Why was emancipating the black slaves a big impact on the U.S. Civil War?

Answer 1

After reading these answers and listening to the implications I am ashamed to try to respond I'll be called a racist and a redneck all because I did not take the word of history books of the public school system and read. If you are asking about the Emancipation Proclamation it did nothing I swear nothing in fact. Lincoln was reluctant to issue an Emancipation Proclamation but you would have thought from what one is taught in class these days this was his primary concern. He issued the proclamation to save the Union making impossible for foreign Governments to intervene on behalf of the Confederacy. Even though the English supported (indirectly) slavery, they like other countries were officially against the practice. By his actions, Lincoln was showing the US was against slavery but not the Confederacy. If like the leaders of these countries at the time, you took the time to read and study the act you would see it does nothing and in fact, Lincoln thought that the Afro American was not the equal of whites and his plan was to resettle the slaves in either the Amazon or Western Texas.

Most people are not aware that there was a series of action and even proclamations for instance Lincolns correspondence of October 14, 1862 to the military and civilian authorities of occupied Louisiana.

“Major General Butler, Governor Shepley, & and [sic] all having military and naval authority under the United States within the S[t]ate of Louisiana. The bearer of this, Hon. John E. Bouligny, a citizen of Louisiana, goes to the State seeking to have such of the people thereof as desire to avoid the unsatisfactory prospect before them, and to have peace again upon the old terms under the constitution of the United States, to manifest such desire by elections of members to the Congress of the United States particularly, and perhaps a legislature, State officers, and United States Senators friendly to their object. I shall be glad for you and each of you, to aid him and all others acting for this object, as much as possible. In all available ways, give the people a chance to express their wishes at these elections. Follow forms of law as far as convenient, but at all events get the expression of the largest number of the people possible. All see how such action will connect with, and affect the proclamation of September 22nd. Of course, the men elected should be gentlemen of character willing to swear support to the Constitution, as of old, and known to be above reasonable suspicion of duplicity. (CW 5:462-3, italics added).

NOTE: The italic show that Lincoln rather then issue an Emancipation Proclamation or free the slaves was still willing to allow the Southern States back into the Union. One will find this all the way up to the 1865 visit to Camp Lookout.

At the same time Lincoln was issuing the Emancipation Proclamation he was petitioning his cabinet to negotiate and appropriate funds to force the Blacks else where.
In the 1770s, the South had every reason to continue the relationship with England, one of its best customers. It was the manufacturing North that was getting the short end of that stick. Southerners joined the Revolutionary War out of patriotism, idealism, and enlightened political philosophy such as motivated Jefferson, not patriotism, philosophy, and economic betterment which inspired the North.
In 1860, the shoe was on the other foot. Southern agrarians were at heel to the nation's bankers and industrialists. That just got worse with the election of the Republican Lincoln, bringing back into power the party favoring the wealthy supply side, as it still does.
Then as now central to that, party's interest was keeping down the cost of manufacture. Today labor is the big cost, so today they move the plants offshore and leave US workers to their fate. Back before the US labor movement existed the big cost was raw materials, and the GOP was just as unprincipled toward its Southern suppliers as it is today toward labor.
Thanks to modern graveyard science and surviving records, researchers know that in 1760, 100 years before the War Between the States, Charleston, South Carolina, had the largest population of slaves and we say proudly the second largest slave population was in New York City.
One of the main quarrels was about taxes paid on goods brought into this country from foreign countries. This tax was called a tariff. Southerners felt these tariffs were unfair and aimed toward them because they imported a wider variety of goods than most Northern people. Taxes were also placed on many Southern goods that were shipped to foreign countries, an expense that was not always applied to Northern goods of equal value. An awkward economic structure allowed states and private transportation companies to do this, which also affected Southern banks that found themselves paying higher interest rates on loans made with banks in the North. As industry in the North expanded, it looked towards southern markets, rich with cash from the lucrative agricultural business, to buy the North's manufactured goods. The situation grew worse after several "panics", including one in 1857 that affected more Northern banks than Southern. Southern financiers found themselves burdened with high payments just to save Northern banks that had suffered financial losses through poor investment. However, it was often cheaper for the South to purchase the goods abroad. In order to "protect" the northern industries Jackson slapped a tariff on many of the imported goods that could be manufactured in the North. When South Carolina passed the Ordinance of Nullification in November 1832, refusing to collect the tariff and threatening to withdraw from the Union, Jackson ordered federal troops to Charleston. A secession crisis was averted when Congress revised the Tariff of Abominations in February 1833. The Panic of 1837 and the ensuing depression began to gnaw like a hungry animal on the flesh of the American system. The disparity between northern and southern economies was exacerbated. Before and after the depression the economy of the South prospered. Southern cotton sold abroad totaled 57% of all American exports before the war. The Panic of 1857 devastated the North and left the South virtually untouched. The clash of a wealthy, agricultural South and a poorer, industrial North was intensified by abolitionists who were not above using class struggle to further their cause.
In the years before the Civil War the political power in the Federal government, centered in Washington, D.C., was changing. Northern and mid-western states were becoming more and more powerful as the populations increased. Southern states lost political power because the population did not increase as rapidly. As one portion of the nation grew larger than another, people began to talk of the nation as sections. This was called sectionalism. Just as the original thirteen colonies fought for their independence almost 100 years earlier, the Southern states felt a growing need for freedom from the central Federal authority in Washington. Southerners believed that state laws carried more weight than Federal laws, and they should abide by the state regulations first. This issue was called State's Rights and became a very warm topic in congress.

These are facts not emotions or unsupported claims, now what was the War over?





In 1864, Jeff Davis and other Southerner leaders would contemplate outlawing slavery and probably would have if the opportunity had arisen.

God Bless You and The Southern People.

Answer 2

Actually, the two real reasons were economic and superiority beliefs. Slavery allowed plantations to be more profitable (didn't have to pay slaves to work), and the misguided beliefs that somehow the color of skin made some more superior as human beings than others. The Confederacy cloaked in the notion of "State's Rights," but it was nothing more than an argument for State-sanctioned racism.

Historically, Lincoln did not emancipate the slaves until the Civil War was long underway. There are many sources on the Civil War, but if you check out things by an author named Shelby Foote, or the long PBS series "The Civil War" by Ken Burns, they are about the best - in my opinion.

Answer 3

Yes there was a reason for it, it was meant to keep the European powers out of the war, and it did,slavery was not what the Civil War was about despite what everyone tells you, the Civil War was really a question about the extent of Federalism in our country despite what the morons who answered in front of me may tell you. Lincoln said he if he could end the preserve the Union and keep slavery he would, if he could do so and free the slaves he would, and he said if he could do so while freeing some and leaving others in bondage he would also, that shows his true feelings on the issue, not to mention at the end the south showed they would give up slavery to win their independence by allowing slaves to serve in the military for their independence, and most slaves stayed loyal to their masters after freedom.

Answer 4

1. Manpower. Opened the way for organization of black troops for the north at a time when additional manpower resources were needed.
2. It effectively ended European intervention and/or recognition of the confederacy as europe had already outlawed slavery and existing slavery in the south was a major sticking point for those countries even though they were supprtive of southern independence.
3. It answered the question of the status of slaves freed by union troops. Prior to this the question of what to do about the slaves was an open question that casued several embarassing orders by nothern generals.
4. Slavery was the root cause of the conflict whether it was couched in terms of states rights or independence. Had the north won and not freed the slaves this issue would have continued to cause problems and what would the nation have gained.
5. It removed a valuable labor resource from the south which reduced food production.

Answer 5

Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, providing freedom to slaves, to encourage enlistment of Northern blacks into the Union Army, and making possible the enlistment of Southern blacks into the Union army.

Many emancipated black slaves chose to remain in the South, serving with the Confederated States of America, and loyal to the families who had owned them as slaves.

The biggest impact of the Emancipation Proclamation Act was the deteriotation of "states' rights". Individual states were no longer afforded the right to govern their state according to the "will of the people": They were now subject to Federal jurisdiction.

Answer 6

For those in the Union states who believed that slavery was immoral it reinforced the moral correctness of the Union side of the war.

In the South it gave encouragement to the black slaves who wanted to escape and it made outlaws of those who tried to recapture them. There were many in the South who opposed slavery, and emancipation raised doubts about the morality of continuing the war.

It also weakened the argument among many European nations who were backing the South that there was a moral correctness to the cause of the Confederacy.

Answer 7

There is no doubt it was a political maneuver by Lincoln. On at least two previous occasions, Northern generals had freed the slaves in areas they commanded and their proclamations were revoked by Lincoln, it was a stroke he was reserving for later. His only aim was to preserve the union and he was going to do whatever it took.

The only effect in real terms was weakening European support for the South. Apart from giving the Union generals some more cannon fodder but they had enough of that already.

Answer 8

Slavery and emancipation was the propaganda that fueled the war.

The real reason behind the war was economics and the northern industrialized states trying to control the southern states.

While it wasn't the true cause it was a good end result.

Answer 9

They were big money in the south. The south was pissed. Their "Property" was being threatened. They thought of slaves of how people nowadays thought of owning a pet. Except pets are treated better than slaves of that time were.

Answer 10

Because ahem, the southerners, being prominent plantation owners and racist pricks did not want to hire white people for physical labor. Ergo, the war began because they still wanted black peeps to pick their white cotton.

Answer 11

It took away a very cheap workforce from the plantation owners.