Causes of the Civil War   

I.Economic factors

    During the American Revolution, differences between the North and the South were small under their common interest inestablishing a new nation. But they developed in different directions from thevery beginning.

    Before the Civil War, the South remained agricultural and was dominated by a settled plantation system based on slavery.There was very little urbanization or industrialization. Slave-owners controlled politics and economics.

    On the other hand, the North had been industrialized because of its rich resources. The economy was rapidly developed based on industry, mining, commerce and transportation, with a large urban areas and population.

    Meanwhile, the South exported plenty of cotton to Europe and imported almost all the manufactured goods from abroad, so they wished to have a low tariff（关税）, as a high tariff would raise the prices ofimported goods. On the contrary, the North had a different interest. They demanded a high tariff to protect its own products from cheap foreign competition.

II.Political factors

    As Northern and Southern patterns of living differed, their political ideas also developed marked differences.

    The North needed a central government to build an infrastructure of roads and railways, protect its trading and financial interests, and control the national currency.

    While the south depended much less on the federal government, so the Southerners felt no need to strengthen it. In addition, Southern patriots feared that a strong central government might interfere（干涉、妨碍） with slavery.

III.The issue of slavery   

     The issue of slavery was the chief cause ofthe war.

    In the South, the black African slaves were regarded as the property of the planters. They could be bought, sold, and were often treated cruelly.

    However, in the North, with a growing demand for labor to work in factories, some Northerners wanted to get slaves from the South, so they supported the abolition of slavery.

   Meanwhile, as more states were admitted to the United States, southern leaders wanted to expand slavery into the new states so as to control the Congress. The government failed to balance the disagreement, spurring the creation of the Republican Party, which is formed largely to abolish slavery. Soon the Republican Party emerged as the dominant force throughout the North. When Abraham Lincoln was elected as a RepublicanPresident in 1860, some of the southern states had seceded（脱离 ） from the Federal Union. The Civil War became inevitable.

The American Civil War   

   As more slave states seceded from the Union,Lincoln’s firstpriority wasto keep the United States as one country. He refused to recognize the secession and appeal for reunification. But the South ignored and formed the Confederate States of America (CSA).

    On April 12th, 1861, the Confederates firedon a federal fort, Fort Sumter, and the Civil War began.

     The North had many advantages over the South, such as more states, a larger population, better transportation system, and more supplies. More important, Lincoln was supported by the majority of the people. Yet despite its potential strength, the war went badly for the North in the first 18 month. As Lincoln hesitated on the question of slavery, the North lacked the determination and will to fight to war. To make things worse, the British and French governmentsupplied the Confederates with goods and arms.  

     In order to change the situation, several measures were taken by Lincoln’s government in 1862. In May, Congress passed the Homestead Act, which helped to solve the land problems in the interests ofthe small farmers. In September, Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation（解放宣言） which liberated about four million Black slaves in the South. A lot of slave revolts and strikes happened in the South and many slaves fled to the North,seriously disrupting production in the South. They were also allowed to servein the Union Army, fighting bravely to help the North win the War.

     With such mass support, the Union Army began to win decisive victories on the battlefield. It defeated the Confederate Army at Gettysburg（葛底斯堡）, Pennsylvania. This is the turning point of the war. On April 9th, 1865, after the fall of Richmond, the Confederate Capital, General Robert Lee（罗伯特·李） of the South surrendered, and all other Confederate forces soon surrendered too. The War was over.

Significance of the Civil War

     The Civil War resolved two fundamental issues. It preserved the Union and destroyed the feudal slavery-plantation system, which had been an obstacle of the development of capitalism. Slavery was abolished, but since the war was not fought for the emancipation of the blacks, they still had a hard time after the war. The war left the South physically and economically devastated as well. After Lincoln was assassinated,the reconstruction work became slow and lasted until 1878.