Chapter 1 : what was the cause of the American civil war?
After the end of the American Revolution, the north grew to a industrial part of the country. Here were all the factories placed, metal factories, weapon factories and it was the central point of the science. This made the north very rich and powerful. The south was poor and the main population existed of farmers. With the product of the farms the farmers could get around with the money, this was not case for the normal civilians. They had not much choice concerning their way of living and the most could barley provide their own food and life supplies.
Because the south was much less populated than the north they lost all their political power. The civilians therefore felt overwhelmed by the superior government of the north, a fear that stayed with them after the American revolution. These tensions were kept in control by a few southern leaders in the senate.
{draw:frame} In 1860 Abraham Lincoln was chosen the new president of the united states and his election caused the tensions between the states grow even more. His election is a big reason for the cause of the war. Even though he was very neutral about slavery during his campaign, although it was known he wasn’t pro slavery. According to Lincoln he just wanted to prevent that the slavery would expand to the west. With his election The southern states saw their way of living in great danger, and not two months later several southern states started to separate from the united states.
South Carolina separated first from the united states on 20 December 1860, within a short time Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana en Texas followed them. Not all the states in the south agreed with the separation and it would take a while before they would separate to and become a part of a nation that now is called the confederate states of America. At the end of May 1861 was this new piece of America complete with the addition of Virginia,...