Question

why did the southern states secede

Answer 1

The southern states seceded from the United States primarily due to the issue of slavery. The South believed that their way of life, which was heavily dependent on slave labor, was being threatened by the growing abolitionist movement and the increasing power of the Northern states. They felt that the federal government was encroaching on their rights and interfering with their ability to govern themselves, particularly in relation to slavery. The election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860, who opposed the expansion of slavery, triggered the secession of several southern states, which eventually led to the American Civil War.