The South exported cotton, rice, sugar and tobacco as its principle trading goods. It imported textiles (especially from Britain) because under their trade agreements it was cheaper for the South to import textiles from Europe than it was to buy them from Northen mills. When the federal government instituted revenue tariffs it threatened Southern imports, so in many instances Southern traders opted to pay the tariffs that Europe owed in order to keep commerce and trade flowing. However, Europe (especially Britain) was incensed that tariffs were applied at all, and ended up instituting some of their own, and since the South was Europe’s main trading partner, it bore the brunt of those tariffs. Then, when the federal government applied protective tariffs, it cut the South’s economy off at the knees. Protective tariffs didn’t affect the North much at all, but they seriously impacted the South.
The Southern states had trade agreements with Britain? Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't that a clear violation of Article I, Section 10, Clause 3: "No State shall, without the Consent of Congress...enter into any Agreement or Compact with another State, or with a foreign Power..."?
When the federal government instituted revenue tariffs it threatened Southern imports, so in many instances Southern traders opted to pay the tariffs that Europe owed in order to keep commerce and trade flowing.
But there is little evidence that there were a lot of goods imported into the South to begin with.
However, Europe (especially Britain) was incensed that tariffs were applied at all, and ended up instituting some of their own, and since the South was Europe’s main trading partner, it bore the brunt of those tariffs.
How is this possible? The European powers paid the market price for the Southern exports. Any tariff, assuming that there were tariffs to begin with and I've never seen anything indicating there were, would have been borne by the European consumers. Just as U.S. tariffs were borne by U.S. consumers.
Then, when the federal government applied protective tariffs, it cut the South’s economy off at the knees. Protective tariffs didn’t affect the North much at all, but they seriously impacted the South.
Nonsense. Protective tariffs impacted anyone who was buying the protected goods.