Demonstrably false. South Carolinas article of secession makes it abundantly clear that the Republican party's abolitionist wing, and the failure of northern states to apprehend and return fugitive slaves, and the stated desire of Lincoln to prevent slavery in new territories were all paramount to their decision to secede. Several other states also passed documents which listed slavery as chief among their reasons for secession. Dozens of letters of Confederate soldiers exist which state, both explicitly and implicitly, that defense of property, states rights, and slaves were all reasons for fighting. Slavery was not the only cause of the war, but is was among the most crucial.