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Cause And Effect Of The Civil War Essay

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The American Civil War, a defining point in United States history resonates even up to modern times. What began as a dispute over government powers and the expansion of slavery soon metamorphosed into an impassioned war over Southern honor and the abolition of slavery. The broadened purpose of the Civil War was by far an effect of the inundation of African American participation in Union war efforts. Free black men volunteered in large numbers at the start of the war, but President Abraham Lincoln feared that their enlistment may lose the Union support of border states such as Maryland, Missouri, and Kentucky and lead to secession of those states (Escott). Consequently, African Americans were not permitted to join the Union army until late in 1862, subsequent to the passing of the Second Confiscation and Militia Act, freeing slaves that had masters in the Confederate army, and Lincoln’s signature and approval of the Emancipation Proclamation which freed african american slaves in rebellious states, which were all of the Confederate states at war with the Union. For instance, Frederick Douglass zealously encouraged …show more content…

Although they were known for their ferocity and valor in battle, prejudiced sentiment certainly was present in their treatment compared to their white soldier counterparts (Kennedy). An example of this was the wage disparity between the white soldiers and African American soldiers in the colored regiments. African American soldiers were paid $10 a month, from which $3 were deducted automatically for clothing. By contrast, white soldiers were paid $13 a month, from which there was no deduction ("Black Soldiers in the U.S. Military during the Civil War.”). This only changed in June, 1864 when Congress retroactively passed a legislation for equal wages for African American soldiers ("Black Soldiers in the U.S. Military during the Civil

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The Emancipation Proclamation stated “Such persons of suitable conditions, will be received into the armed forces of the United States” (National Archives). The passing of this order allowed more African Americans to fight for their freedom in the Civil

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During the Civil War, the Emancipation Proclamation was issued by Abraham Lincoln; it declared that “All person’s held as slaves within the rebellious states henceforward shall be free”, but blacks still felt that they were being treated unfairly. Slaves responded to the Emancipation Proclamation by leaving their overseers and dividing the land and implements among themselves. When opportunity came, two-hundred thousand blacks joined the Union army, Historian James McPheron says: “Without their help, the North could not have won the war as soon as it did, and perhaps it could not have won at all” (194), but when blacks were in the Union army and the northern cities during the war, it gave hints of how limited the emancipation would be. Black

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The Civil War was fought during 1861 through 1865 between the Southern and Northern parts of the United States. The North, or the Union, wanted to abolish slavery, but the South, called the Confederates, wanted to keep slavery as well as secede from the Union. This war started at Fort Sumter and was won by the North. Hostility between the North and South grew noticeably after the year of the Missouri Compromise, 1820 (“Civil War” 1). In 1852, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, a book about slave life, became the second best-selling book in 19th Century America, behind the Bible, and opened the eyes of Northerners.

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After African Americans had the opportunity to prove themselves in the Civil War that didn't change how the whites viewed the African Americans. Throughout the years African Americans we're slowly accepted into society it wasn't until Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, and etc. came along end change the lives of all African Americans in the United States. Overall having African Americans join the Union Army helped the Union when the Civil War by giving them more opportunities and giving them a higher chance of winning the Civil

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1328 Words | 6 Pages

African Americans played a major role in the causes and effects of the Civil War. Between 1861 and 1870, African American slaves went from being the reason why the war started to changing the nation to allow more rights for blacks. Before the war, African Americans were treated horribly whether they were free or enslaved. There were many occurrences that diminished the rights of blacks. Due to the fact that African American slaves were running away from their owners to the North, the Fugitive Slave Act was established in the Compromise of 1850.

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Fight you, then exclusively to save the Union. I issued the proclamation on purpose to aid you in saving the Union. Whenever you shall have conquered all resistance to the Union, if I shall urge you to continue fighting, it will be an apt time, then, for you to declare you will not fight to free negroes.” (Percoco, n.d.) “As a result, on July 17, 1862, Congress passed the Second Confiscation and Militia Act, freeing slaves who had masters in the Confederate Army.

