Slavery in U.S. History
Introduction
During the 17th and 18th century, people were caught or kidnapped from Africa and forced to slavery in the American Colonies. More than a few Africans that were kidnapped were forcefully exploited to work as servants and labour in farms of cotton and tobacco. Slavery and the slave trade in the Americas date to 1619. Africans before they were known as African Americans were brought to help on the tobacco fields which would then boost the production of tobacco for trade and help the increase of what the economy needs during this time. Africans captured from Africa were considered property to others in many ways than just one. During that period, Africans were bought and sold as property and treated as slaves from the very beginning. This essay will discuss the origins of slavery in the American colonies and its role in causing the civil war.
Throughout history, there have been many wars abroad with bloody battles that lost many men for a good cause. There are many theories and widely known debates that would come up as to why and how the American Civil War started. The North or the Union found that slavery was morally wrong while the South or Confederacy thought it to most economical. Some of the greatest battles happened to fight against slavery and for slavery which is known as the American Civil war on our soil. Some factors played a key role in being the cause of the American Civil War (Baker 232).
To abolish or keep slavery was the biggest factor that ultimately decided the war. The South or Confederacy seceded from the Union because of their beliefs on the issue of slavery. Soon after cotton was introduced to the plantations becoming the number one cash cow of the era. But before cotton became as popular as it was the economy of the southern states was starting to crash even though they had the best agriculture. Then there was an invention that would change how the economy is complete. A man by the name of Eli Whitney created what was known as the Cotton Gin in 1793 (Birkenseer 232).
This invention would change the decline of the economy with an increase in the cotton trade. This made it very important for slavery to be apart from life during this time. The plantation owner saw this was a great opportunity but did not want to work themselves and because they own slaves it was free labour. In 1760 there were only six states that had slaves, but by 1860 it had increased to 15 states and one in every three people in the South was a slave (Hummel 349). This would start a trend that would lead to the south complete downfall.
During this era more and more immigrants were coming to the United States by the boatload. Majority of the immigrants that came to the United States were from Ireland and worked in the manufacturing companies which led the North to not have slaves doing their work. The Southern states had the firm belief that the slaves had a much better life than the immigrants even though it was proven not to be. Therefore, it is a widely known debate between the North and the South with the working conditions of slaves and immigrants.
In the 1810 census, there were two million people in the United States, and 20 per cent of this was made up of black slaves who resided in the Southern United States. They were only considered to be three-fifths of a person and were not even allowed to vote Slaves were in captivity by white plantation owners in certain states such as Maryland, Delaware, The Carolinas, Virginia and others. The states beyond the Mason Dixon line were considered the south. This split in the fabric of the country began a bitter war, concluding in the death of more than 750,000 soldiers, (Hummel 435).
Before the American Civil War even commenced, in the south the agriculture had a huge demand for supplies needing slaves. The slaves before and during the war had a slave master worked in terrible conditions and beaten until their masters felt as though the lesson was learned. Slavery was very accepted in the U.S. and not seen as a stain that would haunt American history forever. Slavery was not treated as an abomination in the democracy or even as an ugly truth, instead both political groups accepted it (Hummel 343). There are two sides to each story whether it be the North’s or the South’s with their own set of beliefs, values and understanding.
The tension between the North and the South was starting to rise which would cause the South to secede. Because there was such tension between the two there was little that either side could do to ease such tension. Once Abraham Lincoln was elected into office as the 16th president the tension got even higher reaching a boiling point for the south. The secession of the south from the north had two reasons as to why it happened. This would be the south thinking the north was taking their states’ rights away from them and the biggest would be slavery (Ayers 63).
American slavery was the main issue to cause the Civil War. However, there were other issues such as the southern states supremacy, the federal government’s views on slavery, the separation of the north and south and how the states should conduct themselves. Even after the war was over in the South, confederates still imposed what was called black codes on the former slaves that still lived in the territory (Emilie 232). These codes would damage everything for the former and freed slaves. They would prevent the former slaves from having any real rights. They could not own or even purchase land, therefore they would end up whenever they committed an offence.
Conclusion
In summation, the American Civil War is well known for having some of the bloodiest battles in history. Most historians, scholars, educators, and others would agree upon the fact that slavery is the main cause of the American Civil War. Some great men would prove that slavery was wrong, and those men were known as an abolitionist. This war took place on American soil with men fighting for the rights of slavery and men against it. After the war, many slaves wanted to be treated as equals to their white counterparts.
Work Cited
Amt, Emilie. “Down From the Balcony: African Americans and Episcopal Congregations in Washington County, Maryland, 1800-1864.” Anglican and Episcopal History 86.1 (2017): 1-42.
Ayers, Edward L. “The American Civil War, Emancipation, and Reconstruction on the World Stage.” OAH Magazine of History 20.1 (2006): 54-61.
Baker, H. Robert. The Rescue of Joshua Glover: A Fugitive Slave, the Constitution, and the Coming of the Civil War. Ohio University Press, 2006.
Birkenseer, Susan. “The American Civil War: A collection of free online primary sources.” College & Research Libraries News 76.5 (2015): 269-273.
Hummel, Jeffrey. Emancipating slaves, enslaving free men: a history of the American civil war. The open court, 2013.