loss of morale

Question 1

topic sentence

Answer 1

Some historians such as Merton Coulter argue that the Confederate defeat was a result of a loss of morale

Question 2

evidence 1 - not established nation

Answer 2

Due to the Confederacy being formed in Feburay 1861, only 2 months before the American Civil War broke out, most Southerners had more of an American identity than a Confederate identity. Despite slavery being the obvious deviser between Northerners and Southerners, they still shared many things in common, like Christianity being the most prominent religion in both nations.

Question 3

analysis 1

Answer 3

This contributed to a Confederate defeat because the lack of Southern nationalism meant that many Southerners did not feel a strong will to fight against the North, therefore this weakened their war effort as the lack of unity meant that they struggled to maintain their fight against a nation who was already at an advantage to them.

Question 4

counter analysis

Answer 4

However, this argument can be refuted because the strength of patriotism in the Confederacy in 1861 produced 500 000 volunteers. This couldn’t have been achieved without some sense of nationalism and belonging.

Question 5

evidence 2 - non-slave holding

Answer 5

Furthermore, 2/3rds of the Confederacy’s white population was non-slave holding, and many within this group also opposed secession.

Question 6

analysis 2

Answer 6

This contributed to a Confederate defeat in 1865 because after the Emancipation Proclamation was passed in 1863, which freed all Southern slaves, it was clear that the Confederacy were fighting the war to protect the institution of slavery. As the majority of whites in the South were non-slaveholding, it made them less inclined to help with the war effort because they were not gaining any benefit from fighting in the war. Additionally, they were less inclined to help with the war effort as they felt as though they were risking their lives to fund slavery and the lifestyle of the wealthy planter class.

Question 7

evaluation

Answer 7

To evaluate, a loss of morale is significant in explaining the defeat of the Confederacy in 1865 as it meant that there was less of an urge to contribute to the war effort even when the South was already at a significant manpower disadvantage to the North. Indeed, Merton Coulter argues, that the Confederacy lost the war because ‘its people did not will hard enough and long enough to win’. However, if the Confederacy had had an industrial and millitray advantage at the start of the war, maybe their morale would have remained higher throughout it.