Arkansas in the American Civil War readmitted in July 1866. Arkansas in the American Civil War During the American Civil War, Arkansas was a Confederate state, though it had initially voted to remain in the Union. Following the capture of Fort Sumter in April 1861, Abraham Lincoln called for troops from every Union state to put down the rebellion, and Arkansas and several other states seceded. For the rest of the war, Arkansas played a major role in controlling the vital Mississippi River and neighboring states, including Tennessee and Missouri. It raised 48 infantry regiments, 20 artillery batteries, and over 20 cavalry regiments for the Confederacy,
Origins of the American Civil War Origins of the American Civil War Historians debating the origins of the American Civil War focus on the reasons why seven Southern states declared their secession from the United States (the Union), why they united to form the Confederate States of America (simply known as the "Confederacy"), and why the North refused to let them go. While most historians agree that conflicts over slavery caused the war, they disagree sharply regarding which kinds of conflict—ideological, economic, political, or social—were most important. The primary catalyst for secession was slavery, most immediately the political battle over the right of Southerners to bring