American Civil War Flashcards
What were the three main long-term causes of the American Civil War?
- Should slavery be abolished?
- Who should be President?
- Should new states and territories allow slavery?
What were the main sources of income for the North and South of the USA?
- The North was industrial and manufactured lots of products in factories which were sold to make money.
- The South made their money from crops like cotton & tobacco grown on plantations. These were sold to the North and to other countries.
How did the North and South feel about slavery?
- The North were against slavery and wanted it to be banned.
- The South used slave labour to farm their crops so they did not want slavery to be banned.
What were the important events related to slavery that led to the Civil War?
- Nat Turner’s rebellion in 1831 killed 60 white people, the south blamed this on abolitionists in the North.
- In 1852 an anti-slavery book, Uncle Tom’s Cabin led to more debate between anti & pro slave supporters.
- John Brown tried to arm a slave rebellion in 1859 but was killed. The South saw him as a murderer the north as a martyr.
What were the important events related to new states and territories that led to the Civil War?
- The Missouri Compromise in 1820 meant Missouri was able to join the Union as a ‘slave state’ but was the last one allowed in the North.
- New territories in the West were won from Mexico, this caused more debate whether they should be free or slave states. In 1850 California became a free state, but the North passed a law to return runaway slaves to the south to keep peace.
What were the important events related to the president that led to the Civil War?
- Abraham Lincoln was elected in 1860, he had no support from the South as he was anti-slavery.
- No agreement was ever made about what would happen if states disagreed with the federal (national) government so 6 southern states voted to secede (leave) the Union in 1860 and formed the Confederacy.
- The Confederacy voted Jefferson Davis as their President, there were now two conflicting leaders.
What were the economic effects of the Civil War on the North?
Positive- Some industries benefitted such as munitions, uniforms and railroads.
Negative- Industries that required raw materials such as cotton to make their goods lost money as the materials were not available from the South. This made some products more expensive.
- Workers suffered as wages did not match the rising prices of the products (inflation). This led to protests in some industries and in some cases, Union soldiers were taken away from fighting in the war to stop these protests.
What were the social effects of the Civil War on the North?
At the start of the war people rushed to join the army but eventually the North had to introduce conscription in March 1863 for all able-bodied men between the ages of 20-45.
What were the economic effects of the Civil War on the South?
Positive- Some industries benefitted such as munitions.
Negative- Railroad systems were destroyed by the Union soldiers who tore up the tracks and bent the rails.
- The Confederate government tried to fund the war by taxing the people but had trouble collecting these taxes so printed more money which led to hyperinflation (where money has no value).
- Cotton plantations lost money as farmers were at war, some were used to grow food instead and others were taken over by the advancing Union army.
What were the social effects of the Civil War on the South?
- At the start of the war people rushed to join the army but eventually the North had to introduce conscription in April 1862 for all able-bodied men between the ages of 20-45.
- People lost their land and homes to the Union army creating refugees who needed food and shelter.
- Many men joined guerrilla bands rather than the confederate army. This allowed men more freedom than in the regular army and allowed them to stay at home to protect their families and communities.
- There were huge food shortages as farmers were needed to fight in the army. This led to food riots in several places. The Confederate government asked plantation owners to grow food instead of cotton to help with the shortages, however some owners continued to grow cotton to make money.
What were the effects of the Civil War on women?
Women- Volunteered as unpaid nurses and took on new roles as farmers, plantation managers and munition-factory workers. Many returned to their traditional roles when the war ended but the experience had changed the status of women.
What were the effects on ex-Confederate leaders affected after the American Civil War?
Almost all Southerners who swore an oath of allegiance to the Union would be pardoned (forgiven) and have their property returned to them. These Southerners were then allowed to take part in elections.
Ex-Confederate government officials, military leaders and owners of land worth more than $20,000 were not pardoned however these officials were eventually allowed to apply for a pardon and many were granted
How were the effects of the Civil War on black Americans?
- Many black people were involved in the fighting on both sides, slaves could be sent to fight in your place in the South. They were often treated differently.
- In 1863, President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation which said that all slaves in the South were free. As states were taken back by the Union, the slaves were freed.
- In 1865 the 13th Amendment was passed, this officially abolished slavery.
- Black Codes were created in the South which said that all freed slaves could marry, own property, make legal contracts and testify against other black Americans in court but could not marry anyone from a different race or testify against white people in court.
- In 1868 the 14th Amendment (Civil Rights Act) made all freed slaves official citizens of the USA with legal rights.
- In 1870 the 15th Amendment gave all blacks the right to vote. However many Southern states introduced difficult literacy tests instead.
Who were the ‘carpetbaggers’?
Republican supporters from the North who supported black rights. These included former Union soldiers who came South in the search of business opportunities in land, factories and railroads.
Southern Democrats viewed them as opportunists who came south for money and power with so few possessions that they could be stuffed into a travelling bag made of carpet material.
How successful was the Republican Reconstruction of the South?
Successes- They created the first state school systems and provided free education for blacks. They tried to ensure black people were treated equally with the law, could own businesses and own property.
They rebuilt roads, railways and bridges that were destroyed during the war.
Failures- The Ku Klux Klan persecuted black people.
Vote rigging began, adding extra votes to the ballot boxes or deliberately miscounted the votes in favour of the Democrats. The federal (national) government moved on from the fight for black rights and began to focus on other issues such as westward expansion. By 1877 the Democrats had taken back control of all Southern states.
