How the American Civil War Happened - Road to the War

Videos on American history:

00:00 - Intro
01:48 - What Washington thought about Slavery
04:43 - The Decline and Revival of Slavery: 1778-1808
11:04 - Nullification Crisis and Regional Tensions
18:12 - The 1850 Fugitive Slave Act
21:00 - Kansas-Nebraska Act 1854: The Countdown Begins

#Documentary #CivilWar #howithappened

[mikedorava]

One slight inaccuracy I wanted to point out only because I feel it is relevant; George Washington's last will and testament stated that his slaves were to be freed upon the death of his wife, Martha Washington. Martha, being an astute woman, recognized that this gave the slaves a vested interest in her death and promptly freed them.
All in all, this was well done. I'm looking forward to the next episode.

[SauceFring]

It’s hard to create a sequence of facts and events like this thoroughly not just informative and enjoyable, but entertaining. I’m sure it ms really hard. Well done.

[richeybaumann]

14:50 There's a quote, likely apocryphal but certainly in keeping with the man's personality: "John Calhoun, if you secede from my nation I will secede your head from the rest of your body."

He also said after leaving office that his only two regrets were that "I didn't shoot Henry Clay and I didn't hang John C. Calhoun."

[grandadmiralzaarin]

So glad your channel is covering the lead up to, reasons for and the American Civil War itself. As a historian, it is also heartening to see the 'Lost Cause' myth being decisively disproved more regularly.

[TheReaperEagle]

The Writer Here: I'll respond to any questions about the video here.

Some details that didn't make the final script:
1) Washington felt particularly trapped by slavery, as he couldn't free all the slaves which worked Mt. Vernon. Over 300 worked for him, but he only owned 123 of them. The rest were from Martha's first marriage and were actually owned by the Curtis family. They were legally on loan to her until her death, at which time the Curtis' would get them back. Knowing they would be treated worse prevented Washington from giving them back early, despite him writing that he only needed 100 workers at Mt. Vernon after giving up on tobacco planting in favor of wheat farming.
2) Jefferson's attitude toward slavery is paradoxical. He tried to get rid of slavery in his lifetime while simultaneously working to hold onto all his slaves until his death. He might have been aware of the irony.
3) The Northwest Ordinance was one of the last things the Confederation Congress did before being replaced. Reaffirming it was one of Congress' first acts after the Constitution was ratified.
4) The early 20th Century saw the Napoleonic Wars, the Barbary States, a series of civil wars in the Ottoman Empire, and the Greek Independence War make Eastern Mediterranean trade very unreliable and dangerous. Trans-Atlantic trade was far safer, despite being further.
5) While William Walker's Nicaraguan adventures are the best-known and most successful filibustering expeditions, he was quite prolific and also launched coups in northern Mexico and Costa Rica. The most common target of other American filibusters was Cuba.
6) The Poli Sci lesson of the Tariff of Abominations is "never propose legislation unless you want it to pass."
7) Despite his hatred of Henry Clay, Jackson accepted his compromise because he'd been persuaded that actually marching on Charleston was a stupid idea. He'd have done it anyway because he never backed down, but he loved the union enough to give Clay a win and let the compromise go through.
8) While the Underground Railroad had been operating for some time, it's not clear how many slaves _actually_ successfully escaped pre-1850. Southern rhetoric makes it sound like a major threat to planters' livelihoods, but the actual evidence points to it being a minor annoyance for the upper South and barely a problem in the Deep South. Given how many slaves were being brought in through illegal smuggling, it's unlikely that escapees had any impact on the number of slaves. However, paranoia and fear blew it out of proportion in southern minds.

[kylegates]

“American leaders repeatedly failed to diffuse the tensions” some things never change.

[Anglomachian]

“Andrew Jackson never made an idle threat.”

Too right. Guy was a nutter

[theirisharchangel]

You guys really are godsends. Masterfully crafting this series of events into an interesting watch is amazing. This will never not be important. You all can never be thanked enough for how well you have covered such a pivotal part of our history here. Hats off to all of you and amazing work!
It was so good I've now become a member. Keep up the great work!

[Jay-jbvr]

Yes, slavery had as much to do with the Civil War as Adolf Hitler had with WW2. This is long-standing common knowledge and should not be shunned, ignored, covered up, or lied about 💯

[jordancee]

So excited to see Kings and Generals tackle the American Civil war. Cant wait to see VTH's reaction series as well. No way he skips this

[lkgrave]

Like I commented before: You cannot demand your freedoms while denying fellow Americans theirs simultaneously.

[georgeprchal]

The Simpsons episode where Apu takes his citizenship exam:
Proctor: Name the cause of the Civil War.
Apu: There were several contributing factors; the Missouri Compromise, the Kansas-Nebraska Act, growing support for abolition...
Proctor: Just say slavery.
Apu: Slavery it is Sir.
(Pass)
Apu: Hooray I am a citizen!

[MollymaukT]

This video is pretty much 20 minutes of Southern slave-owners shooting themselves in the foot

[legacyvaultchannel]

The nuanced perspective on figures like Washington and Jefferson shows how deeply conflicted the Founding Fathers were about slavery. Amazing content!

[iluvtriggeringpeople]

Im a Dad who, along with Mom, homeschools Our Daughter. I use Your videos for a good "summary/starting point" for History subjects! THANK YOU SO MUCH GOODSIR 🙏🏽

[chasechristophermurraydola]

I can’t wait to see the next episode as my guess is that it will include bloody Kansas, The Dread Scott decision and John browns raid on Harpers Ferry.

[Volkmargrim]

Incredible that the way the colonies were organized 200 years prior lead to the civil war, not to mention the obvious climate difference which manifested differing economies. Ive even heard the population and North/South divide mirrored the English civil war after their families/descendants left to America.

[patsfreak]

My friend once went on a school trip to Missouri and ran into some kids and went, “Hey, we’re from Maine, we’re kinda sibling states.” They had no idea what she was talking about

[Luisjoseglobal]

Been watching you guys for years, just became a member!! It would be a dream if you can do a video on Dominican War of Independence, very interesting history .

[anthonyfrench]

This was an amazing and well thought out video. Your team were able to really dive into some detail, that as an American wasn't aware i.e. Washington and his view on slavery and all in around 20 minutes...that's awesome!!