Trigger Events of the Civil War
The Civil War was the culmination of a series of confrontations concerning the institution of slavery.
1820 | The Missouri Compromise
In the growth years following the 1803 Louisiana Purchase, Congress was compelled to establish a policy to guide the expansion of slavery into the new western territory. Missouri’s application for statehood as a slave state sparked a bitter national debate. In addition to the deeper moral issue posed by the growth of slavery, the addition of pro-slavery Missouri legislators would give the pro-slavery faction a Congressional majority.
https://www.civilwar.org/learn/articles/trigger-events-civil-war