The Fears of the Non-Slave States and How They Led to the Prosecution of the Civil War
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.12797/AdAmericam.26.2025.26.08Keywords:
civil war, political dominance, economic dominanceAbstract
The fundamental reason the non-slave states prosecuted the Civil War was their fear of the domination exhibited by the slave states, both economically and, especially, politically. Such anxieties stemmed from a perceived threat to their own freedoms and liberties, rather than a problem with racism against and oppression of the slaves. The political dominance led to fear that the slave states would overwhelm the non-slave states politically, even to the degree of totally eliminating them. A significant and vital illustration regarding the political dread was epitomized in the expression and fear of the “Slave Power”. It was feared that the “Slave Power” would destroy the rights and freedoms of white people just as it had done to Africans. The dread of economic hegemony led to a desire to destroy it before it destroyed the economies of the non-slave states. The non-slave states also had a trepidation of slavery expansion, for example into the new territories and even into other countries which would increase the overall sway of the slave states. The total impact of the above was that to prevent any of it from occurring, the nonslave states went to war.
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