The United States during the early 1800’s was a fast-growing nation with expanding borders and growing discontent. There were four basic underlying causes that led to the American Civil War. The first seed of discontent was economic attitudes and opposing views on slavery. Then there was state rights, which were always a source of argument between the north and south with both wanting ultimate control starting at the time of the drafting of the constitution. The last straw was the election of President Lincoln who was anti-slavery. Slavery, however, was the most obvious reason for the war and the most significant cause of the American Civil War. The first seed of discontent that led to the American Civil War was the division of the
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Southern slave states wanted slavery in the newly created territories so that when those territories became states they would send pro-slavery Senators and Representatives to Congress to represent the southern plantation owner interests. New slave states would also make southern plantations more profitable since slaves were no longer being imported and new states would have to buy slaves bred on southern plantations. The north believed that slavery should not be allowed to be expand into the new territories, not because of moral opposition to slavery but to keep rich farm land open for small homesteads instead of land-hungry slave plantations. The north also believed that the free labor society which was successful in their part of the country was the best economic model for the nation, and saw the southern plantation slaveholding society of the South as backward and …show more content…
In comparing the causes, they all contained an element of slavery. The south was economically dependent on slaves to survive unlike the north, which had immigrants to work in their factories. The struggle between federal government control and state control revolved around making decisions about slavery in each state, without federal government control. The election of Abraham Lincoln, who did not appear on the southern ballot, demonstrated that the opinions on the future of the south and slavery were irrelevant to the north in choosing an anti-slavery
Southern slave states wanted slavery in the newly created territories so that when those territories became states they would send pro-slavery Senators and Representatives to Congress to represent the southern plantation owner interests. New slave states would also make southern plantations more profitable since slaves were no longer being imported and new states would have to buy slaves bred on southern plantations. The north believed that slavery should not be allowed to be expand into the new territories, not because of moral opposition to slavery but to keep rich farm land open for small homesteads instead of land-hungry slave plantations. The north also believed that the free labor society which was successful in their part of the country was the best economic model for the nation, and saw the southern plantation slaveholding society of the South as backward and …show more content…
In comparing the causes, they all contained an element of slavery. The south was economically dependent on slaves to survive unlike the north, which had immigrants to work in their factories. The struggle between federal government control and state control revolved around making decisions about slavery in each state, without federal government control. The election of Abraham Lincoln, who did not appear on the southern ballot, demonstrated that the opinions on the future of the south and slavery were irrelevant to the north in choosing an anti-slavery