Characteristics of the American Civil War?

Answer 1

This is a broad question and the characteristics of the US Civil War can be outlined as the following:

A. The length of the conflict was only 4 years, however, it was longer than most people involved in it thought it would be.

B. It was a bloody war and the loss of 620,000 lives was devastating. Total casualties amount to 1.5 million.

C. In terms of money, it was an expensive war, inasmuch as it lasted only 4 years. It cost the Federal Government almost $8 Billion. I cannot find cost data concerning the Confederacy.

D. Slavery was abolished, however, the US was the only nation to abolish slavery with a civil war. It also was the only abolishment of slavery that did not compensate the former slave owners.

E. It was a war that brought into it new methods of destruction. New weapons, new ways to kill an enemy from a long distance via the use of powerful cannons.

F. It was a war that saw the greatest internal rebellion in US history. This was the revolts against conscription. In New York City Lincoln had to send 20,000 troops to stop the riots. The death toll was about 1,200 as the troops did fire into the rioting crowds.

G. The aftermath of the war brought on new social conflicts. Afro Americans were no longer slaves, but their integration into the fabric of America continues to this day, but not to the degree it did in the "reconstruction period".

H. The war was the cause of the first American President to be assassinated as a direct affect of the the Union winning the war.

I. It created long reaching political affects. Well into the 20th century there was the so called "solid South". These were States that would always vote for Democrats as it was the Republican Party that "defeated the South".