The Southerners were critical of the Northern working conditions where whites did manual work in harsh conditions in factories, claiming this created inequality among whites and was therefore contrary to American ideals. They believed that it was the Northern workers that wanted change and not the slaves.
This became an institution Southerners felt bound to protect. If slavery were abolished, the South would need to become industrialized and use capital equipment such as machines to plant seeds and water the land, instead of using slave labor. The South would need to purchase the equipment from the North, which would mean borrowing money from the large banks in the Northern States. The North also issued tariffs. The Southern States opposed this, as then it would be much harder for them to trade with the European countries.
If there was an increase in tariffs then the Southern States would be forced to trade with the North on a much larger scale. This would give the Northern States economic control over the South.
There were growing calls from abolitionists in the North that slavery was morally wrong. Abolitionist leader William Lloyd Garrison, holding aloft a copy of the Federal Constitution before a crowd in Massachusetts called it “a covenant with death, and an agreement with hell.” The Republican Party formed and was popular with the North for their views on slavery. Abraham Lincoln was elected on principles that opposed the further expansion of slavery. This caused further discontent, and led to the split of the states from the union. Other issues existed that led to succession but Slavery was the root of all problems in America and ultimately led to the outbreak of the civil war.
The compromises were a short-term solution to the arguments over the Westward expansion and highlighted the big problem of slavery. These issues eventually resulted in the outbreak of the civil war. When the US was formed it was made up of only thirteen states. There was un-occupied land in Western America, and as time went on, the US felt the need to expand into this new territory. This was the westward expansion. As the frontier moved west, arguments arose which kept the nations attention on slavery.
The Southerners believed that since slavery was legal they should be able to slaves wherever they wanted. They believed that expansion was vital to the survival of slavery and that since slavery was legal they should be able to slaves wherever they wanted. The North opposed the Southerners' views and wanted to arrest the further spread of it. Under the United States constitution, each state had 2 senators, being part of the most important law-making and decision-making body in America. If Anti-slavery groups from the North gained more senators, they could push to make slavery illegal. If pro-slavery groups from the south gained more, they could maintain status quo. Neither side wanted the other to gain the advantage. The results were a series of compromises, which kept the balance.
The first evidence of the North’s actions came in 1819. After months of discussion Congress passed the Missouri Compromise in 1820. This compromise was legislative measures that regulated the extension of slavery in the United States for three decades.
This was followed by the ‘Mexico Compromise’ and the ‘Kansas-Nebraska Act’.
As the US expanded west, arguments continued and this lead to further discontent. The Westward expansion highlighted the problem of slavery and more problems and tension arose which ultimately led to the outbreak of the civil war.
Abraham Lincoln’s will to unite the Northern and Southern states of America, resulted in further discontent and ultimately lead to the outbreak of an internal war. Lincoln’s aims were to unite a country split into two opposing sides with many issues becoming a problem. Lincoln always said that to him the Union, and survival of the United States was the most important thing. The Election in 1860 and the majority vote going to Lincoln proved that Lincoln was praised on the North and despised on the south. This lead to many problems because the South feared that whatever political promises and efforts Lincoln tried to achieve was harmful to them and in favor of the North. Lincoln feared that if the Southern and Northern states could not resolve their issues then America would break up into individual countries and go against the Declaration of Independence. Lincoln shows this during his House Divided Speech were he says, “A house divided against itself cannot stand”. Lincoln would try anything to unite the people but the south was always in fear of losing power, this showed up in the lack of voting for Lincoln and lack of trust thinking that Lincoln would abolish slavery. In an attempt to resolve the Southerners concerns, he said, “I have no purpose, directly or indirectly, to interfere with the institution of slavery in the States where it exists..I have no inclination to do so”.
The south could not afford to have slavery abolished. Their whole society was based around it. They realized that unless they fight for slavery it would be abolished. They felt there was nothing more they could do. They were convinced that they should make a bid for independence by succeeding rather then face political isolation. A Southerner said “We have at last reached that point in our history when it is necessary for the South to withdraw from the Union. This has not been our seeking...but we are bound to accept it or self-preservation." Lincoln took the view that although slavery was legal; breaking away from the Union was illegal and constituted a rebellion. When Southern forces opened fire, the Civil war began. Abraham Lincoln’s will to unite America had been unsuccessful and his election to presidency no doubt allowed for further discontent from the south and added to the reasons for an outbreak of an internal war.
The existence of slavery was the central element of the conflict between the North and South. Other problems existed that led to succession but none were as big as the slavery issue. The government failed to address problems as they arose. The combination of these issues resulted in the outbreak of the Civil War.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
Websites:
Books:
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Dennett B. & Dixon.S, Key Features of Modern History, Oxford Uni. Press, Melbourne, 2001.
