Introduction
The American Civil War began in 1861 and lasted until 1865. The underlying reason for the war was slavery, which was debated for decades. Some people argued that the states’ rights caused the war, while others argued that slavery caused it.
Slavery and States’ Rights as Causes of the War for Both Sides
The issue of slavery was the leading cause of the American Civil War. Slavery was a long-standing issue between the North and South and began to come to a head in the 1850s (Reynolds, 2022). The South saw slavery as an essential part of its economy, while the North viewed it as immoral. The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 enabled escaped enslaved individuals to be returned to their masters and exacerbated the tension between the two sides (Reynolds, 2022). The South was determined to protect its right to own slaves and was unwilling to compromise.
At the same time, states’ rights were likewise an underlying cause of the war. The South acknowledged that the federal government had no right to interrupt its liberty to own slaves. At the same time, the North considered slavery an ethical issue that the federal regime should address. The South’s desire to defend its rights led it to secede from the Union in 1861 (Reynolds, 2022).
Both the North and South initially went to war over the issue of slavery. The South wanted to protect its right to enslave people, while the North wanted to abolish slavery. However, the South’s war against slavery was also a war for states’ rights. They wanted to protect their right to secede from the Union and maintain their sovereignty.
Conclusion
It is clear that the conflict that began in 1861 between the North and South was primarily sparked by disagreements over slavery and states’ rights. The Southern states aimed to preserve their ability to maintain slave ownership and secede from the Union, while the Northern states sought to bring an end to the practice of slavery and maintain the Union. The war resulted from the tension between the two sides, and slavery and states’ rights played a role in the outbreak of the war.
Reference
Reynolds, D. S. (2022). The U.S. Civil War and cultural memory. (1st ed.). Routledge.