The Causes of the Civil War: Different Economies and Societies

The immediate cause of the war was slavery. Southern states, including the 11 states that formed the Confederacy, depended on slavery to support their economy. This already proves to realize slavery as being the primary cause of the American Civil war. But firstly, we need to look at what exactly built slavery up to be the cause of

From colonial times there were differences in geography that gave rise to variations in culture and economy in the United States. Due to the differing characteristics, a sectional economy molded the United States into two distinct regions: the north and the south. The north, a commercial society, which supported industry and commerce while the south, an agrarian civilization, flourished in the production of raw materials with use of slaves. The two economies were both self-supporting and capable to create a stronger, more productive nation. The regional differences sought to build America, in turn threatened to destroy it. Many Historians believe that the Civil War was constructed over the issue of slavery. However, the concerns of states'

The Civil War was caused by the economics of slavery and the political control of that system, specifically being states’ rights on the federal powers of the government, the territorial expansion of the united states that led to the division of the two sides, and the election of President Abraham Lincoln which was the final event that sent the nation to war.

The industrial advancement of the Northern states and the farming culture of the Southern states was one of the most significant causes to the Civil War. As shown in Document A of our Document Based Questions packet, the railroad systems of the North allowed early advancements in manufacturing

The North and South were very different from each other. Industrialization was happening in the North, while large-scale cotton planting was happening in the South. The South sold their crops to England in exchange for inexpensive factory-made goods produced in Europe. As a result of industrialization, Northern Factories began producing many of the goods that were already being produced in Europe. Thus, the North started to tax the South on any goods imported from Europe, so that the South would buy goods from the North. These unfair taxes angered the South, and contributed largely to its anti-North attitude (Civil War

From the above, the most important cause of the Civil War is the economic conflict between the north and the south with the abolition of slavery. The union won the final victory in the Civil War. The victory of the union strengthened the unification of the country and also laid the status of the capitalism. The subsequent Reconstruction cleared the way to the development of economy.

The Civil War was caused by economic conflict, slavery issues and the disagreements between the North and South.

The Civil War happened due to the many differences between the North and the South. For example economic, social, cultural and political differences. These all helped lead America to a Civil War. But to an extent, the most important cause was the fact there were many disagreements with states' rights versus federal rights.

The causes of the Civil War were complex and have been controversial since the country began. Some causes include; states’ rights, economics, and slavery. The most recognizable and popular cause is slavery. The freeing of the slaves was an important moral issue at the time and one of the greatest causes of the civil war. "It was only by carefully avoiding the moral issue involved in slavery that Northerners and Southerners could meet on any common ground." (Goldston, 79). The time came in which our great country would finally address the moral issue of slavery. Although there are many different causes to the American Civil War, the main cause was slavery because other causes are rooted in the issue of slavery.

Factors that were the root of the Civil War were mainly economic and political differences. These differences increased sectionalism and tension in the United States; north versus south, each having different views on slavery, economy, and political policies. The inability to settle into a fair agreement resulted in the Civil War.

The primary cause of the outbreak of the Civil War was due to the economic differences between the northern and southern States. In the years prior to the Civil War, the economic interests of the North were increasingly different from that of the South. (Economies and the Civil War). In the North, the vast majority of

Slavery was merely one of the causes of the Civil War. Some historians argue that the political difference between the North and the South is a more influential cause of the Civil War while some insist that economic is the main cause. In fact, the political division between the North and the South was affected by the differences in the economic system of both. The North and the South had had different economic backgrounds that were established since the American colonial period. These economic differences from the colonial period brought about the political division that was based on preserving each other’s own wealth or property and eventually caused the Civil War.

The civil war was mainly sparked by tensions between the north and the south. Both sides rarely agreed on topics and could never make a compromise. Slavery was a big reason for the start of the civil war, but the causes don’t end there. Although some may say that political or economic reasons started the civil war between the north and the south, political reasons were the real cause. This is because of important decisions made by the government, and the south seceding.

The North’s actions of abolishing slavery and enacting tariffs caused the South to fight in hopes of preserving their way of life and economy. Plantations in the South were only successful because of slavery. Without the slaves helping them create the abundance of cotton, the South would have no economy. The country’s economy would be greatly altered if slavery was eliminated both from a consumer and producer perspective. When the North did announce that they wanted to completely eradicate slavery, the South was taken aback due to the fact that the whole country would not function without slavery and the cotton produced. The North wanted the South to industrialize but the South replied “… we must ever continue to be, wholly dependent upon agriculture and commerce (South Caroline Protest Against the Tariff of 1828).” The climate in the South did not allow for the same industrialization to occur as it did in the North. Plantations and their productions of cash crops were booming in the South and the northern frontier was too small of a market, therefore leading them to sell to foreign countries. This caused the North to enact tariffs and in order to prevent the South from being too successful and lose them as a market. The North ended up petrifying the Southerners into fighting a war in order to preserve their way of life and thriving economy.

Slavery was the most important cause of the Civil War, because this single issue divided the North and South to begin with. The ideological differences between the North and South led to economic differences, conflicts over newly acquired territories, disputes over the constitution, and political extremism. The Election of 1860 was the culmination of these disputes and caused the South to secede in 1861 and guided the way towards the Civil War.