The American Civil War

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Where it all begins

In American History very few actions change the course of American history like the Civil war. The Dred Scott decision through America into chaos. Compromise was no longer possible and the only way to solve the nations pronlems seemed like war. As a result America was further divided, more Northerners became abolitionists and America was further than ever from being a unified nation. Political issues and disagreements began soon after the American Revolution ended in 1782. Between the years 1800 and 1860, arguments between the North and South grew more intense.

The years before the Civil War the political power in the Federal government, centered in Washington, D.C., was changing. Northern and mid-western states were becoming more and more powerful as the populations increased. Southern states lost political power because the population did not increase as rapidly. As one portion of the nation grew larger than another, people began to talk of the nation as sections. This was called sectionalism. Just as the original thirteen colonies fought for their independence almost 100 years earlier, the Southern states felt a growing need for freedom from the central Federal authority in Washington. Southerners believed that state laws carried more weight than Federal laws, and they should abide by the state regulations first. This issue was called State's Rights and became a very warm topic in congress. One of the main quarrels was about taxes paid on goods brought into this country from foreign countries. This tax was called a tariff. Southerners felt these tariffs were unfair and aimed toward them because they imported a wider variety of go...

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...easons for the war and misunderstandings between North and South. The armies were raised and marched off to war. It was only after many battles and many lives were lost that the American people realized how horrible war really was. The soldiers communicated with their families and loved ones and told them of the hardships they endured and terrible scenes they had witnessed.

The fighting of the American Civil War would last four long years at a cost of 620,000 lives. In the end the Northern states prevailed- our country remained united, the Federal government was changed forever, and slavery came to an end.

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