Why did the South choose to return to a Confederacy despite the failures of this governmental form in the late 18th Century?
From my perspective, a strong national government that infringed on individual and state's rights was the enemy they were facing in the North.
I take it you mean the Articles of Confedration that was our first constitution way back in the 1700s? A confederation as opposed to other forms of government (for example, unitary or federalism) emphasizes the political power of the smaller divisions over an apparatus of central authority. I am a history major with the ambition of entering law school someday. Please feel free to post more questions like this and I would be more than glad to help you.
Why did the South choose to return to a Confederacy despite the failures of this governmental form in the late 18th Century?
The decision of the Southern states to secede and form the Confederacy during the American Civil War was influenced by a combination of factors. The failures of the Confederacy during the late 18th Century were not a significant factor, as the United States had not yet been established at that time.
To understand why the South chose to form the Confederacy, we need to examine the historical context leading up to the Civil War. The primary issue was the institution of slavery. The Southern states relied heavily on the plantation system, which was built on the labor of enslaved people. The Southern economy was deeply intertwined with slavery, and many Southern leaders believed that their way of life was threatened by the growing anti-slavery sentiment in the North.
When Abraham Lincoln, a Republican who opposed the expansion of slavery, was elected as President in 1860, the Southern states viewed it as a threat to their interests. They believed that the federal government under Lincoln would eventually move to abolish slavery altogether.
In order to preserve their way of life and defend the institution of slavery, the Southern states decided to secede from the United States and form their own separate government, called the Confederate States of America. They saw the Confederacy as a way to protect their economic and social system based on slavery.
It is also worth noting that the Confederacy was not created without opposition or controversy within the Southern states. There were significant divisions and debates among Southerners, as not all supported secession. However, ultimately, the Southern states chose to break away from the Union in an effort to safeguard their interests and preserve the institution of slavery.