A Brief History
On March 30, 1855, pro-slavery raiders called “Border Ruffians” poured into Kansas from Missouri to sway elections in Kansas to pro-slavery.
Digging Deeper
Kansas became a state in 1861 that did not permit slavery. The admission of Kansas as a “free” state was a cause of the US Civil War, a topic that has become political kryptonite during the 2024 election year.
Why did the US fight the Civil War? This question still baffles some of our contemporary politicians, and so today, we list some of the reasons.
First, slavery was not the only issue, although it was the main issue. Slave states feared Northern states would outlaw slavery, and Confederate states said as much in their declarations of secession.
Second, the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 was seen by Southerners as a dangerous political development for the South.
Third, tariffs, favored by the North and hated by the South, are sometimes cited as another cause of the Civil War.
Note: The simple answer to the question, “Why did the US fight a Civil War?” is that 11 Southern states seceded and the Lincoln administration deemed that action to be illegal and strove to preserve the Union of the US. This answer does not address the underlying causes of why the Southern states seceded, which we touched upon in this article.
Question for students (and subscribers): Why do you think the Southern states seceded? Please let us know in the comments section below this article.
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Historical Evidence
For more information, please see…
Calore, Paul. The Causes of the Civil War: The Political, Cultural, Economic and Territorial Disputes between North and South. McFarland, 2008.
Stampp, Kenneth. The Causes of the Civil War: Revised Edition. Touchstone, 1992.
The featured image in this article, an illustration of border ruffians entering the Kansas Territory by F. O. C. Darley, is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, public domain work of art. The work of art itself is in the public domain for the following reason: This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author’s life plus 100 years or fewer.
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