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John C. Calhoun: He Started the Civil WarCivil War Times | 16 comments | Print This Post | Email This Post Slavery was the foundation of the antebellum South. More than any other characteristic, it defined Southern social, political, and cultural life. It also unified the South as a section distinct from the rest of the nation. John C. Calhoun, the South’s recognized intellectual and political leader from the 1820s until his death in 1850, devoted much of his remarkable intellectual energy to defending slavery. He developed a two-point defense. One was a political theory that the rights of a minority section — in particular, the South — needed special protecting in the federal union. The second was an argument that presented slavery as an institution that benefited all involved. Calhoun’s commitment to those two points and his efforts to develop them to the fullest would assign him a unique role in American history as the moral, political, and spiritual voice of Southern separatism. Despite the fact that he never wanted the South to break away from the United States as it would a decade after his death, his words and life’s work made him the father of secession. In a very real way, he started the American Civil War. Born in 1782 in upcountry South Carolina, Calhoun grew up during the boom in the area’s cotton economy. The son of a successful farmer who served in public office, Calhoun went to New Haven, Connecticut, in 1801 to attend Yale College. After graduating, he attended the Litchfield Law School, also in Connecticut, and studied under Tapping Reeve, an outspoken supporter of a strong federal government. Seven years after Calhoun’s initial departure from South Carolina, he returned home, where he soon inherited his father’s substantial land and slave holdings and won election to the U.S. Congress in 1810. Ironically, when Calhoun, the future champion of states’ rights and secession, arrived in Washington, he was an ardent federalist like his former law professor. He aligned himself with the federalist faction of the Republican party led by Speaker of the House Henry Clay of Kentucky. He also became a prominent member of the party’s War Hawk faction, which pushed President James Madison’s administration to fight the War of 1812, the nation’s second war with Great Britain. When the fighting ended in 1815, Calhoun championed a protective national tariff on imports, a measure he hoped would foster both Southern and Northern industrial development. After the War of 1812, Congress began to consider improving the young republic’s infrastructure. Calhoun enthusiastically supported plans to spend federal money, urging Congress to ‘bind the Republic together with a perfect system of roads and canals…. Let us conquer space…. We are under the most imperious obligation to counteract every tendency to disunion.’ Calhoun left the legislature in 1817 to become President James Monroe’s secretary of war and dedicated himself to strengthening the nation’s military. He succeeded, spurring revitalization of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point under the leadership of Superintendent Sylvanus Thayer and improving the army’s administrative structure with reforms that endured into the 20th century. ‘If ever there was perfection carried into any branch of the public service,’ one federal official wrote, ‘it was that which Mr. Calhoun carried into the War Department.’ Calhoun’s success in improving the country’s war-making capabilities came at the price of a stronger, less frugal federal government. Not everyone was pleased. ‘His schemes are too grand and magnificent…,’ a detractor in Congress wrote. ‘If we had a revenue of a hundred million, he would be at no loss how to spend it.’ Calhoun hoped to use his accomplishments as war secretary as a springboard to the presidency. When that dream fell through, however, Calhoun had no problem accepting the vice presidency under staunch federalist John Quincy Adams in 1824. Adams was glad to have Calhoun in his administration, having held him in high esteem since their days together in Monroe’s cabinet. Adams was particularly impressed by Calhoun’s ‘ardent patriotism,’ believing Calhoun was ‘above all sectional and factious prejudices more than any other statesman of the Union with whom I have ever acted.’ This was an image Calhoun cultivated during the 1824 election campaign. It turned out that Calhoun was late in publicly promoting his commitment to federalism. By this time, Southerners were increasingly taking an anti-federal-government stance. In the North, industry and the economy it created grew in influence and power every day. Meanwhile, the rapidly expanding cultivation of cotton and other cash crops was committing the South to an agrarian economy and culture, which depended on slavery. The country was dividing into two increasingly self-conscious sections with different priorities. And as the issue of slavery came to the fore in American politics, the South found itself on the defensive. Because of the South’s investment in large-scale agriculture, any attack on slavery was an attack on the Southern economy itself. The issue came to a head in 1819 with the debate over whether to allow the Missouri Territory to become a state. The result was the historic Missouri Compromise of 1820, which permitted the territory to enter the Union as a slave state while Maine entered as a free state, maintaining the balance between free and slave states at 12 each. The compromise also prohibited slavery in the remainder of the Louisiana Purchase north of Missouri’s southern border. On the surface, the Missouri Compromise seemed to heal the sectional breach that slavery had created. But the fact that the debate had divided along sectional lines awakened the South to the reality that it was a distinct section — a section that was apparently inevitably destined to be a minority in the Union, while the Northern states enjoyed increasing political representation and power born of rapid population growth. In the 1820s, Southerners grew increasingly anxious about the North controlling the federal government and about how that situation threatened the South and its distinctive institutions. They looked to leaders who would limit federal power. Calhoun unexpectedly found himself the target of sharp criticism from leading South Carolina figures, including Thomas Cooper, the president of the state college. In 1824, Cooper published a widely circulated pamphlet attacking Calhoun. ‘He spends the money of the South to buy up influence in the North,’ Cooper grumbled. If Calhoun wanted to maintain his status as a Southern leader and reach his political goals, he could not ignore the changing political landscape. He recognized it would be a mistake to maintain his association with Adams, whose ideas to expand the use of federal power to promote national economic, intellectual, and cultural development drew a cold reception in South Carolina. So when Andrew Jackson began preparing to challenge Adams in the 1828 presidential election, Calhoun switched sides. The Democrats rewarded Calhoun by making him their candidate for vice president, and the ticket won. That same year, Congress passed a highly protective tariff that Southerners bitterly opposed, viewing the measure as sacrificing Southern agrarian interests to benefit Northern industry. The protest against the so-called Tariff of Abominations grew particularly strong in South Carolina, and in response to a request from the state legislature, Calhoun secretly wrote an essay titled ‘South Carolina Exposition and Protest.’ In it, he asserted that states had a constitutional right to nullify any federal government actions they considered unconstitutional. Calhoun had become the chosen mouthpiece for Southern rights. Confirmation of his new status came when Congress adopted another high tariff in 1832 and South Carolina legislators used the principles Calhoun had voiced in his ‘Exposition and Protest’ to declare the tariff ‘null and void.’ To no one’s surprise, Jackson refused to accept South Carolina’s defiant stance, and the Nullification Crisis of 1832 was born. By now, relations between Jackson and Calhoun were crumbling fast. Problems had been brewing well beforehand, but now, personal conflicts and Jackson’s commitment to the supremacy of the national government made it impossible for the two men to work together. When it became clear that Calhoun’s chief cabinet rival, Martin Van Buren, was Jackson’s choice to succeed him as president, Calhoun quit the administration. Back in South Carolina, the state legislature chose Calhoun to fill the U.S. Senate seat recently vacated by Robert Y. Hayne. Now, Calhoun had a new and even more influential bully pulpit for his pro-Southern arguments. As a senator, he openly led the fight against the tariff, which he viewed as a zealous attempt by Congress to dictate economic policy. This, Calhoun protested — in repudiation of his earlier views — was an overextension of federal power. Subscribe Today
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            Tags: 19th Century, American Civil War, Civil War Times, Historical Conflicts, Historical Figures, Politics
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16 Comments to “John C. Calhoun: He Started the Civil War”
Abraham Lincoln in his speech in Congress in 1846 said when asked, “Why not let the South go in peace?” Lincoln replied: “I can’t let them go. Who would pay for the government?”
In 1860, the averaged tariff-rate was 18.84%; the Republicans spread the word that they were shooting for 40%–which could bankrupt many Southerners and would make life much harder for most of them.
The South had to pay twice; first to export their cotton and then to import the goods purchased abroad from the profits made from the cotton sales.
