What Was The Turning Point Of The Civil War

The Civil War is one of many names and remembered as a very dark time for the nation. It would also be one of the biggest turning points in American history. The North and South began their slow divide decades before what would be known as the Civil War. There were many contributors to this divide but the main differences between the nation were the balance of power in the federal government and slavery. These would ultimately lead to the divide of the Union when the North and South separated resulting in the Civil War. The drifting of the North and South started in as early as the first English settlements in Jamestown, Virginia, when the first cargo of African slaves was taken there. It would be the beginning of the battle of race-based

The North and the South developed two very different interpretations of what the Constitution meant. The argument between them was whether individual states had more political power versus the federal government. The Constitution was vague when it came to the terms of slavery and states’ rights. The North believed that the federal government had the power to decide to regulate or ultimately abolish slavery in the states. Although, the South believed that individual states had the right to decide whether they wanted to keep slavery and be a slave state or become a free state. As previously stated, the differing opinions on the need for slavery caused a great drift between the states and their interpretation on the balance of power in the federal government. The South relied heavily on slavery for their own prosperity while the North was exceedingly becoming less dependent and removed from the idea of slavery. The growing of the Union also created greater tension between the two parts of the nation. Westward expansion started to upset the balance between free and slave states. Both the North and the South feared the other winning majority vote and forcing their ideals onto the other. The South was concerned the North would abolish slavery and ruin their economy, while the North was immensely against the expansion of creating for slave states and the multifaction of slavery. This

Although, he tried in his best effort to keep the Union together the South would think otherwise. When Abraham Lincoln, who was known to be against slavery was elected president in 1891, South Carolina saw this as a threat to themselves and the southern states. This is when the delegates voted to remove South Carolina from the Union. In hopes to save their economy and lifestyles from what they believed to be a great threat. Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi followed the lead of South Carolina and seceded from the Union as the United States of America. Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Arkansas also threatened to secede from the Union. On February 4 of 1861 the states that seceded created a new government called the Confederacy. The Confederacy would resemble the United States Constitution although it would ultimately protect the South’s rights to own slaves in their newfound secession. As the secession began the states started to seize federal United States property throughout the South, for example, the famous Fort Sumter on the coast of Charleston, South Carolina was one of those properties. The Fort was very undersupplied, and President Lincoln planned to send them supplies. Despite the fact that President Lincoln warned them in an attempt to avoid conflict with the Southern states the Confederacy