1. Explain how the chosen major cause of the Civil War WAS a cause for the Civil War.

The United States presidential election of 1860 was a major cause of the American Civil War. The presidential election of 1860 was a quadrennial election; it was between Abraham Lincoln representing the Republican Party, John C. Breckinridge representing the Southern Democratic Party, John Bell representing the Constitutional Union, and Stephen A. Douglas representing the Democratic Party. The race for presidency was centered between the Republican Abraham Lincoln and the Democrat Stephen A. Douglas.(8) Lincoln won the election in the end, one of the major factors for his victory was his ability to speak in public and make to the point remarks. (8) Lincolns election in 1860 is a major cause of the civil war because Lincoln did not agree with slavery. His intentions were never to start a Civil War or to end slavery, he wanted slavery not to expand and to retain the United States united (7). Lincoln once said that We must not disturb slavery in the states where it exists, because the Constitution, and the peace of the country both forbid us-- But we must, by a national policy, prevent the spread of slavery into new territories, or free states, because the constitution does not forbid us, and the general welfare does demand such prevention We must prevent the revival of the African slave trade, because the constitution does not forbid us, and the general welfare does require the prevention We must prevent these things being done, by either congresses or courts The people the people are the rightful masters of both Congresses, and courts not to overthrow the Constitution, but to overthrow the men who pervert it."(Lincoln, February 27, 1860) (7) Lincoln wanted to stop slavery from expanding into slave-free territories because he knew that if he had abolished slavery, the Civil war would have immediately started. And even by Lincoln admitting to his intentions, the Southern states still saw him as a threat to the Southerners way of life and liberty if he became president. It was so evident that the South did not want Lincoln as president that most southerner states did not even have Lincolns name in the ballot. If Lincoln was to become the President of the United States, the Confederates saw no other option but to secede from the union and now formally create the Confederate States. (6) Even before Lincoln was elected president, most of the Southerner states had already seceded into the Confederate States. And once Lincoln was elected president, more southern states followed into secession and entered the Confederate States.

Citations 5: http://www.abrahamlincolnsclassroom.org/Library/newsletter.asp?ID=110&CRLI=158 6:http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/connections/abraham-lincolnpapers/history3.html 7: http://www.lib.niu.edu/1997/ihy970239.html

#2: The election of President Lincoln in 1860 was unequivocally one of the most prominent causes for the outbreak of the Civil War. However, dislike for Lincoln was spurred in the southern states long before his presidency. His views on many important facets of the United States political system differed greatly from those in the South. Following the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 (proposed by Stephen A. Douglas), tension was high in the United States over the issue of slavery. (3) Though it was originally intended to provide peaceful compromise, it managed to do exactly the opposite. Within the KansasNebraska act, Douglas posited that the large territory of land in the United States be split into two different states (Kansas and Nebraska), and both states would issue the practice of popular sovereignty. With the use of popular sovereignty to decide whether the territories would be free or slave states, though, came great bloodshed. Supporters of both sides rushed to the open territories to fight for either the acceptance or the prohibition of slavery. Lincoln, who had previously been aloof in the political world following a despondent term in Congress, responded strongly to this Act put forth by Douglas. The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 was what brought Lincoln back into the political field, which eventually led to his campaign for presidency. (1) In 1859, Lincoln was asked to give a speech in New York City. He used this speech to address his viewpoints on slavery and condemn the widespread of it. This speech was greeted with much response throughout the state, and made Lincoln an even more important political figure almost overnight. This resurgence of political appreciation spurred Lincolns ambitions to run for the Republican nomination for president of the United States. With some effort, Lincoln was able to receive the widespread support of the citizens of Illinois, especially at the Republican National Convention. The Convention, held in May in Chicago, ended with the victory of Lincoln who was placed against William Seward, a senator from New York. The Presidential Election took place on November 6, 1860. Lincoln was running against Stephen A. Douglas (northern Democratic Party) and John C. Breckenridge (southern Democratic Party). Lincoln held a significant victory during this election. Though he only won about 40% of the nations votes, the Electoral College gave him a stunning majority of their votes. The South, on the other hand, gave Lincoln almost no percentage of votes. (2) Even during the time before the election of Lincoln, there was talk of succession among Southern states. With the election of Lincoln, though, and his obvious anti-slavery viewpoints, the Southern states became even more enraged. The first state to secede from the Union was South Carolina on December 20, 1860. During the Civil War, a total of 11 states seceded from the Union, but only 7 seceded directly after the election of President Lincoln, the following 4 left the Union with the Battle of Fort Sumter. The 6 states that seceded directly due to the election of President Lincoln are as follows: Mississippi (January 9, 1861) Florida (January 10, 1861) Alabama (January 11, 1861) Georgia (January 18, 1861)

