DBQ The Civil War began in 1861 but the issue of slavery was not the central focus of the war effort. The war began for many political reasons, mainly the aim of the Union side to preserve the Union and make sure it remains together as a country. While the North fought to preserve the Union, the South fought to preserve what they believed to be state rights. During the war, Abraham Lincoln created what is called the Emancipation Proclamation, which declared that “all person held as slaves” within rebellious states “are, and henceforward shall be free.” Following the war, African Americans throughout the war led to an alteration in the goals of the war, and therefore a contribution to the new politics and culture that followed later. As the war between the North and the South progressed, the abolition of slavery didn’t take a strong stand until after the Emancipation Proclamation. In document 1, Benjamin F. Butler questions, “Are these men, women, and children slaves? Are they free?” (Doc 1). At the …show more content…
Although this only freed slaves in the rebellious area, it demonstrated the moral side of the war. In Lincoln's letter written in 1863, he stated “Why should they do anything for us, if we will do nothing for them?” (Doc 3). He is referring to the African Americans which shows that Lincoln’s policies and goals in the Civil War driven by the desire to enlist African Americans in fighting to preserve the Union. Consequently, the freed slaves were encouraged to enlist and take part of the Union side and army. Their addition into the fight against the confederacy was a great benefit for the Union. Therefore, the great contribution of African Americans in the Civil War with hopes of achieving freedom and rights caused an entirely new goal of the war and contributing to the Union victory in this bloody
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Show MoreIn the midst of the war, over 179,000 African American soldiers served in the Union’s branches such as the navy, army, and support (Freeman and Jean). Many served as they believed this was a way to repay the Union in setting them free and possibly in the future could grant citizenship to them. Before the enlistment of African American soldiers, many laws prohibited the enlistment of African Americans (Freeman and Elise). This is surprising as many African American soldiers served in previous wars such as the American Revolution. Soon after President Lincoln gave his speech on the Emancipation Proclamation, he allowed many slaves to enlist in the Union military (Freeman and Elise).
The main reason for the beginning of the Civil War focused on the slavery that infested the southern states. The North was against all forms of slavery and other different practices present in the South. The war drug on for a seemingly infinite amount of time under President Lincoln and his administration as a whole,as well as the president of the Confederacy Jefferson Davis. Although these two men made all of the most significant and pressing choices, the two men in charge on the battlefields, and perhaps a greater rivalry than the opposing presidents, were Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E.
Allen Guelzo and Vincent Harding approached Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation and the eventual abolition of slavery from two very different viewpoints. The major disagreement between them is whether the slaves freed themselves, or Abraham Lincoln and his Emancipation Proclamation freed them. Harding argued the former view, Guelzo took the later. When these essays are compared side by side Guelzo’s is stronger because, unlike Harding, he was able to keep his own views of American race relations out of the essay and presented an argument that was based on more than emotion. Allen Guelzo
On September 2nd, 1862, Abraham Lincoln famously signed the Emancipation Proclamation. After that, there’s been much debate on whether Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation truly played a role in freeing the slaves with many arguments opposing or favoring this issue. In Vincent Harding’s essay, The Blood-red Ironies of God, Harding argues in his thesis that Lincoln did not help to emancipate the slaves but that rather the slaves “self-emancipated” themselves through the war. On the opposition, Allen C Guelzo ’s essay, Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation: The End of Slavery in America, argues in favor of the Emancipation Proclamation and Guelzo acknowledges Lincoln for the abolishment of slavery through the Emancipation Proclamation.
The Confederates main war tactic was to drag out the Civil War long enough, to where the US lost interest, while the Union was seeking reunification of the country. African Americans played an important role, they were the support of the Confederates and the Union. Africans were a necessary labor force to the Confederacy; they were the mobilization force for them as well as doing forced labor for them. On Union side, blacks were eager to serve for the United States; blacks in the Union became scouts for them, since they knew the geography of the South better. By serving, this was a way for black to not only prove themselves, but gain citizenship.
