Economics: The Most Important Factor In The Cause Of The Civil War
Cannons explode in the background as men around you fall down. Everything is madness. You look into the eyes of your cousin from up North before he shoots you. Why is this happening? The Civil War, fought by the Union (the “North”) and the Confederate States of America (“the South”) took place between 1861 and 1865. Several slave states that declared secession formed the Confederacy. The issue of the war was slavery. The South depended on it and the North wanted to abolish it. So what caused this war? This paper will argue economics was the most important factor in starting the war. However Social and Political differences played a big role. Economics took the biggest part in the cause of the Civil War because the South’s economy
made up of agriculture, needed slavery to produce enough cotton. The North however was made up of industry (Shown in documents 1-2). The South also was subject to the North since the South went to the North for just about every utility. The North was necessary for building railroads, canals, etc. (Document 3). This gave the North power over the South. Due to this power the South couldn’t get its way many times leading to conflict.
Although economics was the main cause of the war politics and the failure to reach a compromise was almost equally important. Nobody wanted a compromise. Everyone wanted his or her way. The different areas of the nation were becoming angry and dividing. “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” (Document 10, Abraham Lincoln) “Preston Brooks himself a member of the House of Representatives, burst in to the senate chambers and beat Sumner with a cane.” (Document 8) The U.S. didn’t have to come to war. Both sides could’ve made some better negotiations and there never would’ve been war.
Social differences between the North and South played part in leading to the Civil War. A lot of people in the South argued that the slaves were happy. (Document 5) Slaves couldn’t stand the thought of being owned by another man. (Document 4) Many Northerners had the exact feelings the slaves had on this issue. Some people were willing to go to extremes to enforce what they believed. A man named John Brown attempted an uprising, although it failed, the North and South had different feelings about what happened. Many people in the North saw him as a hero and in the South feared another uprising and rage grew in the South towards the North. (Document 6) * Economic, political, and social differences lead to the Civil War as shown in the referenced documents. * Some people could say politics was the greatest cause because if they came to a compromise their would be no war. The same thing with social differences, if people had more of the same views what would there be to fight over? Everybody knows though that it’s all about the Benjamin’s. This war was fought over money, not slavery. The South wanted slaves for money. * In today’s world we face much of the same problems. Different sections in our nation often cannot agree upon things such as healthcare due to political, social, and economical differences. It just doesn’t usually lead to war.
made up of agriculture, needed slavery to produce enough cotton. The North however was made up of industry (Shown in documents 1-2). The South also was subject to the North since the South went to the North for just about every utility. The North was necessary for building railroads, canals, etc. (Document 3). This gave the North power over the South. Due to this power the South couldn’t get its way many times leading to conflict.
Although economics was the main cause of the war politics and the failure to reach a compromise was almost equally important. Nobody wanted a compromise. Everyone wanted his or her way. The different areas of the nation were becoming angry and dividing. “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” (Document 10, Abraham Lincoln) “Preston Brooks himself a member of the House of Representatives, burst in to the senate chambers and beat Sumner with a cane.” (Document 8) The U.S. didn’t have to come to war. Both sides could’ve made some better negotiations and there never would’ve been war.
Social differences between the North and South played part in leading to the Civil War. A lot of people in the South argued that the slaves were happy. (Document 5) Slaves couldn’t stand the thought of being owned by another man. (Document 4) Many Northerners had the exact feelings the slaves had on this issue. Some people were willing to go to extremes to enforce what they believed. A man named John Brown attempted an uprising, although it failed, the North and South had different feelings about what happened. Many people in the North saw him as a hero and in the South feared another uprising and rage grew in the South towards the North. (Document 6) * Economic, political, and social differences lead to the Civil War as shown in the referenced documents. * Some people could say politics was the greatest cause because if they came to a compromise their would be no war. The same thing with social differences, if people had more of the same views what would there be to fight over? Everybody knows though that it’s all about the Benjamin’s. This war was fought over money, not slavery. The South wanted slaves for money. * In today’s world we face much of the same problems. Different sections in our nation often cannot agree upon things such as healthcare due to political, social, and economical differences. It just doesn’t usually lead to war.