Part 1:The secession of 1860 could not be blamed on one event or idea. The conflict was due to decades of tension and conflict as Americans struggled to create systems of law governance that balanced out the interest of individuals, states, and the federal government. One of the major reasons was due to slavery, which has been an important topic in politics. As early as 1775 all colonies allowed slavery but as the years came, the North and South started to divide. Around 1820 the North had either banned slavery or began gradual emancipation programs, such as free labor. The states remained agricultural but went through an industrial period. They created a diversified economy as they invested more on cities, factories, and forms of transportation. In contrast, the South invested more in agriculture increasing their reliance of slaves labor. One of the main reasons agriculture rised in the South was due to the expansion of the cotton plantations. Between 1820 and 1840 growing numbers of white mostly in the North began to express their concern. Abolitionist insisted in freeing slaves because they believed it was morally wrong. Colonization’s on the other hand believed that slaves should be relocated to Liberia. They did not believe that an interracial free society could survive. The South viewed all anti-slavery ideas as a threat to their society and the stability of their economy. They argued that slavery was protected in the constitution and any interference was a matter of
The North’s economy was based on textiles, shipping, and skilled trades. Their climate was not suited for the same type of agricultural products that the South produced like cotton, sugar, rice and tobacco. Northern states like New England manufactured and shipped goods like guns, clocks, plows and axes (page 399). One reason for the South’s dependence on slavery is because their economy relied on the existence of slave labor. For example, the cultivation of cotton depended largely on slave labor, with 75% of the crop grown on plantations,
The secession of South Carolina on December 20, 1860, by a vote of 169-0 was a response to the election of Abraham Lincoln of 1860. Lincoln perceived as an abolitionist wanted to contain slavery rather than ending it. The majority party above the Mason-Dixon line were Republicans and below were primarily Democrats and Republicans were viewed as abolitionists. The election of a Republican threatened the South’s status quo. The primary catalyst for secession was based on slavery. Different social cultures and political beliefs developed due to the South’s intimate and reliant relationship on slavery. Southern whites feared the end of slavery and this paranoia was shared among plantation slave owners and white Yeoman farmers. Southern whites felt that the North were threatening the supposed tranquility of the South. The South’s agrarian economy, honor, and independence were believed to be in danger. Slavery was intertwined with the South’s social, cultural, and economic makeup. As a result of slavery, the South developed a paternalistic culture and racial ideology of white supremacy. The perceived notion that the North was influencing it’s political and social beliefs on the South lead them to believe that secession was the only act of self-preservation. The growing differences between the South and North made it difficult to negotiate. This fear was exaggerated and accelerated the South’s eventual implosion. The South believed that without slavery it would self-destruct and
The controversy over slaves ultimately led to the secession. Abraham Lincoln thinks slavery is wrong and he wants to stop it from spreading. Earlier, he had warned that slavery could separate a nation. In the 1860 election Lincoln is elected, but southerners are worried he will end slavery forever. Southern states start to secede because they are worried. First South Carolina succeeds, then North, Texas, and then Florida too. They give themselves a new name called the Confederate States of America. (Wise...)
Both areas had many farmers, but the south was successful with big plantations. The southern economy depended on agriculture while the North was based on technological advancement. The North successful developed many industries, while the south improved their farming methods (Roark, 7). The south farmers established huge plantations for cash crop production especially cotton. In addition, slavery became an important factor that provided
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
In 1820, politicians debated whether or not slavery would be legal in western territories and this caused a great deal of dispute. While the South utilized slavery to sustain its culture and grow cotton on plantations, the North was more industrialzed and prospered during the Industrial
Why did the Southern states separate from the Union? In the 1850’s Southern States had different views of the Union. In the 1850’s Northern states and Southern states had a lot of differences. Southern states were adamant about having slavery and Northern states thought slavery was appalling and terrible and that it should be abolished.The two states also fought over economic differences because the North made a living based on factories and the South made a living based on slaves. They also fought over government power, the South thought they deserved more power than the Federal Government. Therefore it led to the Civil War. Southern States seceded from the Union because of slavery, economic differences and issues over government power.
