What Was The Causes Of The Civil War

The Civil War began in the year 1861. It was a major war leading America to the place it is today. In the war, the north fought the south over the general idea of slavery. The north believed that slavery should be abolished, whereas the south thought that slavery should continue throughout the United States. The physical battle that set off the Civil War took place at Fort Sumter. A confederate group opened fire on the Union at Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor. No one was killed, but the firings excited the North to begin to fight and save the Union. However, the Civil War did not happen overnight, but was in the process for about eleven years. The paramount events that led to the Civil War began with the Compromise of 1850 and end with the election of Abe Lincoln, which includes John Brown in Bleeding …show more content…
The Compromise of 1850 ended the slave trade in Washington, D.C. Slavery was still allowed in D.C, however, slaves could not be traded. In the south, the Fugitive Slave Law was enacted, which also led to the Civil War. The Fugitive Slave Law was nicknamed “the Bloodhound Bill.” The law put high penalties in place for anyone that helped slaves escape and made all law enforcement officers participate in capturing runaway slaves. This rattled the antislavery cause in the north. Along with the Fugitive Slave Law, the Compromise of 1850 brought in Popular Sovereignty in New Mexico and Utah territories. General Lewis Cass was reputed as the father of Popular Sovereignty. This idea stated that the people of a territory should decide for themselves whether or not to allow slavery in said territory. Many northerners opposed this notion because they believed it would promote the spread of slavery to the territories. The south believed that they had gotten the better deal from the Compromise; however, the North had actually gotten the better