The Major Role of War - Essay Example

Module: War War has played a major role in many inventions and technological advancement eventually leading to social and economical transformation. The American civil war between the north and the south for example, led to the innovations such as the telegraph and warships. However, the war caused deaths of millions of Americans, created food shortages, destroyed homes, separated families and led to loss of jobs creating a huge economic disaster. Therefore, as much as war is sometimes called the "mother of inventions" it is remarkably destructive making the technological inventions and innovations irrelevant. The civil war that took place in United States from 1861-1865 under unique circumstances led to exclusive solutions as the confederates and unionists pursued victory (Mountjoy and McNeese 14). Some of the inventions that came about as a result of the civil war included the railways, submarines and telegraphs. Understanding of science expanded, steam power was harnessed and there was a mass production of items. The gin invented in 1793 by Eli Whitney increased the rate of cotton processing leading to a higher production of clothes for the soldiers fighting in the civil war. Although the innovation was profitable because it enabled separation of seeds from fiber within a shorter time by fewer workers, the cotton gin prevented slavery from dying out in the late eighteenth century. The slaves had to be retained by the union businessmen to work in the plantations and also in the factory to process cotton into fabric and later into clothing. Before the introduction of the civil war in US, people living in the north depended on industrialization while the southern people had to plant cash crops to maintain their economy (Mountjoy and McNeese 15). Thus, the northern region had its economy based on development of industries while the southern region had slavery as the economical base. A variety of ammunition that was invented included exploding canisters and revolvers that were easy to reload and fire. The advancement in technology can therefore be seen as a cause of the civil war between the unionists and confederates. The civil war in US was unique because William T. Sherman and Philip Sheridan, the commanders of northern military, killed civilians living in South Carolina and Georgia destroying the southern economy. Mountjoy and McNeese point out that US civil war between the North and south was facilitated by the production of weapons, transport devices and food. Due to the civil war, cars were affordable by 1920, aircrafts were quite common and the telegram had been developed into a radio (18). The federal government produced fire arms, cannons and iron plating during and after the war. Though there were technological advancements, most civilians especially the ones living in the south changed lifestyles as they were left homeless and the economy was ruined. Both the unionists and confederates fought the war with the expectation that new technological advancement would lead to victory. The north was highly industrialized and therefore had an advantage over the south. The hostility of the war hugely increased due to technology prompting the need for a military presence. Mountjoy and McNeese record that the number of soldiers increased to one million from sixteen thousand when the war commenced (20). The rise in the number of soldiers led to an increase in the volume of goods supplied. The north easily adapted to the change due to technological and industrial capability while the south could hardly feed its people. As much the civil war brought about invention, millions of American youth below thirty years lost their lives. Before the start of the war, transport cost had been reduced due to well networked railroads. The rail transport was also more advanced in the north than in the south. This economy divide between the confederates and unionists led to the civil war which caused transport delays and made railway use inefficient because of destruction. The railway transport was majorly used to transport ammunition during the war and that further facilitated destruction of factories and houses of the civilians. The southern states needed slaves to work in their farms because their economy was driven by agriculture and while the Federal northern government opposed slavery. This was another factor that led to the civil war. While the north benefited immensely from the civil war, the southern economy was devastated. Many states were ruined creating instability in the country. Some of the developments after the civil war were the establishment of a banking system, creation of a national currency and invention of the telephone in 1876 thereby quickening development in social life (Fahs 2). The unionists won the civil war in 1865 and the confederates in different parts of the country surrendered. The commander in chief of the armed forces, Abraham Lincoln, declared freedom for millions of slaves. Slavery was therefore abolished after the civil war but an estimated 620,000 soldiers died (Naik). Although technology hugely advanced during the civil war, agriculture was affected due to decreased cotton market that made the southerners to shift from cash crop farming to food crop. After the war in 1865, production of steel grew to build rail roads while bridges increased thus strengthening the transport infrastructure (Arthur 327). Production of materials for war increased in the north due the civil war and the health of the workers deteriorated as safety in the factories was compromised. The armies grew in numbers and inflation soared (Frank, 250). The enslaved women in the southern factories were forced to do heavy work as men and were paid low wages that could barely cater for their basic requirements. Women had to flee to the cities to seek protection leading to an influx of refugees and subsequent food shortages. The women were engaged in lumbering iron working and construction of railways. The life of confederate enslaved women became dangerous as they worked for longer hours in the war-time industries that were constantly being invaded by troops (Frank, 249). Houses and factories were destroyed leading to loss of jobs. Frank records that in about 50 women died in 1863 due to an explosion that occurred in Richmond’s Confederate State’s laboratory because of negligence by an Irish factory worker (250). Sometimes the confederate women were jobless and without housing due to invasion by General William T. Sherman troops who demolished the textile mills and houses. The American civil war caused many families of the people living in the south to face hardships. The Confederates had extended families that depended on a single head but due to the constant invasion by the Unionists, many family heads abandoned their duties (Frank, 252). This led to social challenges with the absence of a man being the most significant social effect. In the North, members of Confederate families were separated from each other as men risked their lives in the battle field and women aided the men with supplies. More often than not the newspapers reported false information about the state of men in the war causing stress to family members (Frank 258). Farming was highly affected as men went to war reducing the labor input and straining the women, who had to rear livestock, grow crops and look after the children. Although invention of machines such as the reaper helped to reduce the labor shortage, women still strained in the farms. Consumption of food at the household level reduced for the army to feed. The north rarely experienced food shortages as compared to the south that faced scarcity of staple food due to frequent invasions. Women were therefore forced to be creative with the recipes as the scarcity and high prices of commodities made many communities to suffer. The churches and courts were also closed down and agricultural products destroyed due to these periodic raids hence further aggravating the scarcity problem (Collier and Hoeffler 570). In conclusion, as much as war has the advantage of bringing innovation such as the telephone, submarines and advancement in the transport network, the effects are much more devastating. There is loss of life, the economy of a country is halted and families are destroyed making war to be more destructive than constructive. Works Cited Arthur, Bestor. The American Civil War as a Constitutional Crisis. The American Historical Review 69. 2 (1964): 327-352. Print. Collier, Paul and Hoeffler, Anke. “Greed and grievance in civil war” Journal of Economics 56.4 (2004): 563-595. Print. Fahs, Alice. The Imagined Civil War: Popular Literature of the North and South, 1861-1865. New York: UNC Press Books. 2003. Print Frank, Lisa, T. Women in the American Civil War. California: Abc-clio. 2008. Print Mountjoy, Shane, and McNeese, Tim. Technology and the Civil War. New York: Infobase. 2009. Print. Naik, Abhijit. Causes and effects of civil war. 23 Sep. 2010. Web. 1 Dec. 2010. Read More