Causing four years of bloodshed on American soil, the Civil War has been considered one of the most controversial wars in American history. Lasting from 1861 to 1865, the American Civil War pitted the American people, primarily the Northern states, against the Southern states. There is a common misconception that slavery was the key issue that led to the American Civil War. However, there were several other reasons why Americans embarked on the “Great American Tragedy.” Because the North and South were very different economically, socially, and politically, and territorial expansion ultimately resulted in Civil War, or War Between the States. First of all, there is an economic difference between the North and the South. the South. In the North, society was rapidly becoming industrial and focused more on urban life. On the other hand, the South remains a region of small towns and large plantations. When Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin in 1793, cotton became very profitable (Grischy). Landowners began growing cotton, which generated a large amount of cheap labor, hence the need for slaves. The South became a monoculture economy that depended primarily on cotton and therefore slavery. On the other hand, the North relied more on industry than agriculture. It focused on manufacturing and using raw materials to make finished products. While Northerners favored taxes on imports, also called tariffs that protected factory owners and workers from foreign competition, Southerners, on the other hand, were opposed to tariffs. So that southerners could buy Northern goods, Northern politicians imposed heavy taxes on goods imported from Europe. The economic difference was one of the reasons that divided...... middle of paper ......lavery. On the other hand, the Union fought the Civil War because it wanted to end slavery and also because many believed the Southern states had no right to succeed. In conclusion, due to the economic, social and political differences between the North and the South and with territorial expansion, all of this contributed to causing the civil war. In the early 1860s, the American Civil War was a major conflict between the Union and the Confederate States. The United States was divided between the North and the South due to economic differences and different lifestyles. The North industrialized at a very rapid rate and became more focused on urban living. The South, on the other hand, was still an agricultural society that relied primarily on cotton and slavery. There were so many reasons that caused the civil war and it was an inevitable war..