The Civil War: An Analysis

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The Civil War was one of the bloodiest wars in the history of the nations, this war not only shaped the nation, but it changed the face of America by abolishing slavery. Tension began to rise in the territories whether or not to permit slavery west of Mississippi, this became controversial because both the North and the South viewed this in a different perspective. The South was pro-slavery and they believed that it maintained their economy. Slaves helped them cultivate the land and made it easier for the southerners. In contrast, the North was against slavery and they believed that slaves were not needed, the North depended on manufacture and industrial work. By analyzing the book “The South vs The South” by William Freehling brought a greater understanding upon why the Confederacy (the South) was defeated by the Union (the North). The South did have as many considerable advantages as the North such as the number of soldiers, industrial superiority, and the southern blacks that made their way to the union. These factors arguably are considered for the Union 's defeat to the Confederates. The number of soldiers in the North outnumbered the soldiers in the south and this became of the greatest advantages for the North. In the “South vs The South” The Union 's task was to have as many men possible to win the war, it is stated that in “1860, the free labor states population outnumbered the slave labor states’ by 19 to 12 million” (Freehling 1). They were outnumbered hundreds of thousands men which provided more support and efficiency for the Union, “450,000 troops more than replaced the Union 's 350,000 dead while simultaneously sapping the South 's manpower.” (Herman, 271). By comparing the numbers between the Union and the Confederacy it is ultimately one of the main reasons of the confederacy …show more content…
Towards the end of the war Southern blacks made on Union wartime policy and eventual Confederate defeat. Freehling quotes Abraham Lincoln message to congress “We cannot escape history, only in giving freedom to slaves, we assure freedom to the free” (Freehling 112). This act impacted the Union tremendously because “According to Freehling, slaves ' own decisions led to important Union decisions, culminating in the Emancipation Proclamation that turned Northern armies into an army of liberation” (Levin,399). The south lost hundreds and thousands of slaves causing them to have a decline economically. Slaves in the North were more loyal than the slaves that were in the south. “The Union was further aided by the fact that four slave states – Delaware, Missouri, Maryland and Kentucky – remained loyal to the Union.” (Farmer). The south was well aware of that “Slavery, which might seem to be a Confederate weakness, enabled the South to enlist more of its white manpower than the North.” (Farmer). The southerners did not have an option but to fight with all of their power in order to conquer the Union. Overall the South was defeated by the North and although there has been many controversies questioning the win of the war. History clearly established the victory of the Union because of the number of troops within both sides, the industrial manufacturing vs the agriculture, and the number of slaves in the South who migrated to the North. By analyzing the “The South vs The South” Freehling established a greater understanding on the greater advantages of the North compared to the

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