Well, I feel strongly that the Civil War was indeed about slavery.
As I said, I do also: the slavery of private individuals to military conscription; the slavery of a nation to a horrendous, redistributionalist tax program; and the slavery of independent states to an authoritarian, central government following the destruction of the federalist structure - the latter, as plainly described and structured in the Constitution.
On April 12th, 1861 - the date of the engagement at Fort Sumter, almost universally viewed as the starting point of the Civil War - only seven states had withdrawn from the Union; at that point, numerically, the North had more, and perhaps many more, slaves than the South.
In fact, Honest Abe...America's first king...would probably also disagree with your assertion:
"...My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and it is not either to save or destroy slavery. If I could save the Union without freeing any slave, I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone I would also do that. What I do about slavery, and the colored race, I do because I believe it helps to save the Union; and what I forbear, I forbear because I do not believe it would help to save the Union."
Abraham Lincoln,
in a letter to Horace Greeley
Aug. 22, 1862
swcivilwar.com
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