Read Nonfiction Journal

A research-driven review of nonfiction examining history, politics, economics, and the human condition.

Disclosure: Some articles may contain affiliate links. Editorial content is independent.

Latest Articles

Topics

Why Do Nations Go to War? A Historical Inquiry

Disclosure: This article may contain affiliate links. Editorial content is independent.

Introduction

Why do ordinary people—farmers, factory workers, migrants—so often find themselves fighting wars they did not start? Across history, wars are rarely spontaneous eruptions of hatred. More often, they emerge from layered political decisions, economic pressures, and competing narratives of legitimacy.

From the Peloponnesian War to the American Civil War, leaders have justified conflict as unavoidable, defensive, or morally necessary. Yet hindsight repeatedly reveals choices made well before the first shot was fired. Understanding those choices is essential not only for historians, but for citizens attempting to interpret modern conflicts.

Historical Patterns

Wars tend to follow recognizable patterns:

• Economic dislocation or inequality
• Political breakdown or sectional division
• Competing interpretations of law, sovereignty, or rights
• Elite decision-making disconnected from popular cost

The American Civil War illustrates all four. Long before Fort Sumter, Americans were divided over tariffs, federal authority, territorial expansion, and the economic future of the republic.

Literature & Scholarship

Many primary sources—speeches, congressional debates, letters and state declarations—reveal motivations that are rarely discussed in modern summaries. These records show leaders grappling with constitutional limits, economic survival, and the future structure of the Union. One work that brings together these lesser discussed factors in a single, well-documented narrative is The Civil War, the real beginning by Nena & Alex Jordan. Rather than focusing on slogans or hindsight judgments, the book examines the chain of events leading up to secession, and war using economic data, political actions, and original source material

Another comprehensive treatment of these underlying causes is The Causes of the Civil War (2008), which synthesizes economic, political, and ideological debates rather than isolating a single explanation. Its strength lies in demonstrating how structural pressures accumulate over decades, making conflict increasingly difficult to avoid.

Conclusion

Wars are not accidents. They are outcomes. Understanding their causes requires patience, documentation, and a willingness to question simplified narratives—precisely what serious nonfiction should provide.

Amazon Associates notice: ReadNonFiction.com participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.