The Causes of the Civil War

US History – Lincoln and the Civil War, 1861-65

In this lecture, Professor Glenn Altschuler (Cornell University) discusses Lincoln and the Civil War. In the first module, we discuss the causes of the Civil War. Then, we discuss Lincoln’s career before the Civil War began. After this, we discuss the domestic policies of Abraham Lincoln. In the fourth module, we discuss Abraham Lincoln as Commander-in-Chief. Then, we discuss Lincoln and reconstruction. Finally, we discuss Lincoln’s legacy.

The Causes of the Civil War

In this module, we discuss the causes of the Civil War. In particular, we will focus on: (i) how slavery is considered America's original sin, present at the Constitution's founding; (ii) how initial hope that slavery would naturally fade, proved untrue, including a discussion of the how cotton gin and large plantations revived slavery's prominence; (iii) how slavery was vital to the Southern economy, while Northern states abolished it; (iv) how conflict escalated in the 1840s over slavery's extension to new territories; (v) how the Mexican War of 1846 intensified conflict over the new territories' status; (vi) how the Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854) allowed territories to choose slavery's status; (vii) how Kansas became a violent battleground for pro and anti-slavery forces; (viii) how the Dred Scott decision (1857) expanded slavery's potential reach; and (ix) how John Brown's actions (1859) further polarised North and South.