Personally, I agree with Abraham Lincoln that slavery had been the root cause of the American Civil War. Prior to the war, slavery had divided the northern and southern parts of the country politically. Abolitionists and many other northerners were convinced that southerners wanted slavery to expand rapidly. On the other hand, the south was worried that the abolitionists in the north would threaten the old southern way of life. One of the first conflicts between the north and south occurred when Missouri was admitted as a state in 1821. (American Yawp - Sectional Crisis) Despite the fact of being the root cause, slavery was not the only reason for the start of the civil war. Many southern states succeeded from the union and formed the Confederate States of America to preserve their way of life. President Lincoln never recognized the secession and declared it as being “legally void” and he vowed to defend federal land within the Confederate States of America. In fact, the trigger of the Civil War was at Fort Sumter. When the union soldiers refused to evacuate the fort, the confederate soldiers opened fire on it. This marked the actual beginning of the American Civil War. (American Yawp - The Civil War) From my understanding, the only 19th century event that led to the civil war is the inauguration of Abraham Lincoln. Due to his inauguration, many states in the south seceded, which led to the Union wanting to reunite, and the event at Fort Sumter. Many southern states had also felt that they were at the “mercy” of the north. Conflicting ideologies were a major cause to the war. For example, the house was already divided prior to the war. Many abolitionists had wanted to end slavery in the north and obviously, the south wanted to stick with their traditional way of life, which involved keeping slavery legal. This disagreement between the two sides would heat up even more as the nation expands westward. As more states joined the na