With all the talk of BLM and such, the issue of the Civil War is (again) back in the headlines, yet how many people really know what it was about. Abraham Lincoln's correspondence with Horace Greeley is illuminating as are the many quotes that come from his many speeches and letters
If I could save the Union without freeing any slave I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone I would also do that.
I will say then that I am not, nor ever have been, in favor of bringing about in any way the social and political equality of the white and black races
free all the slaves and send them to Liberia
Not exactly the Great Emancipator, as we know him.
The Civil War was over money as much as anything. The protective tariff imposed on the South had more to do with secession than slavery. The tariff imposed prohibitive duties on European goods to force Southerners to buy Northern and were the main source of revenue for the Federal government.
When the South talked secession, it meant impoverishing the Feds. So 7 states seceded after Lincoln's election. Why did VA, NC, TN, and AR not secede until Lincoln mustered troops to South back in the fold?
Because they tried to talk Lincoln out of a war. Try to arrange some kind of compromise. Lincoln would hear none of it. The lunatics firing on Fort Sumter, the provocation Lincoln needed, forced the remaining 4 states to secede in solidarity.
So Mr Lincoln got his war, although he would be one of its last casualties.
This is a part of American history that few people seem to know, As a kid, I was taught about the protective tariff and, of course, it went right past me.
If the US cavalry wasn't fighting Indians, who cared? The Civil War was all Scarlett O'Hara, hoopskirts and sissified Southern gentlemen proclaiming their undying love.
That was for girls.
Years later, as I heard people talking about Lincoln as the first statist President, those days in Mr Campbell's history class came back.
I'm going to do something about the new fad of Juneteenth in a bit.
Which may blow your minds even more.
PS Still learning how all this works, so bear with me.
5 comments:
Yes. My 11th grade history teacher made it clear Lincoln was no angel. This was NE Ohio.
Some things I've seen around the Interwebz made me wonder just how much was taught.
Most people believe wrongly that the war was fought for emancipation. Four border states (Missouri, Kentucky, Delaware, Maryland) were slave states that never left the union and one slave state, West Virginia was admitted during the war.
"In the Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma), most Indian tribes owned black slaves, and they sided with the Confederacy. It had promised them an Indian state if victorious in the war. But some tribes and bands sided with the Union. A bloody civil war resulted in the territory, with severe hardships for all residents" - Wiki Border States
UhOh! Watch out Statue of Chief Seattle, you're next.
Still learning is a good place to be. It's where I am with regard to history and posts like this one. Unfortunately, I don't recall what my high school history teacher taught about Lincoln or the Civil war. I do remember receiving an A for my ability to parrot back on tests whatever it was he'd said, and turn in colorful graphs and maps for extra credit.
History came alive in a new way for our family when we began homeschooling and taking the fire to be lit rather than a bucket to be filled approach, using books, videos, and visits to museums and places where history happened.
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