civil war - Pei-yu Hung U.S History Ms Schlesinger The...

Pei-yu Hung Hung 1
U.S History
Ms. Schlesinger
Jan 12 2009
The Causes of Civil War
During the Civil War, the Northerners and the Southerners fought against each
other and the main reasons were based on slavery, economy, and political issue. In
1861, most south countries seceded from the Union because they believed the slavery
would be abolished once Lincoln became the president. Actually, some experts
claimed that it was not the only reason. They thought once the slavery was abolished,
the Southerners would lose their labor and it would affect the economy interests.
Other proficient regarded that the slavery was apparent, but the fact was the struggle
between different parties.
Abraham Lincoln’s claim was the fuse of the Civil War and that led to the
conflict between the Northerners and the Southerners. In the Lincoln-Douglas
debates, Lincoln argued that he would not let the slavery spread to the territories
where there did not have slaves. “If slavery were to extend into the western territories,
opportunities for poor white laborers to better their lots there would be lost. The
nation’s future, he argued, rested on the spread of free labor.” 1 Although he was not
the abolitionist, he thought the slavery was wrong. He insisted on the prevention of
the expansion of slaves. Then after Lincoln was elected, most of southern countries
seceded from the Union and formed a new nation: ‘the Confederate States of
America.’ Then in 1861, the Confederate started the war. “Confederate guns on shore