Therefore, the South felt she could count on the aid of France and Great Britain at some time during the war. This of course, did not happen, and so, the South did not have the luxury of external support that the United States had enjoyed during the Revolutionary War (Donald, 1996, p. 15-16).
The South also had over 3 million slaves they could conscript into the Army, but these slaves could also stay behind and work, while the whites fought the war, and this gave the South a distinct advantage over the North. While she did not have more manpower, their operations were smaller, and they could move more effectively. They were also on the defensive, which gave additional impetus to their cause, and their coastline was short and sheltered, which held off blockading of supplies they needed (Donald, 1996, p.16). In addition, they were more attuned to the war because they initially were fighting it on their own soil, and because of their hopes and desires. The war started after the Southern states seceded from the Union, and the South had high ideals and hopes for the war, while the Union only wanted to preserve the Union and stop slavery.
The
Mountain ranges in the east helped repel invasion, and the major valleys that supported invasion faced away from Richmond, the capital of the South and the target for invasion and destruction. Instead, the major
attack route, the Shenandoah Valley, ran toward
Washington DC, the logical Southern target for destruction. Thus, the South owned several key advantages that could have led to victory, but of course, did not.
In
conclusion, the North won the Civil War for a variety of reasons, including manpower, industry, and
leadership. The South had several advantages. Some they capitalized on and some did not work out for them, as history clearly indicates. The North won the Civil War because of superiority in many areas, and the South, with its smaller fighting force and lack of outside support, lost the war, even though at the beginning, they might have had enough advantage to win the contest.
References
Donald, DH Why the…
