Causes of the American Civil War – In my View by D. R. Davis

I was recently asked why the American Civil War started -- Here is my answer:

Causes of the American Civil War – In my View by D. R. Davis

I will be the first to admit that I don’t know everything ab out anything. There are stories I have heard from my family that give me some guidance. There are history books from “way back when” and from more recent days. There are dissertations and master’s theses I have read to learn more about many things. The America Civil War – The South’s Rebellion – The War of Northern Aggression – it’s one of them. The Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution states: “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.” This, for me was a foundational cause of the Civil War – indulge me if you will.

The industrial revolution brought great change to the American way of doing business. What had been primarily agricultural became more industrial oriented. Factories were booming and railroads crossed the land. However, the South led a more genteel way of life. The fertile soil required much work and many hands to till and harvest. And as the West was just opening, at this point, the south was the primary source for products grown that were used in the northern factories – like cotton. The many hands principal had led to the purchase of humanity, sold from their homes by their own tribal enemies to English, French, and Indian tradesmen. These tradesmen brought the slaves to America where they were purchased in the North and South at slave markets – make no mistake, these slaves included Africans, Irish, Indians, and others who were sold to pay family debts or as lost wages.

From the perspective of the landowner, a slave was property, like a good horse, or in these days, that new John Deere Combine. Paid for handsomely, given a place to stay and what was necessary to keep running. Understanding now that the ownership of another human is despicable in practice, but still lingers world-wide, we must put our mindset back into the arena. 

So, when the industrial North put pressure on the more agrarian South to change their lifestyle, the South stood firm. About this time, the country was expanding to the west. Falling back on the 10^th Amendment, states in the South were taking action to continue their lifestyle, including slavery, and wanted the West to be a place they could expand – taking their manners and their slaves. The North felt similarly, but was pushing for a Federal mandate to end the slave issue without concern over what it would do to the South. While the North had farms, they were smaller, and could be worked with fewer hands, leading to ignorance in the manner of life more common in the South. So, with the onset of the Republican party and the dissolution of the Whigs, it became apparent that the lifestyle of the South was going to fade. Not, however, without a struggle.

In the North, it was more common for the aristocrats to buy their way out of service, though it happened in the South as well. In the South, however, the fight was about of cherished way of life – a desire for continuation – and an oppression against change. These were ideals for which the plantation owners – and their slaves were willing to fight. Make no mistake, many slaves fought on both sides.

In the North, there was a Federal Army overseeing the network of Infantry through the states.  While states had their own battalions or regiments, they were frequently inter-melded. In the South, and estate, plantation, or community would more likely be the foundation of a battalion or regiment. Leadership came from within the community, and only at the higher levels were there any co-mingling of ideas, plans, or interests. In some ways, that was part of the South’s downfall. I believe the significant leadership of Robert E. Lee – a West Point Graduate – was the reason the South was as successful as they were.

In the end, however, the South simply did not have the resources to keep fighting. The Naval Blockage ended their outside access, and their crops were ruined by the war and the ravaging soldiers from both sides. Sherman’s march to the sea was a devastation not prior felt. The acrimony lingers.

Like a broken bone can heal to be stronger than before but still bears some tenderness, so too do our North and South. As with most things, the specific elements of truth are not black and white, but 256 shades of grey. The fight of the Grey and the Blue is the same. Was slavery an issue? Yes. But more importantly, this was a test of our Constitution, and our ability to determine our future as a more Federal oriented or State oriented Republic. This was a war of ideology and faith, and tradition and lifestyle, and love and hate, and like all wars – in many ways senseless and sad.

That’s my view, Deb Davis