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Why Did The South Break The Primary Cause Of The Civil War Essay

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The southern secession from the Union increased pressure between the South (Confederacy) and the North (Union). The South’s attempts on withdrawal proved the fact that the South and the North were destined to fall apart after growing tensions between the two sides. For years, historians have been debating the point if the South had the right to secede from the Union. While some historians argue that the South could leave due to legality, others claim that it is a breaking the Constitutional Oath that the states would stay together. The secession of the Confederacy was a primary cause of the civil war. The Union wanted to keep the country together, while the South wanted to become independent, just as they had from Britain. Due to legality …show more content…

The Union believed that both the Confederacy and Union had to agree before the Confederacy could secede, due to the binding Constitution. Although, the North violated the agreement which would give the South full permission to leave the Union. In the Constitution, it states, “No person held to service or labor in one state… be discharged from service or labor, but shall be delivered up, on claim of the [person] to whom such service or labor may be due… [The North States] have enacted laws, which [nullifies] the Act of Congress … Thus the constituted compact has been deliberately broken… ,” (Document E). This statement shows the fact that taking away slaves would be taking away the Confederates’ services, which is against the Constitution. In addition, the Northern States have nullified the Fugitive Slave Act, which is illegal, so they were technically breaking the law first. This is especially shown at ‘.. have enacted laws, which [nullifies] the Acts of Congress,” which further proves that the North States have already broken their contract as a country by circumventing a law. Therefore, the agreement between them had broke, so the South had the right to leave the Union with free

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