What Was The Impact Of Slavery In The South

Slavery is often thought of as a cruel, dark practice in history, and nothing more. While slavery certainly was cruel, its existence did end up playing a major role in the young nation’s history. Slavery was common throughout the American colonies since 1619, when the first slaves arrived, and continued to prevail for the next two centuries. Since the colonies were near the coast and relied heavily on agriculture, “the demand for labor far exceeded the supply, and slavery was an obvious solution to the problem” (Cunion 1). Slavery helped the early farmers to produce more crops each year, and were therefore essential to the economy of the nation. However, as the nation developed after declaring its independence, gaining more land and annexing
In the 19th century, while the North moved toward a more industrial lifestyle, “agriculture remained the cornerstone of Southern wealth” (Hillstrom 1). With the invention of cotton gin, slaves became more and more valuable in the South as planters raced to make profit off the new method of processing cotton: “The cotton gin dramatically increased the amount of money flowing into the Southern economy, but it also renewed the dying institution of slavery” (Hillstrom 1). Slavery was the main reason cotton gin became so useful in the South, as slaves were needed to produce such large amounts of cotton - without them the product would not have become such a staple in the economy. Slavery essentially allowed the South to remain agricultural and compete with the Northerners, who were now manufacturing and selling goods, rather than working on plantations. Along with this new demand for slaves came a new rush of slave trade. Slaves were becoming increasingly important in the South, but there simply weren’t enough of them fully capitalize on the new demand for cotton. As such, the Southerners turned to African kings and village chiefs for a supply of slaves. This new connection strengthened foreign relations, therefore aiding the nation’s economy as a whole by introducing new trade partners. The demand for slavery allowed this connection with Africa to develop, benefiting Americans both at
As a result, a great deal of conflict over slavery arose, more about political imbalance than ethics or natural rights. Northerners began to develop the Slave Power Conspiracy Theory, the belief that the slave states were taking advantage of their power in government to gain control of the nation, and ensure the survival and development of slavery (French 1). As they rose up against the Southern states, the latter began to assume a defensive position, as slavery was essential to their economic growth. These tensions between the North and South continued to rise, shaping the context of the Civil War, and were all caused by the presence of slavery in the Southern states, and the effect on politics that resulted from it. Not only did the conflict between the North and South create political tension, but it also greatly impacted the growth of the US itself. The Northern states opposed the growth of the nation because they believed that “the slave economy depended upon continued acquisition of fresh land, and that this expansionism was on an inevitable collision course with the desires of free white Northern settlers… Whereas in the free labor economy of the North, westward expansion threatened to hurt eastern business by driving up the wages of labor” (Wright 131-132). Since the South would benefit more from westward expansion because its economy depended on a constant renewal of land, this became another