Negative effects of war can include loss of life, destruction of cities and the environment, and human suffering. Positive effects of war can include the defeat of problematic governments, the correction of injustices, advances in technology and medicine, and a reduction of unemployment.

Union Finances. The Union emerged from the Civil War with a healthy economy by funding the war with new taxes, printing money, and issuing government bonds.

From Agriculture to Industry While the agricultural, slave-based Southern economy was devastated by the war, the Northern economy benefited from development in many of its industries, including textile and iron production. The war also stimulated the growth of railroads, improving transportation infrastructure.

Some northerners opposed the war because they opposed using force to keep the South in the Union. The North did not like the draft law either. It created shortages in the South. The armies in the Confederacy had to wait for supplies of food and clothing sometimes.

Therefore, the Confederacy favored a strategy of attrition, which was a strategy of endurance to wear down the Union and to win the war over time by not losing it. They would drag out the war, making it as difficult and expensive as possible for the Union to fight in terms of resources and manpower.

The Union outweighed the confederacy in almost every way; the number of states as well as the number of people. Despite the North’s larger population, the South had an army almost equal in size, during the first year of the war. The North had a greater industrial advantage.

The North began the war with impressive strengths. Its population was about 22 million, compared to the South’s 9 million. The North was both richer and more technologically advanced than the South. About 90 percent of the nation’s manufacturing, and most of its banks, were in the North.

What advantages did the Confederates have? They began the war with able generals. They had the advantage of fighting a defensive war.