At the onset of the Civil War the South had many “apparent” advantages. Discuss three of these advantages

At the onset of the Civil War the South had many “apparent” advantages. Discuss three of these advantages, and then explain how over the course of the war each of these elements ended up working against the South. Which of these factors do you believe had the greatest impact on the South’s losing the war, and why?

The number of words you write are not as important as the quality of your answer. Be sure you answer all parts of the question and that each part of the question has been thoroughly discussed in its own paragraph. Hence the number of paragraphs will vary. You must have an introduction, a body which contains a paragraph for each element you discuss, and a conclusion. I strongly urge you to base your answers on (not copy directly from) the course reading material (textbook, supplemental readings, and lectures) and NOT wikipedia or other outside web sources.

Please use this:
The course reading material/textbook is: America’s History: Concise Edition , Henretta, et. al., Volume 1, 10th edition ISBN-13: 978-1319275884

From the lecture:
Here are the Southern “Apparent” Advantages you can choose from:

(That is, the South originally thought these elements would work to their advantage, but ultimately they did not.)

1. Defensive War: The South thought that they could win simply by surviving. The North had to conquer the South in order to win.

2. Sound Military Strategy: The South had a sound defensive strategy. The North was constantly on the offensive, and, in order to be effective, the North had to have a 3 to 1 manpower ratio. The more territory the North conquered, the more men it had to leave behind to occupy the territory. These men left behind to occupy conquered territory, together with those men who died in battle, depleted the North’s manpower. The South was willing to wait for the Union army to weaken themselves; then they planned go on the offensive. In the beginning, this seemed like a good plan.

3. Superior Military Preparation: The South had quality military generals and troops. The South had the most experienced leaders from the US Army. Robert E. Lee joined the Confederate States of America (CSA), as did most of the Army s generals. The only significant leader to stay behind and fight for the union was Winfield Scott. Scott had been a great general. He was best known for his campaign against Mexico during the Mexican War. By 1861, however, Scott was 73 years old and he weighed 325 pounds. He couldn’t even get on a horse, let alone lead troops into battle.

Also, the antebellum South had put a tremendous amount of stress on military training due to their fear of slave uprisings. In 1861, the South appeared to have better military leaders and troops. The South assumed that northern troops would not be good soldiers. They believed that, because many Northerners were industrial workers, and they all worked in-doors, they would not be good troops.

4. Slavery: Slavery appeared to be an advantage for the South, because the South thought that the slaves would perform all the work while the white men fought in the army. Slaves could also take certain military jobs that would allow whites to fight. Slaves could work as teamsters and laborers—as support troops.

5. Economy: The Confederate States believed that they had a stronger economic base than the North. They assumed that Northern businesses could not survive without Southern markets. When the war started the South canceled $300 million worth of orders and debts with northern businesses and banks. This sudden shift in the economy caused a one-year recession in the North. Thus, apparently, the South economy was stronger.

After all, the South had cotton. In 1861, the South adopted cotton diplomacy. This idea was based on the belief that Europeans could not survive without the South s cotton. Under this assumption, the Confederacy put an embargo on the export of cotton. Southerners assumed that cotton mills would shut down in Europe and that European workers would demand that Great Britain support the South.

6. Presidential Leadership: The South appeared to have an advantage in this department as well. Jefferson Davis was seen as a better president than Abraham Lincoln. Davis had war experience. He was a graduate of West Point. Davis had a combat record in the Mexican War, where he was cited for bravery. Davis had also been Secretary of War. Abraham Lincoln had no military training other than a couple of weeks fighting Indians.

Subsequently, historians have revised this notion—and given Davis credit from completely mobilizing the South resources–allowing the South to stay in the war well after their chances of winning had slipped away. While this interpretation paints a much more competent picture of Davis, the result was the same. Forced mobilization created a tremendous amount of class conflict and political turmoil as southerns began to argue that Davis had created the same type of all-powerful federal government they were fighting against.

7. Southern Society: Southern society appeared to be a seamless—united by the common desire to maintain independence, republicanism, slavery, and white supremacy. By contrast, the North was far from united. Many people in the North called the Civil War a Republican war.

8. Size and Position of the South: The South was 750,000 square miles and it had 3,300 miles of seacoast. The South also controlled the Mississippi River. It appeared that the south was too big to be conquered. Remember the South only had to survive to win.

Please let me know if you have any questions and feel free to use the info above (just do it in own words)!

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