

The Innocent Cause of all the Trouble, illustration of the Devil sitting on a bale of cotton, illustration circa 1861-65

These declarations discuss two major themes: slavery and state’s rights. In addition, four states: Texas, Mississippi, Georgia and South Carolina issued additional documents, known as the Declaration of Causes, that further explained their actions. Each state that seceded issued an Article of Secession announcing that they were leaving the Union. The Civil War began after several states seceded from the Union in late 1860 and early 1861. One way to determine the cause of the Civil War, is to examine the primary sources from that period to see if any explicit causes were cited.

Evidence That Slavery Was the Cause of the Civil War: It is a subject that has been debated since the war first began in 1861. The argument over whether slavery was the primary cause of the Civil War is one of the most controversial topics in American history.
