Video:Top 5 Causes of the Civil War

Transcript:Top 5 Causes of the Civil War

The Civil War lasted from 1861 to 1865 and led to over 618,000 casualties. Its causes can be traced back to tensions that formed early in the nation's history.

Causes of the Civil War: Economic and Social Differences Between the North and South

With Eli Whitney's invention of the cotton gin in 1793, cotton became very profitable. At the same time the increase in the number of plantations willing to move from other crops to cotton meant the greater need for a large amount of cheap labor -- that is, slaves. Thus, the southern economy became a one crop economy, depending on cotton and therefore on slavery.

On the other hand, the northern economy was based more on industry than agriculture. The South was based on the plantation system while the North was focused on city life. This change in the North meant that society evolved as people of different cultures and classes had to work together. On the other hand, the South continued to hold onto an antiquated social order.

Causes of the Civil War: States' Rights Versus Federal Rights

The first organized government in the U.S. after the American Revolution was under the Articles of Confederation. The 13 states formed a loose confederation with a very weak federal government.

However, when problems arose, the weakness of this form of government caused the leaders of the time to come together at the Constitutional Convention and create, in secret, the U.S. Constitution. Many felt that the new constitution ignored the rights of states to continue to act independently.

This resulted in the idea of nullification, whereby the states would have the right to rule federal acts unconstitutional. The federal government denied states this right. When nullification would not work and states felt that they were no longer respected, they moved towards secession.

Causes of the Civil War: the Fight Between Slave and Non-Slave State Proponents

As America began to expand, first with the lands gained from the Louisiana Purchase and later with the Mexican War, the question was raised whether new states admitted to the union would be slave or free.

Another issue that further increased tensions was the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854. It created two new territories that would allow the states to use popular sovereignty to determine whether they would be free or slave states.

Causes of the Civil War: the Growth of the Abolition Movement

Increasingly, the northerners became more polarized against slavery. Sympathies began to grow for abolitionists and against slavery and slaveholders.

Causes of the Civil War: the Election of Abraham Lincoln

Even though things were already coming to a head, when Lincoln was elected in 1860, South Carolina issued its "Declaration of the Causes of Secession."

They believed that Lincoln was anti-slavery and in favor of Northern interests. Before Lincoln was even president, seven states had seceded from the Union: South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas.

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