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The period before the outbreak of the Civil War was one of the most tense in American history. As the Civil War began, African Americans in the North were largely excluded from the military. Only a few black regiments took shape in the some of the Union-occupied areas of the Confederacy. When Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation black enlistment increased rapidly and the Union military began to recruit Buffalo Soldiers (African Americans) soldiers and sailors. After 1863 the Buffalo soldier would play a crucial role in the Union’s victory over the Confederacy.

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Freed slaves enthusiastically responded to this new right, Foner states that ‘by the war's end some 180,000 blacks had served in the Union army- over one-fifth of the adult male black population of the United States below the age of forty-five.’ African Americans willingness to fight for the Union alongside white men furthered the emancipation cause in that it further associated them as citizens of the United States making the idea of emancipation all the more acceptable to many. The significant increase in the size of the military due to the addition of freed slaves meant that the Union was more successful in battles. African Americans were therefore associated with the military successes that eventually led to the Confederacy’s defeat in 1865. This can be seen as a result of the Emancipation Proclamation, but also suggests how the activism of African Americans ensured they were accepted in the armed forces, moving them closer

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During the war, many white soldiers quit and ran away from war because they did not want to fight alongside African American soldiers or fight to end slavery. Near the end of the war, slave owners in the South would often have their slaves enlist or help do labor around camps. Northerners had many freed slaves backing them, which saved or lessened the impact of many battles. Also, the Emancipation Proclamation had many indirect effects on the war, from an increased army size to the countless free African Americans helping on the homefront. Freed slaves fighting in war changed the tides of many battles, the war would not be the same without

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Throughout the early years of the war, many Northerners regarded the Civil War to be a “white man’s war”, but in March of 1863, several months after President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, the North formed African American regiments. The Civil War was transitioning from a war solely about the preservation of the Union to one also concerning the Emancipation of the slaves. As African Americans were allowed to enlist by the federal government for the first time, the war shifted from being a struggle between white Americans over the fate of the Union to one where African Americans were active participants in the struggle for their own freedom, creating a sense of uneasiness among white Northerners as African American recruits were armed and sent into

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Seven slavery southern states individually declared their secession from the U.S and formed the ‘’Confederacy,’’ or the ‘’South.’’ The ‘’Northern’’ states, or ‘’Union,’’ didn’t declared their secession. This, known as the civil war(1860-1865) lasted four years, and led over more than 600,000 confederates dead. The war had its conflicts over slavery, especially its extension over the western territories. The war destroyed much of the south, leading to the collapse of the Confederacy, and the abolishment of slavery.

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Did you know that more men died the Civil War than any other American conflict, and one third of the dead perished from disease? The American Civil War was the war fought between the Union and Confederacy from 1861 to 1865 over the issue of slavery and state’s rights. The main issues leading up to the Civil War were Missouri’s statehood, the Kansas-Nebraska Act, and the Election of 1860. One of the main causes of the Civil War was the issue of Missouri becoming a state.

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685 Words | 3 Pages

Causes of the Civil War “No, if destruction be our lot we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of free men we will live forever or die by suicide,” - Abraham Lincoln. The Civil War is known as one of the greatest tragedies in American history. With over 620,000 deaths, it is by far the most devastating war (“Civil War Facts”). When studying the Civil War, one must question why it even happened in the first place.

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In conclusion, the Civil War had many causes and effects. Some of them were positive and some of them were negative. During the Civil War, America was in rough circumstances. People argued and debated against each other. The North and the South had tensions between them which was not good for America.

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The American Civil War was the war that ended slavery. The civil war was known as one of the bloodiest and deadliest conflicts the United States had ever seen. The loss of life was an estimated amount of 620,000 men. It lasted four years, from April 12, 1861, through May 9, 1865. However, while slavery was a major cause of the American Civil War, there were several other major factors.

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