Many politicians felt this was a white man’s war and slaves had no right to fight this war. Slaves were not allowed to fight, all this changed when Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, it declared “ That all person held as slaves within the Confederate states should be free. Although it did not end slavery in the nation it gave people hope and uplifted the moral of blacks. Fredrick Douglas convinced Abraham Lincoln that African Americans were ready to fight and serve the Union.
With British antislavery sentiments becoming more prevalent, the president started considering the diplomatic benefits that ending slavery would have for the union army. Although he didn’t start as supportive of this change, on July 22, 1862, Lincoln announced that he intended to free all slaves that were in rebellion against the union. Since this was a military decision, he held off on actually putting the proclamation in place until a union victory occurred on the battlefield. The victory they were hoping for occurred on September 17 of that same year. Here they repelled Robert E. Lee’s forces and returned to Virginia and they kept the confederacy from being recognized by
African Americans had an extremely pivotal role in the outcome and consequences of the Civil War. This group of people were enslaved, and forced to work in horrible conditions, for the whole day, without pay. Slaves were one of the main causes of the Civil War. The issue of Slavery, which resulted in the eventual economic and social division between the North and South, caused the creation of the Confederate States. African Americans did not only unintentionally cause the war, but they also effected the outcome of the war, and the eventual consequences the nation would face after the war.
The African Americans had a big impact on the Civil War. They had to have all of these laws and papers wrote because of the slavery deal. They had the role of the debate for slavery. They were the slaves and they wanted to have their freedom. The Declaration of Independence said that, “All men are created equal”, but the slaves were not free.
Somebody once remarked, “No man is good enough to govern another man without the other's consent” (“Abraham Lincoln Quotes"). At the initial view, the Civil War was going to be won by the South. Nonetheless, all that changed when Abraham Lincoln constructed the Emancipation Proclamation because it did not solely free slaves, it further altered antiquity for the salutary and assisted the North in the war, which led to their triumph. The Emancipation Proclamation was Abraham Lincoln’s greatest achievement as president.
They were now able to reestablish their families, become wage laborers or sharecroppers, establish schools to learn how to read and write. The best part about their rights was having the opportunity to participate in in politics. After the war, many African Americans were either political leaders or served as state legislator while several of them were delegates who participated in political conventions. The outcome to all of this? Prejudice and discrimination.
The Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 declared slaves in the United States as free. This newly free status marked an end to chattel slavery in the United States. Despite this remarkable win for humanity the sudden change brought forth a multitude of issues that the United States was not ready to address. African Americans were the main sufferers of the United States unpreparedness. The timing of emancipation combined with the prominent ideological beliefs of that time resulted in negative health outcomes that set the foundation for health inequalities among African Americans that are still prominent today.
In the years of the Civil War, African Americans played an important role in contributing to the Union Army and the confederate army. A great deal of African American men volunteered to join the Union Army but only after they gained freedom did they participate in fighting the war. Besides the Union Army, there was the confederate army which consisted of slave labor whom were forced to aid the confederacy following their masters. Later in the war, the Confederacy ran short on men and were in need to supply soldiers, leaving no choice but to enlist the colored men. Not only were African American men impacted from the war, but African American women also served to supply and aid in the war.
The Civil War was a battle of great importance to our history of the United States. On April 12th, 1861 this battle broke out between the Union States, North, and the Confederate States, such as the South. The Civil War took place all throughout the United states, and did not come to an end until the Union won the war on May 9, 1856. So, our question of “What caused the Civil War”, comes with three important answers. The three main causes of the Civil War between the North and the South were Economic, Social, and Political differences.
Tensions rose across the country from those in support support of slavery and those opposed. Many states wanted to outlaw slavery while others adamantly defended it because it was the main institution with a high and consistent revenue. Ultimately, the disagreements over slavery are what lead to the Civil War. The country divided into an “Us versus Them” situation which lead to both sides having growing support for their views and making the groups less susceptible to an agreement. In 1862, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation which freed slaves from confederate states.