Early Republic and the American Civil War

The establishment of the Second Party System in America dates back to the 1800s. As the political environment advanced in the US, there then administration spearheaded the establishment of political parties to promote democracy.

The financial panic of 1819 and the subsequent depressions in the US economy contributed to the establishment of the Second Party System.

The two parties included the Democratic Party, which was led by Andrew Jackson and the Whig Party, which was led by Henry Clay (DeRosa, 2018). These parties had numerous followers from different parts of the United States.

The members of the Whig Party believed in the republican spirit as opposed to the democrats. Jackson was committed to anything that embraced favor or particular interest. Henry Clay opposed the views of slavery hence weakening the Whig party in the 1850s.

The Democrats believed in the strong executive as far as running the federal government is concerned. The members of the Democratic parties led by President Jackson advocated for a more energetic executive that would make decisions on the matters concerning the state. The congress would follow the provisions of the law and have fewer powers as compared to the executive.

On the other hand, the Whig Party advocated for a stronger legislature. According to the policies of the Whig Party, a more influential Congress would enable the United States to address various political and economic issues.

The Democratic Party experience rivalry from many wealthy lawyers, members of older churches, and businesspersons. The religious rivals were attributable to the imposition of social orders by the Democratic Party (Hall et al., 2019).

These rivals found a home in Whig Party, where social order was opposed. Most of the elites preferred Whig Party. However, not every member of the Whig party was an elite; the party merely attracted many people who wanted to improve the status of their lives.

Notably, the Whig Party led various movements that were established for multiple groups of people, such as the mentally ill and the prisoners. One of the similarities of the parties is that they advocated for the wellbeing of the people. The two parties also focused on the stability of the American economy.

The pro-slavery period triggered the events of the civil war. The election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 was one of the events that contributed to the Civil War. Since Abraham’s party was based on anti-slavery, he experienced opposition from the republicans.

In 1858, the Democrats experienced challenges concerning the controversial issues of the antebellum era (Rable, 2018). In 1857, a Virginian slave, Dred Scott, tried to sue for his freedom in court. Such actions bore more troubles than benefits.

The Emancipation Proclamation by Abraham Lincoln, which gave freedom to approximately 3.1 million slaves, is one of the events that contributed to the war. Those who were against the actions of Abraham Lincoln responded by waging war to destroy the Old South (Rable, 2018).

Abraham Lincoln signed the legislation to free the slaves since his party was advocated for anti-slavery. The battle of Antietam in 1862 also contributed to the Civil War. The battle took place in the North following other conflicts such as the war to capture New Orleans in 1862.