The impact of valuable goods like cotton on European struggles for power in the Americas was of mayor importance.
For instance, in 1861, England depended on products such as gold that was shipped out from New York and New Orleans. The U. S. produced nearly 77% of the 800 million pounds of cotton the British consumed. America also exported a vast amount of cotton to France and Russia.
Slavery was an important element in the harvesting of cotton. Meanwhile in other countries cotton was related to richness, in America, the black people that worked on the cotton fields were suffering extreme poverty conditions. The southern states had the weather conditions for growing crops and the slaves to do the hard work.