Why the American Civil War Began: Slavery, Lincoln, Gettysburg

The American Civil War did not begin overnight — it grew out of decades of conflict over slavery, expansion, and power between the North and South. As the United States expanded west, new states became battlegrounds over whether slavery would be allowed, while the North increasingly saw it as immoral and economically inefficient.

When Abraham Lincoln was elected president in 1860, Southern states began declaring independence and seizing federal property, pushing the nation into war in 1861. The conflict became the deadliest in U.S. history, with early Southern victories followed by a turning point at Gettysburg and Union control of the Mississippi River. By 1865, the South surrendered and slavery was abolished in America.

This history explainer and Civil War documentary-style narration is ideal for viewers searching for American history, U.S. Civil War causes, Abraham Lincoln, slavery in the United States, Confederate States of America, and major battles like Gettysburg. It also fits searches for educational history videos, political division in early America, and concise historical storytelling.