The Civil War transformed the American regime from a federalist system based on freedom to a centralized state that circumscribed liberty in the name of public order.
But one issue loomed larger than any other in that year as in the previous three decades: the Northern tariff. It was imposed to benefit Northern industrial interests by subsidizing their production through high prices and public works. But it had the effect of forcing the South to pay more for manufactured goods and disproportionately taxing it to support the central government. It also injured the South’s trading relations with other parts of the world.
In effect, the South was being looted to pay for the North’s early version of industrial policy. The battle over the tariff began in 1828, with the “tariff of abomination.” Thirty years later, with the South paying 87 percent of federal tariff revenue while having their livelihoods threatened by protectionist legislation, it become impossible for the two regions to be governed under the same regime. The South as a region was being reduced to a slave status, with the federal government as its master.
By Al Barrs on Jul 5, 2008 at 12:05 pm
John C. Calhoun was not nearly as responsible for the start of the War Between the States as was the radical abolitionist movement in the North. These people financed John Brown’s attempt at a slave rebellion and the murder of whites in the South. John C. Calhoun was a right and honorable man.
By Dave on Nov 29, 2008 at 12:47 am
good job!
By tiana on Dec 2, 2008 at 10:07 am
THIS IS WRONG!! SORRY HE DID NOT START THE CIVIL WAR BYE!!!!!!!!!
By MR. Gus on Mar 9, 2009 at 12:23 pm
I think you must be very cofussed or a ratical white hater . Everyone knows slavery was an easy smokescreen for the industrialist to publish as the cause of the war. They needed the souths product and money to accomplish there agenda and to avoid there own failure.
By rod on Mar 28, 2009 at 11:07 pm
great website
By no one on Apr 26, 2009 at 12:23 am
Even though John C. Calhoun defended slavery and states rights was his philosophy & ardent belief, he sincerely wished the Union be preserved. Read his final address to the Senate read before them three weeks before his death in March of 1850. This had to do with the admission of California into the Union as a free state. He never wanted the Union to be dissolved and he did not believe the Union should be held together by “force”. In reading his papers and examining his thinking through his speeches, it seems like he thought of the Federal government as a sort of caretaker working for the states and that true soverignty resides with the states. I see a parallel in this thinking to Ronald Reagens ideas of too much big government being the problem. For what its worth.
By Dane Volyn on Jul 6, 2009 at 10:39 am
If someone is to be blamed for “starting” the Civil War, one could argue that it was the founding fathers themselves who are responsible. They allowed slavery to continue since many of the planters would not have even signed the declaration of independence if the authors attempted to abolish slavery in 1776. All men are created equal but slavery was allowed to continue. It was abolished in England just before Queen Victoria ascended the throne but it kept on here wher supposedly all men were created equal. John C. Calhoun did not believe that all men were created equal, neither did Andrew Jackson by the way!
By Dane Volyn on Jul 15, 2009 at 1:39 pm
Anyone who believes that one race is superior to another is a certified racist. All races originated with adam and eve. If all men were converted to christ’s teachings then racial prejudice and hate would not exist. The civil war started because many white americans were racist. They believed that they were intellectually superior to other races. But some white americans believed that the institution of slavery was unchristian and fought a civil war to eventually abolish slavery. The election of President Obama proves that not all white americans are racist. John C. Calhoun was a racist. His thinking was not like Ronald Reagan’s. Calhoun was more like Adolph Hitler (i.e. the superior race argument)
By rufus on Jul 29, 2009 at 5:15 pm
I agree with you Rufus up to a point. Adolph Hitler tried to erradicate a race of people by genocide where Calhoun perpetuated the institution of keeping a race in bondage. There is a world of difference. The tragedy of slavery is apparent, it has taken one hundred fifty years for a man like Obama to come along and give creedence to Martin Luther Kings dream of a man being judged by the content of his character instead of the color of his skin. But racists are still out there. A man like Calhoun was dangerous in that he was such an intellect in his time. Arguably one of the brightest men in government during the 19th century.
