What advantages did the South have going into the Civil War?

What advantages did the South have going into the Civil War?

The South’s greatest strength lay in the fact that it was fighting on the defensive in its own territory. Familiar with the landscape, Southerners could harass Northern invaders. The military and political objectives of the Union were much more difficult to accomplish.

What was the South’s military strategy in the Civil War?

Their strategy was to take advantage of their compact geography, with internal lines of communication, their military heritage (Southerners had been disproportionately the officers of the United States Army), and their greater enthusiasm for their cause to wear down the Union will to wage war.

Why did the South have an advantage in fighting a defensive war?

The south also had the advantage of fighting occured inside confederate territory. This gave the confederate troops an advantage, as they knew the land better than the North. Also, the south was fighitng a defensive war. So, confederate troops did not have to gain any territory, just defend the land they already own.

Why did the South not win the Civil War?

The most convincing ‘internal’ factor behind southern defeat was the very institution that prompted secession: slavery. Enslaved people fled to join the Union army, depriving the South of labour and strengthening the North by more than 100,000 soldiers. Even so, slavery was not in itself the cause of defeat.

What would’ve happened if the South won the Civil War?

First, had the Confederacy won the Civil War, slavery would have undoubtedly continued in the South. As a result of the Emancipation Proclamation and the Union victory, slavery was abolished. A victory by the North did equate to the end of slavery. A victory by the South would have meant the opposite.