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What were the presidents views on slavery during the civil war?
Wiki User
∙ 9y ago
During the US Civil War, the views of two presidents can be discussed. The simplest one is the beliefs of Confederate President Jefferson Davis. He believed that slavery was legal and a system that should be preserved and expanded. This as anyone then or now can say with some authority was short sighted to say the least. Any review of history would reveal that social & economic changes and advances would make slavery "obsolete". Also, when major world powers such as France or Great Britain see fit to abolish slavery as they did in the 19th Century, and before the Civil War, well that should have been a "wake up call for Jefferson Davis.
On the Union side, we have President Abraham Lincoln. We know from his public words that he personally held slavery to be "wrong". He would prefer to have it abolished. As a public official, being the US President, Lincoln promised to follow the US Constitution, which at the time, according to the US Supreme Court, found slavery to be legal. Only a constitutional amendment could make slavery illegal.
For political unity purposes at that time, Lincoln made it clear he would do nothing to abolish slavery where it currently existed. He wished to limit its expansion as far as the Constitution would allow.
All to soon, for Abraham Lincoln, the Civil War came along. For the Union to prevail, slavery in the so-called border States, such as Maryland had to be kept in the Union, so slavery was tolerated. The Emancipation Proclamation was a political-military device. That's more details and another part of US Civil War strategy. It is clear however, it was meant for the rebellious States, not for "Northern" ones that had slavery.
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∙ 9y ago
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