He was impeccable in his personal life, never a scandal and he was beloved by his family and the political base of South Carolina but I always keep in the back of my head about him what Andrew Jackson said in 1837 as he was leaving office, “I have two regrets upon leaving the Presidency, the first is that I have not shot Henry Clay nor hanged John C. Calhoun”.
By Dane Volyn on Aug 12, 2009 at 10:40 am
I must clarify the final comment of my last post by saying Jackson was referring to the nullification crisis relating to the 1832 tariff. That could have been civil war right there if Calhoun had not backed down and acquiest to Jackson when he threatened to send troops to South Carolina to enforce the tariff. Nullification was the precursor to secession but the actual catalyst which caused secession was the election of Abraham Lincoln to the presidency in 1860. The south did not want to give up slavery due to its economic dependence on it, the planters of the south knew no other way and could not or did not wish to come up with an alternative nor would they consider a system in which the slaves could ever be free. Lincoln did not want the Union to dissolve this way and thus by in April 1861 the first shots of the Civil war were fired.
By Dane Volyn on Aug 12, 2009 at 10:56 am
I find I must correct myself once again. I went back and re-read the 1850 speeches and the commentary on them just to be certain of my facts and discovered that the Hon. Senator John C. Calhoun DID set forth the discourse that secession is a choice open should the North fail to “come to some form of understanding” with South. The Union which once was paramount now took a back seat to the states as regards the slavery question. I was thinking of Calhoun (pre nullification) not post Jackson.
By Dane Volyn on Aug 18, 2009 at 10:55 am
The South existed on the notion of civil rights for some and not human rights for all. Unless you have both for all, you have no argument that will endure. Those who supported slavery will never be able to rationalize such an inhuman practice.
By Earl on Sep 11, 2009 at 3:10 pm
The current day Republican Party does not resemble the party of Abraham Lincoln. Today’s Republican Party is dominated by white males who are anti-Obama, anti-minorities and, in my view, anti-equality for all. When you hear prominent Republican politicians advocating secession from the union, states rights and
calling the President of The United States (in a joint session of congress) a liar, then I say the south (the racist spirit that consumed John C. Calhoun – southern politician) has not changed. Richard Steele, the current head of the Republican National Committee (RNC), was voted into that position as a counter to the election of Mr. Obama. His appointment, as the head of the RNC, was a political move designed to counter any charges that racist control the party.
Since George Bush’s departure, the Republican Party has become dominated by closet racist. The spirit of John C. Calhoun is alive and well in the Republican Party. Elements in the Republican Party (mostly southern politicians) are seeking to divide this country along racial and economic lines under the guise of limiting federal authority over the states. They have become the party of “no.” Racial slavery has been replaced by economic slavery. They believe that tax breaks for the rich (Landowners/Businesses) will trickle down to the poor (economic slaves). The federal government has no right, in their opinion,
the interfere with a capitalist system (Supply Side Economics). They scream that Obama is a socialist and a threat to their profit line (the extreme profits from economic slavery). He must be stopped at all cost. Sounds familiar? I agree with Earl concerning his description of the Old South. But I would argue that the Republican Party exist today on the notion of economic rights for some and not basic human rights /equal rights for all. The Republican Party has become the party of John C. Calhoun.
Elements within the Republican Party are hoping for another american Civil War (Race War). They are hoping that Obama’s election (like Lincoln’s) will be the catalyst.
By Rufus on Sep 11, 2009 at 10:52 pm
God I hope you are wrong Rufus but you speak the truth and I agree with what you have written 100%. When that congressman from South Carolina shouted liar, I realized that deep in their hearts nothing has changed. They( Republicans ) will not even attempt to work with Obama in solving the nations problems. The divisions that existed in Calhouns time are just almost as strong today. The people suffer.
By Dane Volyn on Oct 26, 2009 at 3:21 pm
how did the civl war end
By quentin pittman on Nov 18, 2009 at 3:16 pm