<P> The Confederate States of America had an agrarian - based economy that relied heavily on slave - worked plantations for the production of cotton for export to Europe and the northern US states . If ranked as an independent nation, it would have been the fourth richest country of the world in 1860 . When the Union blockaded its ports in summer 1861, exports of cotton fell 95 percent and the South had to restructure itself to emphasize food and munitions production . After losing control of its main rivers and ports, it had to depend on a weak railroad system that, with few repairs being made, no new equipment, and federal raids, crumbled away . The financial infrastructure collapsed during the war as inflation destroyed banks and forced a move toward a barter economy for civilians . The government seized needed supplies and livestock (paying with certificates that were to be paid off after the war, but never were). By 1865 the economy was in ruins . </P> <Table> Cotton production and export from 1861 to 1865 <Tr> <Th> Sources and Ends </Th> <Th> Bales (mil - lions) </Th> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Production </Td> <Td> 6.8 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Ends </Td> <Td> </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Used in the South </Td> <Td> 0.4 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> to U.K. & Europe </Td> <Td> 0.5 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> to the North </Td> <Td> 0.9 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Destroyed </Td> <Td> 3.3 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Sold Postwar </Td> <Td> 1.8 </Td> </Tr> </Table>

What kind of economy did the former confederates want