William Seward was a leading anti-slavery figure who later became secretary of state in the Lincoln administration. He believed that the two systems held by the North and the South (free labour and slavery) were “incompatible”. He stated that eventually America would have to become either fully a free labour nation or a slaveholding nation. While not everyone felt so strongly about this in the North (many didn’t care about the slavery issue at all) it was a reason that soldiers and leaders on either side went to war and fought for (in the North to end it, in the South to defend it). Lincoln was of the opinion that while he would never accept the extension of slavery he would make no direct attempt to interfere with it where it existed.
I believe that the Civil War began with the debate over the future of slavery. That very issue led to secession, and secession caused a war where the Northern states fought for the ground of the Union, and the South for their independence as a new confederation of states under its own constitution. It seems to me that any disagreement leads to some form of resentment. We tend to not like what we don’t understand, and it was hard for the North to understand why the Southern states were itching for freedom from them. It seems from a broader point of view that the North has gone through so much just for the Southern states of America to exist.
They were for slavery because of the finical gain. The labor they didn’t have to do and taxes. They were against slavery because they felt that the government couldn’t control the importation of slavery. The position that the Connecticut delegates and Mr. Heath in the Massachusetts debate took in the lead role of not participate in the slave trade. This was done by prohibiting the importation of slaves.
Shipler in his essay “Jefferson Is America and America Is Jefferson,” Jefferson represents the most powerful contradiction of American society, because his declaration of individual liberty showed the brilliance of his extraordinary mind but also he claims that black people are inferior. Shipler considers that Jefferson had a deep understanding but at the same time he was such an ignorant person about what was happen, at that time concerning liberty and slavery. Slavery was a contradictory subject in Jefferson’s life. Although he was a defender for individual freedom and at one point he was against of slavery in America, but he owned slaves throughout his life. He was a politician that would speak out about slavery but would still employ slaves for his own use.
Territorial Issues Before the onset of the Great American Civil War, a huge debate was raging among the citizens, and politicians of the Untied States. Slavery was the main issue that separated the Northern and Southern states, but another, more complicated issue was at hand. As settlers began to talk about the “Manifest Destiny,” and expand westward, new territories were being given statehood. The formation of these new states rose to a new question: should these new states welcome slavery within their boundaries? Three distinct positions were taken on this issue.
The South felt that Lincoln should not do slavery and take away their economy or their way of life. The South also felt that each state had the right to vote on any law. African Americans wanted to be treated fair. One reason why they wanted to be treated fair is because they did not want to be slaves anymore. But the most important reason was because African American wanted to have the right to vote.
The territorial expansion of the United States played a great role in the Civil war because it indirectly affected slavery. The United States expanding meant that the North and South would have to agree on whether the new territories would be admitted as free or slave territories. Before new states were added, there was balance among the country. Once new territories were added, the
John Gunn HST 367 September 35, 2012 The North and South: Too Far Apart to Avoid War Although the Civil War was not originally fought to save or destroy the institution of slavery, the deep seeded tension between the slave and free states created over this topic of slavery made such a war inevitable. There were many factors that contributed to tensions which started the American Civil War however the most important of those factors was the institution of slavery. The American Civil War was inevitable due to the schisms ingrained within the nation that were created through fundamental differences in ideas and policies mostly concerning slavery and its expansion, People in the North and the South felt very differently about the topic
New policies such as the Free Soil Appeal angered southerners because it limited the southern power in the federal government and sought to bar slavery in the new western territory. Slavery became very important in the south due to the expansion of farming lands plus an increase in the demand for cotton. This required the need for free labor or slave labor in order for the southerners to be able to afford such vast expansions. When considering all of the factors that caused the civil war Lincoln is only responsible for that cause in the event that he was elected President. There were many other causes that steered the country into a civil war including the fight between slave holding and non-slave states, the dispute between state versus federal rights, and economical and social differences between the two divisions none of which were Lincoln’s fault.
Douglas developed his own doctrine of letting the people decide the question of slavery. He ridiculed Lincoln about his idea of state uniformity rather than domestic institutions and accused him of promoting a war of sectionalism. He also mocked “black Republicans” who he accused of demanding racial equality. Overall, he believed in the Southern interest, but supported popular sovereignty and ultimately alienated Southern voters. On the other hand Lincoln shared some Southern attitudes towards slaves as he agreed with the Dred Scott decision that slaves could not be citizens and refused to support the Fugitive Slave Law as well.