4. Origins of the American Civil War

About this Lecture

Lecture

In this module, we focus on the events that led to the outbreak of war in 1861. In particular, we explore John Brown’s activities in Kansas in 1859, the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860, and the creation of the Confederate States of America in 1861.

Course

In this course, Professor Tim Lockley (University of Warwick) looks at the institution of slavery in the United States, thinking in particular about the period between the Revolutionary War (1775-83) and the American Civil War (1861-65). In particular, the course explores the growing tensions between the free states of the north and slave states of the south, the various compromises that were attempted in the course of the century in order to preserve the Union, and the impact and aftermath of the Civil War that took place between 1861-65.

Lecturer

Tim Lockley is Professor of American History at the University of Warwick. where his teaching and research interests include colonial and antebellum North America, with a particular focus on slavery and the South. He has written and edited a number of books, including 2009’s Welfare and Charity and the Antebellum South. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge.