The Southern States Leave the Union

The Civil War began when eleven Southern states left the United States, or "the Union," after Abraham Lincoln was elected president in 1860. This act of leaving is called secession. The Southern states believed they had the right to form their own country. They created the Confederate States of America, also known as the Confederacy.

The country was deeply divided. People in the North and South had different ways of life. The North had more factories and big cities. The South had large farms called plantations and depended on enslaved people to work the land. Many people in the North wanted to end slavery, but people in the South wanted to keep it. This disagreement grew worse each year.

When Abraham Lincoln was elected president, many Southerners feared he would end slavery. They believed this would change their way of life. As a result, starting with South Carolina in December 1860, Southern states began to leave the Union, one after another.

The Southern states claimed that the United States government could not force them to stay. They said each state had the right to decide important issues for itself. This idea is called states' rights. The North, however, believed the Union should stay together. They did not think states could just leave the country whenever they wanted.

By February 1861, eleven states had joined the Confederacy. They made their own government, wrote a constitution, and chose Jefferson Davis as president. The Union, led by President Lincoln, did not accept that the Southern states could break away. This conflict led to the Civil War in April 1861.

The Civil War lasted four years. It was the deadliest war in American history. In the end, the Union won, and the country was brought back together. Slavery was also ended in the United States.

Interesting Fact: Abraham Lincoln was not even on the ballot in ten Southern states during the 1860 election.