American History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 3

American History - Essay Example The confederates lost the war because it was outclassed militarily by the north. Though it had strong generals by the book, they failed to mount an offensive that could defeat the commitment of the Northern forces. The North had a strong Navy to put blockades ion river ways and southern seaports. In terms of size, the south was not able to provide a force as big as the north (Bancroft and Nye 32). Dependency on the north for economic progress was also a weakness well exploited by the North. They had industries to produce finished goods and also make weapons. The South did not have many industries with huge economic capabilities. They even had to import their weapons and some of the finished goods. Black men serving in both the union and confederate forces had reduced roles with most of them helping in labor positions. There was the initial fear of arming black men especially in the south where they still remained slaves. They also served as nurses, blacksmiths and cooks in the army. More advanced military roles executed by the blacks included spying and scouting. The use of the black men was not widespread because the white men did not approve of their capabilities. Together with continuous racial discrimination, black men were termed inferior by fellow white men who even failed to train or equip them adequately. The black soldiers serving in the war also received lower payments for their services. The captured black soldiers received harsher punishment than the white prisoners of war. The objective of reconstruction was to make the rebel states come back to the union as well as help freedmen integrate into the society. The political wave by some section intended for those rebel states to face punishment and be subjugated. The punishment occurred but not the subjugation. The goals of the punishment were also not achieved. There were many divided opinions regarding the course of action that hampered the plan (Bancroft and