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The Civil War 1861 – 1865. Essential Questions. What social, political, and economic issues tended to divide Americans in the period prior to the Civil War? Why did the election of Abraham Lincoln seem to exacerbate sectional tensions in the prewar period?
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Essential Questions • What social, political, and economic issues tended to divide Americans in the period prior to the Civil War? • Why did the election of Abraham Lincoln seem to exacerbate sectional tensions in the prewar period? • What impact did political and military leadership have on the conduct of the war? • How did the war affect minorities during the period (women, free blacks, slaves, immigrants)? • How did the Civil War “make” modern America?
Fundamental Causes of the War • Sectionalism and states’ rights • Slavery • Economic issues
The Dividing Union • Missouri Compromise (1820) • Compromise of 1850 and the Fugitive Slave Law • Kansas–Nebraska Act (1854) • Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857) Dred Scott Cartoon criticizing the Fugitive Slave Law
The Election of 1860 Abraham Lincoln Stephen A. Douglas John C. Breckin-ridge John Bell
Secession • South Carolina was first to secede • Several other states followed soon after • Virginia seceded after the Battle of Fort Sumter Seceding states appear in green
Discussion Questions • What were the three fundamental causes of the Civil War? Which do you think was the most important? Why? • How did the Dred Scott decision help bring the country closer to civil war? Do you think the decision made civil war inevitable? Why or why not? • While running for president, Abraham Lincoln said that he had no plans to abolish slavery. Why then did Southerners fear his election so much?
The Creation of the Confederacy • Delegates met in Montgomery, Alabama • Formed the Confederate States of America • Jefferson Davis elected president, with Alexander Stephens as vice president CSA President Jefferson Davis
Buchanan’s Inaction • Believed secession was illegal, but that acting to prevent it was also illegal • Decided to let the incoming administration handle the problem President James Buchanan