I feel like what i learned in school about the american civil war wasnt the whole story (Roman, Europeans)
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I think you're over emphasizing the "slaves running away to the north thing".
That may have been the pretext of the South thinking the federal government wasn't doing its part to uphold state law and therefore leaving the union since the union wasn't doing anything to benefit the south anyway, but overall it was a much smaller issue in comparison to the breakdown of the Missouri Compromise. Knowing that all future territorial states can be representative of the opposing party at the national level who can then further diminish the power of your region by national political majority is a much bigger deal than a couple runaway slaves.
I agree. The runaway problem was a minor thing compared to the main event. When the southern elite looked into the future they saw that slavery was doomed if they stayed in the Union in an increasingly hostile political reality. In all likelihood there would be no more slave states added to the Union and they lose their ability to fend off anti-slavery policy and legislation. Preservation of slavery was their one and only cause. In that context, Lincoln's commitment to preserving the Union was as much an anti-slavery commitment as it was pro-Union. The two things could not coexist much longer.
I think you're over emphasizing the "slaves running away to the north thing".
That may have been the pretext of the South thinking the federal government wasn't doing its part to uphold state law and therefore leaving the union since the union wasn't doing anything to benefit the south anyway, but overall it was a much smaller issue in comparison to the breakdown of the Missouri Compromise. Knowing that all future territorial states can be representative of the opposing party at the national level who can then further diminish the power of your region by national political majority is a much bigger deal than a couple runaway slaves.
Henry Louis Gates would have no reason to downplay the number of slaves who escaped to freedom and he seems to think the number would have been between 25,000 and 40,000 during the entire history of the United States, and says the highest "reasonable" number might be 50,000. He also makes the point that most runaway slaves were fleeing to some other place in the slave states--about 50,000 per year. Nearly all slaves that made it to the North were young males. On slave schedules done at the 1850 and 1860 censuses there is a box to be checked for cases in which the owner or overseer reported that a slave had escaped during the last year, and it is extremely rare to find any such case reported, at least in the many Deep South forms I have seen.
Henry Louis Gates would have no reason to downplay the number of slaves who escaped to freedom and he seems to think the number would have been between 25,000 and 40,000 during the entire history of the United States, and says the highest "reasonable" number might be 50,000. He also makes the point that most runaway slaves were fleeing to some other place in the slave states--about 50,000 per year. Nearly all slaves that made it to the North were young males. On slave schedules done at the 1850 and 1860 censuses there is a box to be checked for cases in which the owner or overseer reported that a slave had escaped during the last year, and it is extremely rare to find any such case reported, at least in the many Deep South forms I have seen.
Preservation of slavery was their one and only cause. In that context, Lincoln's commitment to preserving the Union was as much an anti-slavery commitment as it was pro-Union. The two things could not coexist much longer.
Agree,
so the Civil War was fought over slavery (preservation of slavery)
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ziggy100
Becoming a new country isn’t the solution to that problem.
Of course it is,
they would deploy their army to the border and put walls, fences, etc.
The civil war was fought over slavery (slaves running away to the North and the South getting mad about it)
It wasn't fought to stop slavery
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ziggy100
I think you're over emphasizing the "slaves running away to the north thing".
That may have been the pretext of the South thinking the federal government wasn't doing its part to uphold state law and therefore leaving the union since the union wasn't doing anything to benefit the south anyway, but overall it was a much smaller issue in comparison to the breakdown of the Missouri Compromise. Knowing that all future territorial states can be representative of the opposing party at the national level who can then further diminish the power of your region by national political majority is a much bigger deal than a couple runaway slaves.
I agree with Ziggy. I think you are overemphasizing the slaves running away to freedom as a cause of the Civil War. However I do think slaves running away may have been a contributing factor. Like I said slavery was both a direct cause and indirect cause in the Civil War. Slaves escaping to the Free States and Canada was probably more of an indirect cause, a long term irritant that was hurting relations between the North and South.
I agree with Ziggy. I think you are overemphasizing the slaves running away to freedom as a cause of the Civil War. However I do think slaves running away may have been a contributing factor. Like I said slavery was both a direct cause and indirect cause in the Civil War. Slaves escaping to the Free States and Canada was probably more of an indirect cause, a long term irritant that was hurting relations between the North and South.
If it wasn't that, then what was it?
That's what all the secession articles say
I agree with Ziggy. I think you are overemphasizing the slaves running away to freedom as a cause of the Civil War. However I do think slaves running away may have been a contributing factor. Like I said slavery was both a direct cause and indirect cause in the Civil War. Slaves escaping to the Free States and Canada was probably more of an indirect cause, a long term irritant that was hurting relations between the North and South.
You might be familiar with some of the old slave runaway posters. One poster has a reward of $2500.00 for the return of maybe three or four slaves. That is roughly the equivalent of 16 years wages for the average farm worker in the south. The slow trickle of slaves running off was a major concern. There is a well known case of southerners forcing the US government to spend over a million dollars for the return of a single slave.
It was more than an irritant. In today's dollars a conservative number for the price of a slave is over $23,000 per slave but the real problem was the loss of earning income of that slave. That figure is closer to $200,000. It didn't take a mass exodus for southerners to start to panic and try to change laws to force the national government to intervene on their behalf for the return of slaves in the north.
If it wasn't that, then what was it?
That's what all the secession articles say
Again, you’re not seeing the forest through the trees. You’re getting distracted by the word slavery.
Slavery itself isn’t the lessons learned. It’s just a 19th century political topic which is useless in trying to avoid similar future conflicts and making the same mistakes.
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