Slavery during the American Civil War Slavery during the American Civil War Slavery played the central role during the American Civil War. The primary catalyst for secession was slavery, especially Southern political leaders' resistance to attempts by Northern antislavery political forces to block the expansion of slavery into the western territories. Slave life went through great changes, as the South saw Union Armies take control of broad areas of land. During and before the war, slaves played an active role in their own emancipation, and thousands of slaves escaped from bondage during the war. On January 1, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln announced the Emancipation Proclamation, making
Bibliography of the American Civil War and famous novelists. For the most recent surveys see: For a guide to the bibliography see: For a guide to web sources see: For an older short survey that is online and won the Pulitzer Prize (1918), see: Bibliography of the American Civil War The American Civil War bibliography comprises books that deal in large part with the American Civil War. There are over 60,000 books on the war, with more appearing each month. James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier stated in 2012, "No event in American history has been so thoroughly studied, not merely by historians, but by tens