How Did Civil War Change The United States History Essay

The Civil has been one of most important event in the American history and it put the nation in most critical phase after its independence. The war made an impact from different angles and some of the war impacts have really been quite far reaching. The issue of slavery which had kept the nation divided for about a century was settled in the aftermath of Civil War and the victory of the Union army was the main reason behind the settlement of this issue. After the settlement and resolution of this issue, the American society became more harmonized

Economy benefited in the aftermath of Civil War in a big way, especially during the reconstruction phase. Economic activity on a huge scale was generated during the reconstruction phase, employments were generated and money circulated to keep the economic cycle moving. This played an important role in putting the economy of the United on the growth track. It is said that the impetus which the Civil War gave to American industry could not have been imagined before War. It gave the industry a big impetus and new entrepreneurs entered the scene with full vigor and with new and lot of capital. As a result, large scale manufacturing was started at a rapid pace and the natural resources were exploited with more zeal and used for the development of the country. In addition, new avenues for foreign trade were opened which also contributed to the growth and development of economy in a big way. Agriculture also got boost for the overall favorable economic environment.

Political system also benefited from the victory of the Union in the Civil War. For some years just after the war, the developments on political side were not that significant as the administrations were not that dynamic but as a whole the democracy gained a lot, in the long run, as the slavery came to an end. The voting rights were also extended to all irrespective of the race by fifteenth amendment which was a great advancement. In fact all three of the 13th, 14th and 15th amendments were a big gain on political scene after the Civil war. Party politics was also set on the new lines which continued to develop and provided an engine of growth to democracy in United States.

Part-II

The most interesting thing about this week is the study reconstruction in the United States after the Civil War. No body would have imagined that growth in industry and economy at such a scale after the huge devastation caused by American Civil War including about a million casualties. But the growth and the reconstruction were phenomenal and put the United States on the path of development.

I would like to know more about the Battle of Vicksburg &

Battle of Antietam both of which played an important role in the Civil War and were crucial events.

The muddiest point in this week is the Compromise of 1877 as I could not find much about this compromise. It was a not a formal and a written compromise but yet it played an important role in those times

Part-III

You have rightly pointed out that the sharecropping was an interesting thing. It was no doubt an interesting thing in America in those days as it was seen as way to replace the slave system in agriculture after the end of slavery. At times it seemed that the lot of sharecroppers was no better than the slaves. The problem was that the sharecroppers were poor, had no money and depended upon credit from landlord to survive. The debt was paid back from the share of the crop and therefore they were in a sort of debt bondage. Your observation of equating that with credit cards of today is very right. As far as compromise of 1877 is concerned, it is a muddy point because of the reason that the compromise was only an informal one with no written details.

Extra Credit

Afghanistan Reconstruction Despite Some Progress, Deteriorating Security and Other Obstacles Continue to Threaten Achievement of U.S. Goals. Retrieved from

http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d05742.pdf

The paper that I have selected is a report about the reconstruction in Afghanistan. It is related to the post Civil War reconstruction in the United States. The reconstruction in the United States resulted in significant progress and economic development. It was a great success story and it gave birth to the modern United States in a real sense of the word. On the other hand, the reconstruction in Afghanistan, though it is led by the United States, has not been very successful till today and the results have not been as per expectations. This is despite the fact that a number of countries are committed and involved in the process of reconstruction in Afghanistan. But the real issue that that while the United States in post Civil War period was a peaceful country, the situation in Afghanistan is very bad from law and order perspective. Therefore, the efforts at reconstruction go waste due to poor law and order environment.