Election Of Lincoln And Civil War Essay free essay sample

, Research Paper How did the election of Lincoln to president in 1860 lead to civil war in the United States of America? Essay: In 1860 Abraham Lincoln was elected as president of the United States of America, the reverberations of which led to civil war. However it was non merely Lincoln # 8217 ; s election that led to civil war but besides the bondage argument between the northern and southern provinces and the province of the economic system in the United States. Together with the election of Lincoln these caused a split, both politically and ideologically, between the North and South provinces which manifested into what is now refereed to as the American Civil War. When Lincoln won the 1860 election it was non by a bulk ballot. As stated by the historian Neville he in fact won less than 40 per centum of popular ballots. However because the American election system is based on the college ballots system ( where each province is worth a certain figure of points and if a campaigner wins the bulk of ballots in that province he wins all the points for that province, irrespective of how much he wins by. To win the full election a campaigner must win the most sum of points ) he was able to win the election with a minority of ballots. Lincoln won all the provinces in the North and in the West which, because of their high population, were deserving the most points. This election caused the civil war because of what the southern provinces, the Confederate, perceived Lincoln to be. He was thought to be an emancipationist, intending a individual who wishes to get rid of bondage wholly. In fact Lincoln merely wished to halt the spread of bondage, non to get rid of it wholly. He had no purpose of altering the established societal order in the South. Historian J. J. Cosgrove sees Lincoln # 8217 ; s election as the straw that broke the camel # 8217 ; s back. He claims in his book, co-written with J. K. Kreiss, Two Centuries that the civil war can be put down to five causes ; bondage ; political prostration that eliminated via media ; sectional economic competition ; Southern patriotism ; and the consequence of fractional minorities such as emancipationists. This can be summed up as a rift between the North and south provinces. A rift between the North and the South had been present since the late 18th centaury. It began with the industrial revolution, which saw the northern provinces prosper. The North changed industries from farming and agribusiness to fabrics and mills. This in bend saw the rise of bankers and attorneies and northern metropoliss such as New York became the known as the cultural Centres of America. The southern provinces continued agribusiness and many Southerners became really affluent with the usage of slaves. The innovation of the cotton gin in 1792 by Eli Whitney increased the productiveness by about one 1000 times. This caused more prosperity in the South. However the North besides gained from this in the signifier of duties and revenue enhancements. Forty cents out of every dollar made from cotton went to the North. This sowed the seeds for bitterness of the North by the South. The South # 8217 ; s economic system was based really much on bondage. The slaves picked the cotton and baccy that powered the South. With out the slaves the South # 8217 ; s manner of life would decrease. When educated Northerners claimed bondage to be morally incorrect the slave proprietors ferociously defended their manner of life. When spiritual minorities began to emerge into the public oculus the Southern provinces viewed them as a menace. Religious society of friendss where a non-violent religious order of Christianity that preached that bondage was incorrect and morally pervert in the eyes of God. Religious society of friendss were typically flush and good away. They used their wealth to back up abolitionist newssheets such as The Liberator, whic H was run by William Lloyd Garrison. Garrison was a ardent emancipationist who would do no via media with slave proprietors and in his first publication wrote on the first page in big fount â€Å"No Union with slave owners. The United States Constitution is a compact with decease and an understanding with hell† . Partially inspired by Garrison but largely by the inhuman treatment of his maestro a Negro slave started a revolution, which was named after him as Nat Turner # 8217 ; s Insurrection. Turner and fellow slaves rose up and killed 50 White persons. This was slave proprietor # 8217 ; s worst nightmare come true. It was seen that the slaves were traveling about slaying the Whites in their beds while they slept. C. P. Hill writes that it was put down with barbarian inhuman treatment and that Garrison was blamed by the South for the rebellion Another emancipationist attempted to liberate the Negro slaves in a run where he would derive weaponries for them and they would lift up to run into him. John Brown was a violent Christian fundamentalist, who had antecedently murdered five slave proprietors with his boies by choping them to decease with matchets. His program was that he would take the armory at Harper # 8217 ; s Ferry, acquire arms for the slaves, who would fall in him at that place and together they would head south go forthing behind them a trail of freed slaves and dead slave dealers. However Brown was besieged in the armory, which saw most of his party shooting, and himself wounded. Between Brown and Turner the voice of minorities was heard in the South, but this caused the Southerners to disregard all the voices of the North as it was seen as a menace to the manner of life in the South. The manner of life was highly of import facet of the lead up to civil war. The Southerners were highly devoted to their manner of life and were willing to pay for it in blood. This is frequently described as Southern Nationalism because the south began to see itself as its ain state for which Southerners felt more commitment than the whole of the United States. Included in this belief of patriotism was the issue of province # 8217 ; s rights. The South strongly believed in each province holding the right to regulate itself with out outside intervention. It was feared by the South that Lincoln would get rid of bondage and hence interfere with province # 8217 ; s rights. Before Lincoln # 8217 ; s election the southern provinces had already proclaimed that if Lincoln were to be elected so they would splinter from the brotherhood. Unfortunately for the south the chief political party ( democrats ) split over a argument of who should take the party. Douglas, one member taking for leading of the Democrats, believed in popular sovereignty ie the population of a province choosing for itself on the affair of bondage. The other member besides taking to govern the Democrat was Breckinbridge, who believed in bondage being permitted in all provinces. The Democrat party split into the northern and southern Democrats. Because of the split Lincoln was able to win the election, upon which the southern provinces succeeded from the brotherhood. In decision the election of Lincoln as president in 1860 caused a civil war because it was falsely perceived by the South that Lincoln would endanger the province # 8217 ; s constitutional right to slavery. This false thought was due to a rift between the northern and southern provinces in both an economic and ideological mode. That is the North was based on industry and by and large was opposed to slavery. But the South was an agricultural society which ran on bondage and, due to Nat Turner # 8217 ; s Insurrection and John Brown # 8217 ; s base at Harper # 8217 ; s Ferry, was fearful of the north # 8217 ; s engagement in the government of provinces every bit good as being opposed to this on the footing of province # 8217 ; s rights. The election of Lincoln caused the South to win from the brotherhood doing civil war.