Louisiana (January 26, 1861) Texas (February 1, 1861) These states all joined together against the Union, and named themselves the Confederates. (4) These secessions directly led to the first Battle of the Civil War, when the Confederates seized Fort Sumter, South Carolina and attacked the Union Army in April of 1861. The cosmic unhappiness throughout the Southern states spurred violence rapidly within the nation, and lasted for the next 4 years. Though Lincoln was not a fan of war and destruction, especially for his own nation, he knew that it was the only viable option. Due to the vast differences between the Union and Confederacy, and the fact that both sides felt so strongly about their own beliefs, there werent many other options to solve the dilemma the United States faced at that point, which inevitably led to violence. (5) http://history1800s.about.com/od/slaveryinamerica/a/KansasNebraska.htm (1) http://history1800s.about.com/od/presidentialcampaigns/a/1860election.htm (2) http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/biographies/abraham-lincoln.html (3) http://americanhistory.about.com/od/civilwarmenu/a/secession_order.htm (4) http://www.cr.nps.gov/logcabin/html/al3.html (5)

3.Lincoln said in his inaugural address, "We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battlefield and patriot grave to every living heart and hearthstone all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature.(8) In summation Lincoln accentuated the fact that he was not going to start the war but any attack by the south would be perceived as an act of rebellion and war will ensue. He also stated that he was opposed to the expansion of slavery rather than the complete abolition of it. He was going to allow the current slave states to remain that way but new states admitted into the U.S.A. will not be allowed to be slave states. This was also in the crown amendment in the constitution which was mentioned in Lincolns inaugural address. Similarly in 1860 the Crittenden Compromise by Senator John Crittenden was a last ditch effort to prevent the civil war, by stating a compromise that allowed the states to remain slave states and the modifications of the fugitive slave law called for major restrictions on slave trade.(9) It however failed and the war was inevitable. Citations 1."The Avalon Project : First Inaugural Address of Abraham Lincoln." The Avalon Project : First Inaugural Address of Abraham Lincoln. Yale Law School, 2008. Web. 18 Oct. 2012. <http://avalon.law.yale.edu/19th_century/lincoln1.asp>.

2.Kirwan, A.D. "Crittenden Compromise." Infoplease. Infoplease, n.d. Web. 18 Oct. 2012. <http://www.infoplease.com/encyclopedia/history/crittenden-compromise.html>.

4. Abraham Lincoln was reelected to presidency in 1864. Lincoln had increased pressure on congress to officially outlaw slavery. The first attempt to pass the amendment had failed. After a long debate, a second attempt passed in Congress in 1865 becoming the Thirteenth Amendment to the US constitution. (1) Lincoln was the first president to be assassinated in America. He was assassinated in Fords Theater. He was the first president to ever be assassinated in US. He was killed by John Wilkes Booth. There was a big conspiracy in to revive the confederacy due to the events.(2) During his second term was the Reconstruction Era for the nation after the civil war. Lincoln had order General banks to create a plan that would restore the nation. His plan was that a state could be reintegrated into the Union when 10% of the 1860 vote counts from that state take an oath for allegiance to the US and to agree to the emancipation. He was accused by democratic opponents on using the military to ensure this plan. The radicals disagreed with that policy and passed on another, the Wade- Davis bill. This bill would remove confederates from the political pool during reconstruction causing more distress with agreement with the republican leaders of the time. The Radicals used Congress to block the original plan, impose harsh terms, and upgrade the rights of the Freedmen.(3)

http://www.abrahamlincolnsclassroom.org/Library/newsletter.asp?ID=18&CRLI=95(1) http://www.abrahamlincolnsclassroom.org/Library/newsletter.asp?ID=14&CRLI=91 (2) http://history-world.org/reconstruction_period.htm(3) BIBLIOGRAPHY "Reconstruction Period." History World. History World, n.d. Web. 15 Oct. 2012. <http://historyworld.org/reconstruction_period.htm>. "Reconstruction Period." History World. History World, n.d. Web. 15 Oct. 2012. <http://historyworld.org/reconstruction_period.htm>.