The Causes of the Civil War
The South, which was known as the Confederate States of America, tried to secede from the North, which was also known as the Union, for many different reasons. One reason they wanted to secede was because there were four decades of great conflict between the two. Between the North and South there were deep economic, social, and political differences. The South wanted to become an independent nation. The main reason had to do with the North's view on slavery. All of this was basically a different interpretation of the United States Constitution on both sides. In the end, all of these disagreements on both sides led to the Civil War, which the North won.
There were a few reasons other than the slavery issue, that the South disagreed on and that persuaded them want to secede from the Union. Basically the North favored a loose interpretation of the United States Constitution.
English: Abraham Lincoln, the sixteenth President ...
North Street (Ahead) Arthur Street (Left & Right) ...
English: Confederate General Robert E. Lee poses i...They wanted to grant the federal government increased powers. "The South wanted to reserve all undefined powers to the individual states" (Harrison). The North also wanted internal improvements sponsored by the federal government. These improvements were more roads, railroads, and canals. The South, on the other hand, did not want these projects to be done at all. Also the North wanted to develop a tariff. A high tariff protected the Northern manufacturer. The high tariff was bad for the South because a high tariff would not let the south trade its cotton for foreign goods. The North also wanted a good banking and currency system and federal subsidies for shipping and internal improvements. The South felt these were discriminatory and that they favored Northern commercial interests.
In 1791, the tenth amendment was added to the Constitution. The tenth amendment states, "The powers not...