“there was one cause of the actual war, without which there would not have been any war; secession...if you need any enlightenment of the reasons backing secession, read the declarations of cause for the states of SC, GA, TX, and MS...”
If the South was fighting for slavery, who was fighting against slavery?
Some states mentioned slavery in their declarations of secession, others did not. Most Confederate soldiers were not slaveholders and fought out of loyalty to their states. Ending slavery in the areas under Confederate control (but not the loyal slave states) became the Union aim only as of January 1, 1863, almost 18 months after the first battle of Manassas/Bull Run. Lincoln’s call for troops at the beginning of the war was to “suppress rebellion” not to end slavery.