How slavery ended in America
The Civil War and the Reconstruction period that followed represented the conclusion to a revolutionary process begun by the American Revolution almost 100 years earlier.
In the 18th century, British subjects in America revolted against the monarchy and colonialism. At the heart of the American Revolution was the democratic right for at least some men to vote for their own representatives in government.
Despite the progressive ideals embodied in the American Revolution, however, it also suffered from an enormous contradiction--the preservation of slavery in the new United States. This contradiction rendered the American Revolution incomplete--unable to fulfill its stated promise that "all men are created equal."
The Civil War and the Reconstruction period that followed represented the conclusion to a revolutionary process begun by the American Revolution almost 100 years earlier.
In the 18th century, British subjects in America revolted against the monarchy and colonialism. At the heart of the American Revolution was the democratic right for at least some men to vote for their own representatives in government.
Despite the progressive ideals embodied in the American Revolution, however, it also suffered from an enormous contradiction--the preservation of slavery in the new United States. This contradiction rendered the American Revolution incomplete--unable to fulfill its stated promise that "all men are created equal."