I don't think the Civil War was even North versus South in the 1860s. There were Copperhead, pro-Confederate strongholds in the North like New York City and in the South, hundreds of thousands of Southerners fought in the Union army, many more engaged in various forms of resistance to the Confederate usurpers and millions were lukewarm at best in regards to the slaveowners' power grab, Only a minority of Southerners were truly enthusiastic about the rebellion. The early collapse of the Confederate will to win shows it.
And what usurpations did Lincoln engage in? The rebellion started before he took office and even then all he wanted to do was what the Constitution directed him to do, deliver the mail and make the Constitutionally-mandated collections at ports. I wish our federal government today would restrain itself like Lincoln.
Sounds like you have bought the Yankee version of history.
Granted that there were sympathizers for both sides in the North and in the Confederacy.
But you jest about Lincoln’s innocence. OK, he was innocent, if we overlook suspending habeas corpus, arresting the Maryland legislature so they couldn’t for secession, instuted a draft, dictated the SD and NV state Constitutions, disobeyed the Constitution in creating WV and sticking the North with an income tax. As for delivering the mail, Mussolini made Italy’s trains run on time. Is that justification?
Make no mistake about the Confederacy’s will to win. Lee went against his officers who wanted to continue with a guerilla war. I think that we have today another man from IL that has as much regard for the Constitution as did Lincoln.