The main difference between the Northern and Southern states was that the North was mostly populated by small farms and larger towns and cities with mercantile and factory-based economies, in contrast the South was populated by large plantations and had relatively fewer large cities and few factories. Since the north had significantly more factories, they tended to trade more manufactured goods instead of raw materials like the south. The south’s economy was heavily reliant on the labor of slaves, the north had slaves as well but it did not really compare to that of the
How did the sectional crisis begin? What one event triggered this crisis? While these are question commonly answered, it is up to interpretation of the conflicts between the North and South in order to decide which events caused the secession. There is not simply one event or conflict which resulted in the secession of the deep southern sates beginning in 1860 (Brands 2015, 333). As of February 1, 1860 seven southern states had seceded from the union due to the friction between Northern and Southerners. While some may argue that the sectional crisis is a result of the fight for power between the North and South; the sectional crisis can be attributed to three main factors and their effects on the nation, differences
The Civil War was the war that divided the young American nation into two opposing sides. One side being the North, also called the Union, and the second side being the South, also called the Confederacy. The root cause of why the South seceded from the Union has been debated and argued since the beginning of the war in 1861. Most people argue that the argument, between the North and the South, over slavery was the main reason why the South left the Union. However, the issue has to be more complex than just the issue with slavery. The root cause of the of the South secession from the Union was a combination of the South’s aggravation and fear over their dependence on the North for their economic prosperity and their dependence on slavery for a highly profitable economy.
The disagreements for the north and south over the tariffs became the greatest battle between them, as slavery was only legal in the south. The north states was banned by the Mason- Dixonline, Secession has begun, this was a reason for slavery to begin. They started the war as soon as they could, in order to get there slaves in time for their businesses and factories. In 1860, when Lincoln was president, the constitution believed that every state had the right to leave the union. Lincoln did not agree, he did not believe that they have a right. “He opposed secession for these reasons: Physically the states cannot separate, secession is unlawful, a government
The slavery matter caused the sectionalism between the North and the South: “There most certainly was sectional conflict between North and South over slavery-related matters...” America’s image or reputation in the international communities was also a part of the reasons that the northerners supported the abolishment of slavery. They cared about it because the trades with overseas countries were largely carried on in the North. Moreover, by 1865, most of more developed and influential countries at that time already abolished slavery, but slavery still existed in the U.S. Although the abolitionists were a minor group of anti-slavery people in the North, they argued to abolish slavery partially because they, as the northerners, worried about the America’s international image and how this would affect their trades and economy. The northern states could have seceded as they were wealthier, but with an economical reason, they needed the raw materials such as cotton from the south. Therefore, it was better for them to maintain the Union and also the secession is unconstitutional.
The Abolitionist movement in the United States had roots in the Declaration of Independence. Slavery was banned in the Northwest Territory with the Northwest Ordinance of 1787. By 1804 all the Northern states had passed laws to gradually abolish slavery. Congress banned the African slave-trade in 1808, although slavery grew in new states in the deep south. The Union was divided along
Slavery was something that became interwoven into the South’s economy considering it was a one crop economy that depended on cotton. Therefore it depended on slaves, even if only a fraction of the population actually owned slaves. Meanwhile, the northern economy was more focused on industry rather than agriculture. Their industries would purchase raw cotton and turn it into a finished good. The North and South therefore also had major differences in their economic attitudes. The dispute over slavery and the future of it led to secession, which brought a war where the Northern and Western states fought to preserve the Union and the Southern territories fought to establish their independence as a new confederation under a constitution of its own.
On the other hand the South wanted to withhold all undetermined powers to the individual states and to withhold all these projects. The predominant issue why the South seceded was the slavery issue. The South wanted and called for slavery and would do anything they could to keep it. Cold-heartedly the slaves were items and if taken away would put a huge dent in investments towards Southerners. The value to the slaveholding planter class was immeasurable.