A war was inevitable. Just as it is now. Look to the past. There are ample examples of secessionist movements all of the then US of A! And not all in the south!!!! Lots of fine loyal Americans in New England around 1812.
So how did the alleged “ruling class” plantation owners convince the poor, non slave owning, Ulster scot majority all thru the south to take up their cause and fight????
It basically boiled down to one comment by a confederate prisoner when asked;
“Because you are here, sir!"
Not slavery, not states rights, but occupation by a belligerent/ invading army.
Oh btw, I suppose the north had no such economic ruling class.
Sarcasm icon off
(The war made MANY millionaires!!! 😉)
The vast majority of northerners could have cared less about a black slave in Alabama.
But!!!
The northern industrialist had their desires on owning the south for decades! Unlike the untamed west, there was a necessary infrastructure in place already in the south. Slavery was the tool to justify their means. And that Lincoln proclamation sanctified the cause. Internal colonialism thru reconstruction.
Preserve the Union!
Both sides have ample blame to share! No monopoly there.
I will say no more.
KW, you don't have to say more, because you nailed it.
I will repeat this once again, and I'll type it slowly because it appears that some of our Northern brethren must read slowly..............The North won the war, and the winners always get to tell the history and what happened. The North had to find a means to justify their denying the South the right to secede, so they created the fairy tale that they were going to fight a war to free the slaves, because the South had seceded in order to keep those slaves.
The REAL reason the North fought to keep the South from seceding had absolutely nothing to do with slavery. It was because as KW said.........the North wanted to keep the South under it's thumb, and deny them the right to compete with the North. The South was growing rich, and was branching out and trading with Europe, something that the North thought it should have a monopoly on.
At any rate, those of us who have actually took the time to study up on the time period leading up to the war, know what was really going on. Those who got their history by being told what happened, instead of seeking the truth out, only know what someone wanted them to know. It's really that simple.
