American Civil War: A Series of Events That Led to War - Essay Sample

Introduction

The American Civil War is one of the stark reminders to contemporary Americans of the travails their ancestors went through to create the present United States of America that stands proud the world over. While the war began in the 1860s, the events leading up to it had a much longer beginning. It was not a single event or factor that led to the American Civil War but instead a series of events that sent the legendary United States of America into war. As such, the American Civil War began when these three critical events stirred up the situation leading to the Great War; these events were the Mexican American War, the Kansas Nebraska Act and Nat Turner. These three events are critical to the commencement of the American Civil War as they all contributed in one way or another to lead the country into war.

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The Mexican American War is one of the critical events that eventually resulted in the American Civil War. Steering, this expansion into Texas and other lands that were initially not American, was the Manifest Destiny, a doctrine which the Americans abode (Mexican American 2). The principle had its roots in the American belief that their country was unique and thus, had a task to spread their social and economic system around the globe; and what better place to start than the neighboring state of Texas? Manifest Destiny was all about economic power and thus began the American relations with Mexicans in Texas, California, New Mexico, and Oregon. When the pioneer Americans first expanded into Texas and other neighboring countries, they were confident that they would lord over their superiority to the aboriginal inhabitants. It was however not the case for Mexicans in Texas.

Before the American expansion down South, these provinces were under Spanish rule, and they were mostly Catholic. As such, they ran Catholic missions across various parts of the colony (Mexican American 3). These missions oversaw large tracts of farmlands which Indian slaves worked in; tending to the animals and growing crops that fed the populous in the Spanish colonies in the Americas. The first lasting change was when the Mexican Congress stripped the Catholic Church of her vast landholdings in the former territories of Spain (Mexican American 4). These immense lands were then shared out to Mexican cattle ranchers who took over operations in these farmlands. Although things were changing, the new ranch owners still used Indian workers to provide labor in the large ranches that they now owned. The Indian laborers, though not slaves, worked in conditions akin to the slaves in most of America. When the 1820s rolled around, American traders started expanding to Mexico, and by the 1830s, the population in Mexico was made up of Mexicans and most Americans who had set up their businesses down South and decided to settle down.

When the Mexican government first came to power in the 1820s, it encouraged Americans to emigrate to Texas were at the time, there were about 3,00ss Mexicans who were mainly ranch owners. The first American to own a ranch in Texas was Moses Austin whom the Spanish government granted rights to operate a farm in 1821. When Austin died, his son, Stephen took over the project, and it was during his reign that he began to welcome other Americans into Texas through his entrepreneurial actions of selling most of the land that his father had received a grant from the Spanish colony to operate. Stephen sold large parcels of land at throwaway prices, and this led to many Americans settling down in Texas. With the Americans settling down, they soon discovered that to run the large ranches that they now owned, they needed a cheap source of labor and what better way to do so than use slaves. The practice went on for some time until 1829 when the Mexican government banned slavery and forbade anyone living in Texas to practice the vice (Mexican American 4). The American settlers, however, continued the practice, and this angered the Mexican government who decided to repeal the law to ban immigration of other Americans into Texas. It was however too late as, by the mid-1830s, the white population was approximately 40,000, almost ten times more than the aboriginal Mexicans in Texas. These Americans could not stop their practice of slavery even when the Mexican government pleaded with them to put an end to the vice. In 1834, when the Americans seemed not to heed the legislation of the Mexican government, the then president of Mexico led a group of soldiers and allies to war with the Americans who lived in Texas. Thus began the Mexican American war which created untold suffering on both groups that took part in it. The war led to the two groups fighting for control of some of the Southern lands, chief among them being California. In June 1846, when the fighting was nearing California, a group of Americans proclaimed California an independent republic and not under Mexico anymore (Mexican American 5). From there, the army composed of Americans moved down South, conquering former Mexican states and territories. In every country that the Americans defeated, they assured the citizens that the new government would respect private property and protect them from Indian attacks. At the end of the war, America had greatly expanded to encompass most of the Mexican territory, including present-day Texas.

The Kansas Nebraska Act, which is marked the time when the American Civil War became inevitable, is the main critical event that led up to the war. Passed by the U.S Congress on May 30th, 1854, the Kansas Nebraska Act allowed the territories of Kansas and Nebraska to decide for themselves whether they wanted to let slavery within their borders. The bill was not welcomed by most Northerners who saw it as a slide back to the days before the Missouri Compromise which forbade the practice of slavery. The law, however, had a different effect down South, most of whom were pro-slavery and this led to the creation of tension between the two factions. When the bill came to place, the two territories, Kansas and Nebraska held fresh elections which had serious issues that eventually led to violence between pro-slavery and anti-slavery supporters (Kansas Nebraska act facts). The violence resulted in the deaths of many especially in Kansas where the death toll was the highest. The two factions, however, did not agree to settle amicably, and it was not until January 29, 1861, when a new constitution under the anti-slavery supported came to place. With the drafting of the new law, the new state of Kansas met the demands for admittance into the Union where it joined as a free state. The act, however, was the turning point for the American Civil War because it marked a turning point in the history of the U.S; it highlighted the differences in opinion between those for and those against slavery and their differences culminated in the most celebrated war fought within the borders of the United States of America.

The other critical event that was integral in leading up to the American Civil War was the 1831 Nat Turner uprising. Nat Turner, a prominent leader among the slaves, led a revolt against their masters and their families (nat turner 1). At the start of the revolution, Nat Turner had a few supporters, but as he went along, the number grew to approximately 70 slaves who went about killing their masters and their families. The revolt, however, died down 48 hours after its commencement when it ended after the capture of Nat Turner and his eventual execution. Although the slave revolt did not have immediate far-reaching effects, the slave masters and most Southerners who were pro-slavery soon became uneasy with the slaves in their households. The revolution that Nat Turner had started instilled fear in the Southerners and other pro-slavery supporters and at the end of it all, their unrest manifested in the American Civil War (nat turner 2). The event was instrumental in driving a wedge between the North and the South because the former was anti-slavery while the latter was pro-slavery. As such, the two regions finally ended up in the American Civil War, fighting because of their divergent and opposing ideologies. These three events each contributed in the American Civil War in their way. The Kansas-Nebraska Act by providing a playground for anti and pro-slavery supporters to clash through violence, the Mexican American War by creating a region that had supporters of slavery and the Nat Turner rebellion by stirring up slaves and anti-slavery protesters to engage in a war with those of an opposing position.