Compare And Contrast The Revolutionary War And The Civil War

“Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves.” - Abraham Lincoln. The two bloodiest wars on American soil were the Civil War and the Revolutionary War. Both affected America greatly. One formed America, the other reunited it. These two wars have many similarities as well as differences. Both the Revolutionary War and the Civil War were caused by oppression. In the Revolutionary War, the colonists were being treated unfairly by the British. They were taxed and limited in many ways and had no representation in Europe. As James Otis said during this time, “Taxation without representation is tyranny.” In the Civil War, the Southern states rejected the abolitionist movement. They claimed that slavery was a “state right.” They chose to secede from the Union, starting the Civil War. So while both wars were against tyranny, the Revolutionary War was against tyranny against the colonies, the Civil War was against tyranny against an entire race.

Further, both were fought between armies with a common heritage. In the Revolutionary War, many of the colonists considered themselves to be British and had family members in Great Britain. In the Civil War, that common heritage was more intense as the soldiers were citizens of the United States. In fact, the Civil War has been called the “Brother’s War,” as families often had relatives fighting on either side of the conflict. While the combatants of both wars shared a common heritage, the Civil War brought that common heritage to a new level with families torn apart by the