Causes of the American Civil War and the key players involved

Causes of the American Civil War
1)Causes of the American Civil War:
The major cause of the American Civil War is slavery. Slavery in the United States first began in Virginia in 1619. By the end of the American Revolution, most northern states had abandoned the institution while it continued to grow and flourish in the plantation economy of the South.

In the years prior to the Civil War almost all sectional conflicts revolved around the slave issue. This began with the debates over the three-fifths clause at the Constitutional Convention of 1787 and continued with the Compromise of 1820, the Nullification Crisis, the anti-slavery Gag Rule, and the Compromise of 1850.

Slavery and the control of the government
Throughout the first half of the 19th century, Southern politicians sought to defend slavery by retaining control of the federal government. While they benefited from most presidents being from the South, they were particularly concerned about retaining a balance of power within in the Senate. As new states were added to the Union, a series of compromises were arrived at to maintain an equal number of "free" and "slave" states.

In 1820, Maine entered as a free state while Missouri joined as a slave state. The balance was finally disrupted in 1850, when Southerners permitted California to enter as a free state in exchange for laws strengthening slavery. This balance was further upset with the additions of free Minnesota (1858) and Oregon (1859).

2) Key players of the American civil war:
Confederate Leader: General Robert E. Lee
Union Leader: General Ulyssess Grant

Robert E. Lee was born in Westmoreland County, Virginia on January 19, 1807. His father was the famous "Light horse Harry" Lee. He was one of George Washington's General and a one-time governor of Virginia. His mother, Anne Hill Carter, came from a famous family as the Lees.When Robert E. Lee was 54 years old, he was just about to retire when there came a crisis. In 1861, the states of the deep South seceded from the Union and made their own nation, the Confederate States of America.

Ulyssess Grant was born on April 27, 1822, in Point Pleasant, Ohio. His parents' names were Jesse Root Grant and Hannah Simpson. Ulyssess' real name was Hiram Ulyssess, but he went by Ulyssess. In 1839, he went to the United States Military Academy where a congressman mistakenly called him Ulyssess Simpson Grant but he decided to keep the name.

Marcus Lim (2p3-20)

source from: http://library.thinkquest.org/J0110670/Leaders.htm