Lexington, Kentucky, in the American Civil War in Lexington, unlike Louisville, where only one of the four monuments is for Confederates. Correction: Louisville (Jefferson County) has 3 Confederate Monuments and 2 Union Monuments. Lexington, Kentucky, in the American Civil War Lexington, Kentucky was a city of importance during the American Civil War, with notable residents participating on both sides of the conflict. These included John C. Breckinridge, Confederate generals John Hunt Morgan and Basil W. Duke, and the Todd family, who mostly served the Confederacy although one, Mary Todd Lincoln, was the first lady of the United States, wife of President Abraham Lincoln. Among the well known
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