Though the Southern states had threatened to secede from the Union over various issues for many years, it caught the world by surprise when they actually did so.

The South's Threat to Secede

As the presidential election of 1860 grew nearer, the warning bell of Southern secession rang louder and louder. Southern newspapers increasingly advocated withdrawal from the Union as it became clear that Lincoln was the front-runner, but most Northern leaders failed to heed these omens, having heard them often in the past. Lincoln refused to issue any kind of statement that might appease the frightened South during his campaign, though his opponent, Stephen Douglas, took the threats seriously. When Republicans overwhelmingly won October state elections in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indiana, Douglas realized that Lincoln's presidential victory was a foregone conclusion, so he immediately traveled to the South in a desperate attempt to prevent the destruction of the nation. The majority of Northerners, on the other hand, believed that the South was simply beating its chest and would fall back in line once the presidential election was over.

A Union Dissolved

The straw that broke the Southern camel's back was the election of Abraham Lincoln, a Republican and avowed opponent of slavery who was supported by many vocal abolitionists. Fearful that the North, which was richer, more populous, and industrial, would even more insistently impose its will against them, the Southern states felt they had no recourse but to pull away from the Union and form their own nation. They had the right to do so, many felt, because sovereign states had formed the Union, and thus any state that felt oppressed by the federal government could justly withdraw rather than submit to laws it deemed harmful.

The federal government felt otherwise, deeming secession a treasonous act. But President James Buchanan was loathe to do anything about it. Buchanan did say he felt the Southern states had no legal right to secede, but he also claimed he lacked the authority to stop them. One of his last acts as president was to call for a national referendum — a time-killer guaranteed to stave off the whole mess until Lincoln could take office — on whether force should be used to preserve the Union.

On December 20, 1860, South Carolina became the first state to secede. The ordinance to secede simply stated: “We, the people of the State of South Carolina, in Convention assembled, do declare and ordain that the union now subsisting between South Carolina and other States under the name ‘The United States of America’ is hereby dissolved.”

Six states followed South Carolina's lead: Mississippi, on January 9, 1861; Florida, on January 10; Alabama, on January 11; Georgia, on January 19; Louisiana, on January 26; and Texas, on February 1. Following the fall of Fort Sumter on April 14, 1861, four more states left the Union to join the Confederacy: Virginia, on April 17; Arkansas, on May 6; North Carolina, on May 20; and Tennessee, on June 8. Together, these eleven states would make up the Confederate States of America.

Continued Dissent

Reaction to Southern secession was mixed on both sides. The overwhelming percentage of Southerners favored the move because they were tired of what they saw as growing interference in their culture, lifestyle, and economy from Northern politicians, industry, and bankers. But there were dissenting voices as well. Many Southerners felt that secession was too strong and volatile an act and that the differences between the two regions could be amicably worked out without resorting to the destruction of the Union.

In the North, opinion ran the gamut. Many felt that Southern secession was a good thing and the Union should simply let the rebellious states go. But the majority agreed that secession was treason, that it very well might destroy the republic, and that force should be used if necessary to bring the Southern states back into the Union.