The American Civil war was waged between The United States of America and The Confederate States of America from 1861 to 1865. It began on April 12, 1861, when the Confederates opened fire on Fort Sumpter, and ended on May 26, 1865, with the surrender of the last Confederate forces, and with a total of 600, 000 casualties. There are varying beliefs as to what started this bloody war, ranging from differences of social systems between the North and the South, to the disposal of public lands. Although these all contributed to the animosity that started the war, these were not by far the main reasons for the war. The creation of the cotton gin, which increased demand for slaves in the southern states, a perilous set of compromises that was keeping the country at a stalemate, and a group of people who would do anything to further their cause, show that the conflict between the North and South over the issue of slavery was the main cause of the Civil War.

The cotton gin, created by Eli Whitney, greatly increased the cotton production in the Southern States, thus increasing the demand for slaves in the south as well. The number of slaves in the South increased dramatically and s

The South would resort to many things when faced with losing their slaves, and the North would do the same to abolish slavery. John Brown (an Abolitionist) seized the United States arsenal and armoury in Harpers Ferry in Virginia, hoping to arm slaves and lead them in an insurrection. Although people like John Brown were few and far between, the ones that actively fought slavery did a good job of it. Like the North, the South would do many things to avoid losing slavery. The Pro-Slavery Southerners wanted a harsher Fugitive Slave Law that would require State officials to aid in the capture of escaped slaves, as well as not allow slave helpers the right to a trial by jury. Some would argue that this was unconstitutional. As well as to press for laws that went against the constitution, the south would be willing to secede from the union if they were not able to keep their way of life. And secede they did. When Lincoln was elected president in 1860, and he was against the expansion of slavery into the new territory, 7 of the states seceded from the union seceded to form the Confederate States of America. It was this secession that immediately led to the Civil War between the North and the South.

The concerns between the North and the South involving new states and how they would be admitted to the union, were laid to rest with a set of compromises designed to keep each side happy. These compromises never solved the problems, they simply put them off to be dealt with at another time. The Missouri Compromise was the first serious dispute between the N

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Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)