The American Civil War, which lasted from 1861-1865, was a conflict between the northern states, known as the Union, and the southern states, which became known as the Confederacy. Here’s a detailed differentiation between the two sides – the Union side and Confederacy side:
1. Causes of the War:
•Union: The primary goal of the Union side was to preserve the United States and prevent the secession of the southern states into a new political entity – the Confederate states. They had a desire to maintain the Union.
•Confederacy: The southern states, under the control of the Democratic party, attempted to secede when an anti-slavery Republican, Abraham Lincoln, was elected to the presidency, which alarmed them. They sought to protect their right to own slaves, which they considered a pillar of their way of life, and used the idea of “state’s rights” as their excuse, which they based on a previous precedent – northern states using the concept of state’s rights to not enforce the Fugitive Slave Law.
2. Leadership:
•Union: President Abraham Lincoln led the Union. He was committed to preserving the Union and ending slavery.
•Confederacy: Jefferson Davis was the President of the Confederate States. He uses his leadership to defend the rights of southern states and protect the institution of slavery, in this case by trying to create a new nation.
3. Economy:
•Union: The economies of the northern states were more industrialized and diversified. The American Civil War was ultimately won by the Union thanks in large part to the fact that they had a lot more manufacturing and trade than the South.
•Confederacy: The plantation-based agriculture that centered on cotton, tobacco, and other cash crops was the main source of income for the agrarian southern states. Slavery played a central role in the southern economy.
4. Military Resources:
•Union: The North had a more extensive population, greater industrial capacity because of their manufacturing sector, and had a better and more substantial transportation network. They had the ability to produce weapons and supplies on a much larger scale.
•Confederacy: Many of the soldiers in the South were skilled marksmen and hunters, and the military leadership was exceptionally competent and highly skilled militarily. They did, however, face challenges from a lack of industrial resources as well as a shortage of supplies and weapons.
5. Slavery:
•Union: Although the goal at first was to protect the Union from being ripped apart, given the fact that the whole Civil War had started when the southern states attempted to secede to protect their institution of slavery, the Union’s war goals evolved to include abolishing slavery, and the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 declared that all slaves in Confederate-held territory were to be set free. This made the abolition of slavery a key aspect of the Union’s cause.
•Confederacy: The Confederacy was founded on the preservation of slavery, and that institution played a central role in its society and economy. It’s why they tried to secede from the Union in the first place.
6. International Relations:
•Union: The Union struggled to secure foreign support from European countries, especially Britain and France. Some historians claim that this is due to its association with the abolitionist cause, but given the fact that the British had already outlawed slavery, this seems incorrect.
•Confederacy: The Confederacy looked to other nations, particularly those in Europe that depended on cotton from the South, for approval and assistance. However, this recognition was not widely granted.
7. Outcome:
The Union eventually won the Civil War, which prevented the breakup of the United States into two competing countries, but led to its preservation. It also brought about an end of slavery officially with the ratification of the 13th Amendment in 1865.
This differentiation between the Union side and the Confederate side gives a broad overview of the key distinctions between the two sides during the American Civil War. It’s important to note that the war’s causes and consequences are complex and multifaceted.
