Introduction
The American Civil War was one of the most historically significant events in American history and perhaps, the entire world. The U.S. remains to be the most powerful, both in terms of economy and military, country in the world and if not for the outcomes during the American Civil War and the people behind it who served as the catalyst of the rebellion and the ones who quelled it, the world have not seen the United States of American as it is today. Everyone knows what the union president, Abraham Lincoln, did during that time. He battled the rebel forces which were comprised mostly of military forces from the seceding states of the south, or as what they collectively call themselves—the states that revolted, the Confederate States of America. Lincoln took control of the war and military efforts the soonest time their first fort were put down by the rebel forces. He acted as the chief executive and overrode most, if not everything that had something to do with the war. One important thing to know about Abraham Lincoln is that he had been very clear about his policies and a significant part of such policy was the abolishment of the slavery especially in the southern states which were all heavily infested with slave keeping and trading activities .
The American Civil War: An Alternative Scenario
What if Abraham Lincoln did not take the military or iron hand path in quelling the rebellion? Would the U.S. be a lot or just a little bit different from it is today or otherwise? The U.S., had President Lincoln not won that war, would be divided into two or even three major subdivisions. More and more state citizens were being influenced to pick the secessionists side instead of keeping their membership with the Union. Abraham Lincoln’s side did not take the first shot; it was the southern guards’ who fired first . The story was that the fort general was directly asking then president, Abraham Lincoln, for a considerable increase in war provisions in the fort after seeing the Southern forces mobilize their military units near the border of the two countries. President Lincoln lauded the request and immediately approved it. Unfortunately, the states from the south interpreted that action as an act of war and so they rallied their troops at Fort Sumter for the first ever offensive by the Confederate States’ forces against the Union . The war personnel in the fort were of course forced to defend it and things went down from there. In the first place, it was not Abraham Lincoln’s side’s fault why a war had erupted at a time when he was negotiating peace terms and other possible forms of compromise to prevent the dismantlement of the Union, which was and is one of the major things that made and make the United States the greatest country of today.
One alternative step that Lincoln could have taken is the use of dialogue with the states. Of course, it is already given that the states in the southern part of the continent are literally serious about breaking free from the Union because of various constitutional issues, especially the conflicts about the issue of slavery and how to handle them. Lincoln, weeks before the war, was actually making efforts to talk to the people of the south to try to convince them that he was just elected as a president not to abolish the slavery but to bring and maintain peace, order, and stability in all of the United States. He affirmed that he does not have any plans nor intentions to abolish slavery be it through legal or military means. Nonetheless, Lincoln talking to the would-be rebels would have been an entirely different approach which would have brought a lot of change with the way how the U.S. is structured and functions today. Slavery would have flourished for a few decades more; the U.S. as we know now would be a significantly smaller U.S. without enough power to match other global superpowers such as Russia and China.
It is true that forging a relationship with the Southern states would have been a good idea but the question is, would it have been the better one? In my opinion it would not. The moment the inaugurated president, Lincoln, hands them what they wanted, the people would see him as a soft, easy to persuade and an easy to pressure individual. More and more conflicts would follow that would have been most likely filled with tense situations and hard decision-making situations for the president. The moment he yields to the demands of the Southern secessionist states, conflict and more likely, war, would still erupt and efforts to bilaterally settle the issue through a compromise would be wasted. Sure, there could have been a lot lesser loss of blood had the president simply forged an alliance with the South. But the future carryover of that action would of course, as we know it, be drastic. The U.S. would not be as strong and as influential as it is today. So in this case, I can say that Lincoln’s decision to let the situation spiral down into an all-out civil war was the right decision. Soon after the war, the secessionist states began to agree on becoming a part of the Union once again and drop their secessionist sentiments. If President Lincoln had chosen the peaceful way, there would have been a longer time for peace but the states would just keep on demanding what they need or want—even if they do not really need it until the main and legitimate government could not provide it anymore. That kind of situation could easily develop into a conflict and if unlucky, a full scale war. The good thing here is that Lincoln had chosen to take the military and authoritarian path. The war with the south was inevitable to begin with. Based on that informed assumption, we can infer that the best way to end everything would not be through bilateral talks or compromise but through military force, which was an area that the legitimate Union had a great an advantage of .
References
Doran, T. (2012). Slave Trade before the American Civil War. Oxford University Press.
Fehrenbacher, D. (1981). Slavery, Law, and Politics: The Dred Scott Case in Historical Perspective. Oxford University Press.
Freehling, W. (n.d.). The Road to Disunion: Secessionists Triumphant 1854-1861.
Glenapp, W. (2005). The Crisis of American Democracy: The Political System and the Coming of the Civil War. McGraw Hill.
