What did the southern states form?

When the southern states ceded from the Union in 1861, they formed The Confederate States of America, or The Confederacy

South Carolina was the first state to secede in December 1860. They asked all slave states to join them in creating a new nation and by February 1861, six other states had joined: Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas.

The Confederacy issued three reasons for leaving the Union.

First, the United State believed that the Confederate States had broken the Constitution, something the Confederate states refuted.

Second, the United States had failed to enforce the Fugitive Slave Laws.

Third, the government was not allowing slavery in new territories.

For more information, check out these websites:

http://www.pbs.org/civilwar/war/map1.html

http://www.mce.k12tn.net/civil_war/confederacy.htm

http://www.civilwarhome.com/csa.htm