts of violence be done against them. As well, people from Missouri were going into Kansas and using their power to vote for it as a slave state, and the North

Cotton was the king of the South. It was bringing in large amounts of money as the textile industry in the North grew. Slavery was vital to the economic well-being of the South, and when the North began to question the “peculiar institution” of the South the wall of civility between the two sectionalized areas began to crumble. Due to the growing issue of slavery in the 1850s, the United States of America was in a state of total disarray and turmoil. The tension that had always existed between the North and South over the matter of slavery was no longer ignorable. As the United States expanded to the West, the status of slavery in the new states erupted in a violence that could no longer be controlled by sectionalism. The peace treaties that had worked in the past became Band-Aids over stab wounds. Southern states began to leave the United States of America to form the Confederate States of America and war was declared as the South fired onto the forts of the North. The Civil War was caused directly by the issue of slavery; the fugitive slave act in the Compromise of 1850, Dred Scott v. Sandford, and Bleeding Kansas prove that slavery was the key factor in the eruption of the nation.

Events during the 1800’s spurred the anticipation of The Civil War. Four significant events that played a particular role in leading up to the Civil War were The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, Bleeding Kansas and the Pottawotomie Massacre, and James Brown’s Raid at Harpers Ferry, Virginia. These specific four events played important parts in what the Civil War played out to be.

The question of slavery and the rights of states to decide on the matter for themselves completely controlled politics in the years prior to the Civil War. Laws were passed, such as the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, which made it so any slaves that escaped were to be sent back to their owners. Not only would these runaway slaves be punished severely, but anybody who aided them in escape would also be subject to harsh punishment. These desperate men, women, and children had no protection in the legal system and were left with no options in life other than escape. Many of these escapees had to watch friends and family be beaten, sold, or even killed and were expected to work just as hard, like nothing had happened. After losing everything, it

The American Civil War occurred between April 12, 1861, and May 9, 1865, and began due to the long-standing controversy of slavery in the country. Shortly after Abraham Lincoln took office, Confederates attacked Fort Sumter in South Carolina, and among the 34 U.S. states seven Southern slave states succeeded from the United States. More states seceded and the Confederacy grew up to eleven slave states. This split the country between the Union in the Northern states, and the Confederate States of America in the Southern states. One big disagreement many Americans have today is whether slaves rights was the cause of the Civil War or not. Charles B. Dew believes the Civil War was fought over slavery, using speeches and public letters of 41 white southerners who were commissioners and appealed to their audience the ideas of the preservation of slavery and white supremacy as his evidence. Gary W. Gallagher believes that the Civil War was not fought over slavery, and the main goal for Northerners was to preserve the Union, using letters of white Northern soldiers that do not show much concern for black people as his evidence. Frederick Douglass’s statement, “The cry of Free Men was raised, not for the extension of liberty to the black man, but for the protection of the liberty of the white” is valid because the Civil War was not fought for the equality of black people, African Americans were treated very poorly after the Civil War and the emancipation proclamation was passed for

The civil war did not start overnight. The war initially started over whether or not to expand slavery into the west. This agitated the republicans because in their minds slaves took white jobs. However the democrats saw the slaves as a vital working part of the farming economy. In 1820 congress passed the Missouri compromise allowing them to be admitted to the union as a slave state. However this was challenged when in 1854 congress passed the Kansas- Nebraska act. Which allowed Kansas and Nebraska to vote on whether they would become slave states (Benson 1). However voters came over from missouri to vote ensuring it would become a slave state. This caused tensions to boil over and a war broke out between slavery sympathizers and abolitionists. This battle would come to be known as bleeding

In 1860, the world 's greatest nation was locked in Civil War. The war divided the country between the North and South. There were many factors that caused this war, but the main ones were the different interpretations of the Constitution by the North and South, the Kansas-Nebraska Act, and the arrival of

The Civil War is deemed to be one of the bloodiest wars in American history. However, the Civil War had seemingly been a long time coming. There were many events that took place within the fifteen years prior to the Civil War that surely foreshadowed the ultimate secession of the “cotton states” from the Union. Evidently, the end of the Mexican-American War in 1848 leading to the Compromise of 1850, the publication of Uncle Tom’s Cabin in 1852, the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, the Dred Scott Decision of 1857, John Brown’s raid in 1859, and the outcome of the Presidential Election of 1860 helped contribute to southern secession. These sectional conflicts left the United States on the brink of a Civil War. These major issues urged

The American Civil War was the deadliest conflict fought in US history and brought tremendous change to the nation. The war was fought between the Union and Confederacy, and it was divided between the northern free state and southern slave states. The rising abolitionist movement that sought to free slaves in the United States, led by men like Elijah Lovegood, fanned the flames leading to conflict. Also, the Missouri Compromise of 1820, was made in order to keep the balance of power between free and slave states. Furthermore, the the Kansa -Nebraska Act was passed in 1854 which attempted to allow popular sovereignty to answer the question of slavery. The fourth major event was the Election of 1860, with the election of Lincoln the many southern states choose to secede from the Union. These events tied into the issue of slavery boiled up and left the nation divided since both sides believed that what they were doing was right. The American Civil War, became inevitable as neither side would back down and the political separation between the North and South had trouble staying in a joined union.