Civil War Essay

From 1861 to 1865, the United States engaged in war unlike any they had fought before. Instead of going against a foreign power or invaders on their land, Americans fought against themselves; North versus South. This period of conflict was called the Civil War. The North, or the Union, originally sought to preserve the Union and reclaim the southern states. But, they later added the abolishment of slavery to their desire to win. The South, also called the Confederacy, wanted independence from the U.S. and to preserve the institution of slavery. With these opposing views, Americans fought for four years, killing over 620,000 soldiers (more than any other war combined). Going into the war, the Union and the Confederates seemed fairly balanced; …show more content…
This was due in major part to the North’s abundance of factories that could create all these materials, while the South had only one main manufacturing plant. Because of this hindrance, Southern soldiers lacked proper shoes and uniforms, which caused many deaths, but also gave way to the opening of more foundries to keep up with the soldiers’ needs. As for Southern farms, they were fairly productive, providing harvests of vegetables, grain, and meat. But, since their transportation system was inadequate compared to the North’s, there was no efficient way to transport this food or messages across land. In fact, the North’s railroad system spanned more than double the area of the South’s. In all areas of resources, the Union was on top. They had a higher percentage of wealth, farm acreage, population, railroads, and especially factory production. This advantage gave the Union another way to defeat the Confederates and claim back their land. However, even though the North was superior in its resources and transportation, in order to win the war, they would need a strong leader to bring citizens and soldiers through this tough