The Civil War as well as the period before it remains one of the focal points of research among modern historians. These days the causes of the coming of the War are grouped around one of the following school of thoughts: Blundering Generation and Irrepressible Conflict. The first group of scholars say that such radically different parts of the union as the South and North could co-exist without war. The second group maintain that the two societies were becoming so different that they were unable to co-exist, so war was inevitable. Analysis of the primary documents allows claiming that the Civil War resulted from the mistakes of the blundering generation who gradually led the nation to the condition when the conflict became irrepressible.
Reading Senator Calhoun’s speech “The Clay Compromise Measures” allows claiming that his plan was one of those blundering generation errors. The problem was as follows: to preserve the Union the way it was declared as a result of the War for Independence, the conditions of the Declaration were supposed to be kept intact. Any legal alterations of the status of states of the South would automatically lead to escalation of the conflict. Calhoun’s compromise was a weak step towards compromise, because it did not meet the interests of the South the way the southerners hoped. Its idea was quite clear “satisfying the South that she could remain honorably and safely in the Union.” (Calhoun, 1850) Yet, in reality the biggest achievement of the South seemed to be the Fugitive Slaves Act. In its turn, the Act was not properly enforced, which meant a step close to the irrepressible conflict. Moreover, by Clay compromise, the majority in the Senate was conceded to the North, which was also an error by the blundering generation.
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Secondly, the document “A Declaration of the Immediate Causes which Induce and Justify the Secession of the State of Mississippi from the Federal Union” is a record of the mistakes of the government leading to the fact that the conflict became irrepressible. The document clearly states that “position is thoroughly identified with the institution of slavery – the greatest material interest of the world.” (Declaration, 1861) If the North wanted to preserve the Union, she should have applied all diplomacy long before the secession. The Declaration lists the series of the steps of the government that triggered the secession from the Union which “tramples the original equality of the South under foot.” It is seen that no comprehensive attempts were made to save the Union.
Finally, the House Divided speech by Lincoln once again shows that the key cause was the failure of statesmen to settle the conflict. In particular, Lincoln clearly showed that he is closed to compromise with the South and that his position was radical: “Either the opponents of slavery will arrest the further spread of it (…); or its advocates will push it forward, till it shall become lawful in all the States, old as well as new — North as well as South.” (Lincoln, 1858).
In summary, the weight of the errors done by the government led to the situation when, at some point, the conflict became irrepressible. Yet, for decades preceding the Conflict, if the foundations of the Constitution were adhered to by the North and the South was in an equal position, the conflict could have been settled.
- “A Declaration of the Immediate Causes which Induce and Justify the Secession of the State of Mississippi from the Federal Union” (1861). Retrieved from http://avalon.law.yale.edu/19th_century/csa_missec.asp.
- Calhoun, J. (1850). “The Clay Compromise Measures.” Retrieved from
http://www.nationalcenter.org/CalhounClayCompromise.html. - “House Divided Speech” (1858). Abraham Lincoln Online. Retrieved from
http://www.abrahamlincolnonline.org/lincoln/speeches/house.htm.
