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Fort Sumter was extremely important. Lincoln had assured the South that he meant no harm to slavery where it was legalized. Most of the people who voted for Lincoln could live with Lincoln's position. The rabid anti slavery abolitionists of course could not.

Nevertheless, Lincoln had vowed to uphold the US Constitution and defend Federal property.

Lincoln did believe however that secession was a prelude to anarchy within the Union. He believed in individual freedom. He also vowed to keep his word on slavery and did not believe the Federal Government had the authority to abolish slavery.

There certainly was no mass movement in the Northern States to have a war over slavery. As long as there was no threat to the North or a possible attack from The British Empire or the French empire, there was no reason for a war.

The fatal mistake the South made was to attack and occupy the Federal Fort Sumter in the Charleston harbor.

Lincoln was later quoted as saying that the attack galvanized the North towards his opinion that to keep the Union whole was to benefit the nation as a whole. He, nor did others ever think that a 4 year bloody war causing over 600,000 military deaths, untold massive destruction and all the bitterness that lasted for decades would be the result of Fort Sumter.

Lincoln had no choice but to defend Federal troops. The nation agreed and thus Sumter was the straw that broke the camel's back.

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11y ago

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