Transcript THE CIVIL WAR - Crum's Class

THE WAR
WHAT GOT US HERE?
THE STARTING POINT
• To begin to understand the divisions that
erupted into the Civil War, we must first
understand the way that the nation
developed in the early 1800s.
THE BIG PICTURE SUMMARY
• Social and cultural differences emerged
first during the colonial period based
largely on the cultures of the people who
settled there.
• These differences were increased by the
economic specialties that resulted from
differences in geography of the regions.
THE BIG PICTURE SUMMARY
• Finally, increased regional pride led to
self-interested sectionalism.
• The development of the Western territories
exacerbated the tensions between the
North and the South, leading eventually to
secession and war.
THE NORTH
• Heavily affected by:
– Puritan culture of New England
– Quaker culture of Pennsylvania
– Population diversity of commercial cities
like New York City and Boston
THE NORTH
• Focus on industry, not agriculture
• Very few slaves
• Immigrants attracted to region for
industrial jobs
• Several large cities
• Supported regional interests like a
national bank and high tariffs
THE SOUTH
• Heavily affected by:
– Plantation culture of colonial days
– The privileged class that dominated its
government and economy
– Strong agricultural economy
THE SOUTH
• Focus on agriculture, not industry
• Many slaves
• Immigrants not attracted to region
because of few industrial jobs
• Not many large cities
• Supported regional interests like low
tariffs and the spread of slavery into
Western territories
THE WEST
• Heavily affected by:
– Settlers seeking land and wealth
– The native land from which settlers
came
THE WEST
• Settlers in the Northwest Territories
(i.e. California, Ohio) reflected values
of the North
• Settlers in the Southwest Territories
(i.e. Kentucky, Texas) reflected values
of the South
• Supported regional interests like cheap
land and internal improvements.
DOMINANT THEORIES
• Taking all these differences into account
and viewing the “Events of Sectionalism,”
such as Kansas-Nebraska fighting and the
abolitionist movement, there have
developed two dominant modern theories
about the “cause” of the Civil War.
FRANK L. OWSLEY
• “The Irrepressible Conflict” (1940)
– The cause of the Civil War was egocentric
sectionalism.
– This sectionalism was based on agrarianism
vs. capitalism.
FRANK L. OWSLEY
• “The Irrepressible Conflict” (1940)
– The greatest manifestation of this
sectionalism was the lack of respect that the
North had for the South.
– This “language of insult” turned ugly with the
Missouri Compromise.
FRANK L. OWSLEY
• “The Irrepressible Conflict” (1940)
– In this debate, the North was very insulting
toward the South.
– The South took offense to its cherished
Honor.
– The results of the insults led to
misconceptions, disrespect, and a refusal of
multiculturalism.
J. G. Randall
• “The Blundering
Generation” (1940)
– There is no single root
cause of the Civil War.
– Instead, the Civil War
was a result of
constant and multiple
blundering.
J. G. Randall
• “The Blundering Generation” (1940)
– It started out as a debate between minority
factions and was compounded to War by
overreactions, political motives, selfishness,
and ulterior motives.
J. G. Randall
• “The Blundering Generation” (1940)
– This series of misrepresentations caused
people to get involved for the wrong reasons.
– Each smaller debate could have been solved
on its own, but when they were all combined,
they snowballed into War.