The Civil War was technically caused by the secession of the Southern states, but the secession was primarily over slavery. It can therefore be inferred that the Civil War was indirectly, but primarily, caused by slavery. It is important to note that just because slavery was the primary cause of the Civil War, it does not mean that the war was all about slavery. The war was fought for a multitude of different reasons that surrounded the creation of a new and independent nation. These reasons include states' rights (the right to maintain and spread slavery for the most part, but a state's right to secede also appears to be heavily contested), the power of the federal government (something the South wanted to weaken in order to maintain slavery). ), and economic and cultural differences, which forced the South to rely more on slaves to work on plantations. Although these reasons, even looking at the major events that led to the Civil War (3/5 and Missouri Compromise, Kansas-Nebraska Act, and Election of 1860), it is easy to see the beginnings of a war by a nation divided over slavery. Today, it is often questioned whether the Civil War was actually caused by slavery. I would argue that those who reject slavery as a cause have either failed to realize that the other potential causes all trace back to slavery, or are reluctant to believe that Southern citizens would go to war for such a cause. Although the well-supported secession documents clearly emphasize the importance of slavery to the Southern states, it is difficult to deny its responsibility for the war. The argument that the Confederacy fought for states' rights is the alternative most often put forward, but you just have to dig deeper and calculate what those rights represent.