Sic Semper Tyrannis: Årsagerne til Virginias løsrivelse fra USA i 1861

Abstract

During the Secession Crisis of 1860-1861, the Commonwealth of Virginia was the eighth US state to secede from the Union, but the first state to secede after the Civil War had begun on the 12th of April 1861. This paper focuses on the reasons given for Virginia’s secession from the Union, and to which extent slavery played a part in the decision. The Commonwealth of Virginia was divided on the question of slavery for decades, leading to a polarization between the eastern part of the state, where slavery was widespread, and the northwestern part, where slavery occupied less of the workforce. In general, slaveowners held most of the economic and political power in the state, despite making up the vast minority of the state’s total free, white population. Unhappiness with slaveowner dominance existed in the northwestern part of Virginia for decades, owning to the fact that slaveowners enjoyed economic and political liberties. This did not resonate with the majority of northwestern Virginia’s population, resulting in a disapproval of their fellow whites in the eastern part of the state. The white population of northwestern Virginia therefore considered this to go against their rights. However, up until the Civil War, no attempts were made to change the system through radical action. During the decade leading up to the Civil War, improved infrastructure silenced a large part of the population of central Virginia, that shared beliefs with the population in the northwestern part of the state. The biggest fears the slaveowners of Virginia, as well as slaveowners throughout the South, were based on violence in the form of either slave rebellions, such as Nat Turners Rebellion of 1831, or abolitionist attacks, such as John Browns attack on Harpers Ferry in 1859, and federal legislation, especially after the presidential election of 1860, which the Republican candidate Abraham Lincoln won. The Republican Party was considered a threat to slavery in the South. Thus, the election results led to the secession of South Carolina in December 1860, followed by the secession of six further states in the Lower South during the winter of 1860-1861. During the Virginia State Convention, which took place between the 13th of February 1861 and the 1st of May 1861, the question of secession was discussed. Before the outbreak of the Civil War, the majority of the delegates at the convention were against secession. Nonetheless, after the outbreak of the Civil War, this group became the minority, as many delegates switched sides. This indicates that many of the delegates at Virginia State Convention, were moderates, that deemed the preservation of the institution of slavery more important than keeping the Union together. Therefore, even though the catalyst for Virginia’s secession was the outbreak of the Civil War, the question of the preservation of slavery played a big part in the reason behind Virginia’s secession. This is clearly suggested by the choice of words in Virginia’s secession ordinance. The majority voted 88 for and 55 against the secession ordinance, which asserted that the Commonwealth of Virginia, alongside the other slave-holding states of the South, perceived its rights oppressed by the federal government. Despite the lack of outright explanation of what kind of oppression the South suffered under, the biggest link between Virginia and the rest of the South was the interest in keeping the institution of slavery alive for the foreseeable future.

A master thesis from Aalborg University

Sic Semper Tyrannis: Årsagerne til Virginias løsrivelse fra USA i 1861

[Sic Semper Tyrannis: The Reasons for Virginia's Secession from the US in 1861]