The question of slavery polarized Americans and shaped every aspect of this four-year struggle that preserved the nation but transformed it. Whether it was Nat Turner’s bloody slave revolt in Virginia, Harriet Beecher Stowe’s anti-slavery bestseller, or John Brown’s raid on Harpers Ferry, abolitionists convinced many people that the system of slavery was corrupt and unjust. Meanwhile, enslaved persons shouldered the lion’s share of military labor. The conflict also demonstrated the power of modern technology. Railroads moved troops and supplies, and telegraph communication allowed both sides to coordinate military movements across vast distances. And both sides benefited from the recent development of rifle muskets and ironclad warships.
When Abraham Lincoln, a proponent of emancipation, won the 1860 presidential election, secessionists in seven slave states declared independence from the United States. This created the Confederate States of America, but no foreign government recognized it.
Many scholars have studied the causes of Civil war, but one theme stands out: the issue of slavery was not just about race or class. It was about freedom, and the fact that the framers of the Constitution had compromised on this issue gave rise to a war that tore the country apart.