Causes of the Civil War

Today in class we watched a series of videos about the Civil War and the reasons why it had happened. Many people are brought to believe that the only reason why the North and the South had split was because of slavery. This is true to an extent, but, there was so much more to the war than that.

Not everyone in the North was for abolishing slavery. Many people depended on the institution. It was also based economically. Many Northern business owners depended on the South because of the cheap cotton, free labor, and the climate and soil were perfect for those conditions. They were reliant on the South, and could profit much from the work of the South.

The North also did not have the best labor either, as the South argued. There was terrible conditions too, people couldn't breathe, there was bad air, people were loosing fingers and many people were hurt and dying. This was a Southern argument how slavery could also be depicted in the North as well because of the conditions many people were working in.

The South was a necessity to not only the North, but the world. "Cotton was King" and it was what was needed, and sadly slavery went hand and hand with it. The South was agricultural and the North was industrial which made a huge split between them both. The Missouri Compromise, New Fugitive Slave Law and the Kansas-Nebraska Act all had affects on the North and South and how they got along.

These all impacted why the North and South had fought. A huge portion of why, was because of slavery and the treatment of others, but based on these videos there was so many more reasons.

Causes of Civil War Part 1

Causes of Civil War Part 2


Slavery Picture