i'm going to tell the true story of the Civil War. This is going to be a long trend, but worth reading. This is not coming from a Southerner by the way. I have lived in New York my entire life. . . But this is the truth that schools, Hollywood and the media won't tell you. . .

I've read a lot about the Civil War, and I've read both sides of the story. I've read hundreds of letters from the troops to their loved ones back home. There were great men on both sides. Today it's taught that it was all about slavery. That is simply not true.

As a matter of fact, none of those letters the troops wrote, not one of them said they were fighting for slavery.

Also Lincoln was not an abolitionist. As a matter of fact had there not been a Civil War he probably wouldn't have ended slavery. Ending slavery was a political move to prevent foreign countries from siding with the South. Slavery didn't end until 1863 - 2 years into the war.

In the beginning both sides expected the war to be short. And for the first couple years the South was kicking the Unions ass. The Confederacy was now sending diplomats to foreign countries seeking aid and support - namely England, who purchased their cotton from the South.

This is when Lincoln then made it about slavery. Because he knew that other countries couldn't openly ally with the side "fighting for slavery". So it was actually a brilliant move on Lincoln's part. It prevented other countries from recognizing the CSA as a sovereign nation.

Lincoln was not an abolitionist. Even during his 1st inaugural address he defended the Corwin amendment, which protected the institution of slavery. Also just 1% of Americans owned slaves, 7% of households. Most all confederate soldiers never owned slaves.

you have to take it state by state. some states slavery was more of an issue than others. for instance originally 7 states seceded - South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas. .

Some states like Mississippi clearly state in Secession docs that slavery was a big reason for secession. However eventually 6 more states: Virginia, Arkansas, North Carolina, Tennessee, and eventually Kentucky and Missouri. Those states did not secede until The North waged war

States like Arkansas, for instance, state in their secession documents that a big reason for seceding was Northern aggression.

The South did not want to go to war. They believed the North had become tyrannical, controlling. They believed the original founding was being destroyed. They saw themselves as the true American traditionalists. They loved the founding of America.

Robert E. Lee's own grandfather-in-law was George Washington. They worshiped the founding fathers, the constitution and the Declaration.

They did not invade the North. They didn't try and force them to into their ideology. They simply wanted to break off and do their own thing, just like the original 13 colonies. They did not want to go to war at all.

Even when it came time to go to war it was still a hard decision for many, Lee included, to fight for the Confederacy. Lincoln even offered Lee the job as his top general. Lee gave it much thought. Some in his family told him to fight for the Union. But Lee was a Virginian.

People don't understand the old term "State First". In those days America was still in its adolescence. These were first generation Americans. Lee's father fought in the Revolution. His family were signers of the declaration. But your state was still your home.

That colonial mindset was still there, when we were 13 separate colonies. We worked together, but your state came first. Many, like Lee, couldn't bring themselves to fight against their state.

BTW: There were also 2 slaves states - Delaware and Maryland that stayed in the Union. There were also many black slave owners. Matter of fact, in New Orleans 28% of freed slaves owned black slaves. That's even been taught by Duke University professors. You can look it up

Your state was your country

A few people have asked me about Kentucky and Missouri. It's complicated with those two. Their state governments split, half Union and half Confederacy. The Confederacy sides did write articles of secession. Both states were admitted as the 12th and 13th Confederate States