The American Civil War

The main aim of the fighting was to defend homeland and preserve the union. The Americans also feared that the blacks might be placed on an equal ground with them. The soldiers of the American Civil War were inspired by a number of factors such as state pride, patriotism, steady pay, and a good chance for adventure. These factors were their strengths in the war. The war was aimed at obtaining the loyalty of the Border States that were geographically strategic for the union (Parish, 1975). The soldiers did not want the Europeans to extend their recognition to the confederacy. Their strategies were to break the union’s will in the fight, prevent the north from destroying the Confederate Army and, lastly, to defend the confederate land (Donovan & United States Military Academy, 1987). The soldiers were hence very active during the fight and still maintained a very large number to avoid a defeat.

Impacts of the Dissent and Disorder on the Combatants

Northerners and southerners could not come to an agreement upon anything and this weakened the forces in the war. Such a disorder influenced negatively the both sides. The north and the south witnessed different outcomes from the war. The north maintained its economic edge, while the south lost its morale, population and agricultural base. The disorder led to a total victory of the north over the south. Hence, the northerners gained total control over the south in social, economic and political aspects. The south was destroyed politically, socially and economically. Though the south had a lot of morale, it did not have enough order during the war; hence, the north dominated. The other major problem was resource distribution during the war. The poor were more affected by the war than the rich.

The Supreme Court’s Decision

The United States’ Supreme Court made some decisions in March 1857. The decision making process was led by Rodger B. Taney, who was the Chief Justice. The decision made by the Supreme Court was to prohibit all the African Americans from obtaining American citizenship. The decision was applied to all the African Americans whether free or enslaved. However, it was emphasized by permitting slavery in all parts of America and affirming the 1820 Missouri Compromise unconstitutional. The decision by the Supreme Court was a result of Dred Scott V. Sanford’s case of wanting to be granted freedom. The decision was not taken lightly by the African Americans. Their leaders started revolting against the decision of the court and became more aggressive while fighting for their rights and freedom from slavery. The northerners were more aggressive than the southerners in terms of resisting slavery. The African Americans like Scott were not allowed to sue; hence, the oppression did not reduce.

Outcome of the 1860’s Presidential Elections

Many of the Democrats from the north considered Stephen Douglas as the best candidate to defeat Back Republicans, though he was termed as a betrayer due to his stand against slavery. During that time, the north and the south could not come to an agreement upon the right candidate for their president. Though Douglas had proved to be a potential candidate, Abraham Lincoln was nominated for presidency, which happened after a debate with Douglas. Some politicians argued “that the best way out of the present difficulties that faced the nation was to take no stand at all on the issues that divided the north and the south” (Crane & Binder, 1982) Then, John Bell from Tennessee was nominated. Lincoln won the election with 40% of the votes after South Carolina seceded from the union.

References

Crane, S., & Binder, H. (1982). The red badge of courage: An episode of the American Civil

War. New York: Norton.

Donovan, T. H., & United States Military Academy. (1987). The American Civil War. Wayne,

N.J: Avery Pub. Group.

Parish, P. J. (1975). The American Civil War. New York: Holmes & Meier Publishers.