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The Beating of
Charles SumnerBleeding Sumner
Matt Fischer and Jonah Ogburn
G Block H. History
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The conflict between Massachusetts senator Charles Sumner and congressmen Preston Brooks resultedin a brutal beating upon Sumner in 1856. This demonstrated the conflict and lack of compromise inthe Senate that would inevitably lead our country into a Civil War.
On May 22, 1856 the avid abolitionist Charles Sumner was beaten with a cane to within aninch of his life. Charles Sumner was a Senator in Massachusetts and was an important figure in theyoung Radical Republican Party. On May 20 Sumner had delivered a powerful speech to the Senate attime in American history when the tension between the North and South was at an all time. Debateover whether to make the new territories pro or anti slave had recently led to Bleeding Kansas. Hespecifically attacked South Carolina Senator Andrew Butler who supported slavery in the United States
new territories. Sumner referred to Butler as a pimp to slavery and attacked Butlers moral fiber.Butler was not in attendance that day, but congressman for South Carolina Preston Brooks was. Brookswas the nephew of Butler and was livid not only with Sumner for insulting his kin, but alsochallenging the Southern way of life.
Brooks was so angry that just 3 days after Sumners speech he walked into Sumners senateoffice and beat him with a cane. Sumner was badly hurt and never was able to make a full recoveryand he never served in the Senate again. This all happened as a result of the incredible anger, hatred,and tension between the North and South over slavery and what was the countrys future going to looklike. Both men involved instantly became heroes in their respective parties, and even though Brooks
resigned after the attack he was soon reelected. It symbolized to the Country that neither side waswilling to compromise and that the times for politics were coming to an end; war was brewing
Brooks was sent a multitude of canes from southern supporters of his actions towardsSumner. Sumner also became a martyr figure in the north. This event made evident that the disputeover slavery was not going to be solved peacefully and showed the complete lack of unity in the senateand the country. It was a driving force behind the Civil War that would soon end slavery in the UnitedStates.
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This is a map depicting the North
and South territorial division in
1856. The two sides had bitter
disagreements over slavery and
how the territory won in the
Mexican war should be
established in America, slave stateor not. Tension had risen in the
Senate due to different
perspectives on slavery.
I have, Senators, believed from the first that the agitation of the subject of slavery would, if not
prevented by some timely and effective measure, end in disunion. . . it can no longer be disguisedor denied that the Union is in danger. You have thus had forced upon you the greatest and the
gravest question that can ever come under your consideration: How can the Union be preserved?
This document portrays the existing tension in the Senate between Northern and Southern
representatives. John C. Calhoun is saying that the Union is in danger because neither side can agree
upon how to establish slavery in America; whereas the north wants no part of slavery and the south
believes it is a necessity. The union cannot coexist amongst each other with such beliefs, and there isno way to preserve the Union if each side only lives by their terms.
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This cartoon is depicting the Northern viewpoint that Southerners were
force-feeding slavery to Kansas settlers. It was a large topic of
dispute in the country what to do with the new land gained in the
Mexican war. Was is to be slave or free territory? It was decided that
the slaves fate would be left in the hands of it settlers. When this
happened thousands of North abolitionists and Southern slavery
supporters rushed to move to Kansas in order to vote it a free or slave
state. Guerilla warfare broke out in Kansas, this time is referred to as
Bleeding Kansas .
This is the front page of Lawrence Kansas
Tribune and it expresses the views of John
Speer on new pro-slavery legislature that
was recently passed in Kansas. These new
Bogus laws as he called them Requiredan oath from every officer, elected or
appointed, to support the Kansas-Nebraska
Act and the Fugitive Slave Law and
disqualified any person opposed to slavery
as a juror. All this fighting and tension in
Kansas helped pile on the great anger and
tension felt between the North and South.
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With regret, I come again upon
the Senator from South
Carolina [Butler], who,
omnipresent in this debate,
overflowed with rage at the
simple suggestion that Kansashad applied for admission as a
state; and, with incoherent
phrases, discharged the loose
expectoration of his speech, now
upon her representative, and
then upon her people. There was
no extravagance of the ancient
parliamentary debate which hedid not repeat. Nor was there
any possible deviation from
truth which he did not make,
with so much of passion, I am
glad to add, as to save him from
the suspicion of intentional
aberration.
This is Sumners Crime Against Speech
Kansas that he addressed in to the senate
on May 18, 1856. In this he attacked
everything that Senator Andrew Butler ofSouth Carolina believed in. In this excerpt,
he mockingly stated how Butler rejected the
simple idea of admitting Kanas statehood
with such anger and rage. In this speech, he
also refers to Butler as a pimp of slaves
creating even more tension between the
north and south, and also more specifically
between Butlers relatives and Sumner. This
is the speech that put the South over theedge and sent America's slavery dispute to a
slavery war.
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This is Preston Brooks, a South Carolina
congressmen that nearly took the life of Charles
Sumner. Sumner delivered a speech (The crime
against Kansas) to the senate, in which he insulted
Senator Andrew Butler calling him a pimp to
slavery. Butler was A relative to Butler and on
march 22, 1856 Brooks beat Sumner with a gold
tipped cane close to death.
This is Preston Brooks, a South Carolina
congressmen that nearly took the life ofCharles Sumner. Sumner delivered a speech
(The crime against Kansas) to the senate, in
which he insulted Senator Andrew Butler
calling him a pimp to slavery. Butler was
A relative to Butler and on march 22, 1856
Brooks beat Sumner with a gold tipped cane
close to death.
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This picture represents a southern perspective of the
Brooks-Sumner Attack in which Preston Brooks
appears to look well to do, and civilized. It is a good
example of how Southerners and pro-slavery people
thought that Preston Brooks was in the right, and that
his actions were called for. Because of the high
approval felt by Southerners, Brooks received many
gift-canes that represented givers approval of hisactions.
Preston Brooks performed
faithfully and well, at the
bidding of his party, an actwhich he looked upon as a
religious duty, and which his
friends and constituents hailed
with the most frantic
demonstrations of delighted
applause
This is the Eulogy of Preston Brooks found in
the January 27, 1857 edition of the New York
Times. It shows how even after the initial buzzstory simmered down people were still standing
behind Brooks and his egregious actions. Even
in death Brooks was a hero and rallying-point
for Southern beliefs even after his death. It
describes his actions as him following his
religious duty.
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Sumner, M. C., of this city,
was ferociously and brutally
assaulted in the National
Senate Chamber yesterday,
by a cowardly scoundrel
named Brooks. An outrage
so gross and villianous was
never before committed
within the walls of theCapitol. It is rendered
additionally infamous and
barbaric from the fact that
fiendish bystanders
prevented persons who were
disposed from interfering.
This bully Brooks who has
disgraced the name of man,
ought to be branded as a
villain of the blackest dye,
and then mercilessly kicked
from one end of the
continent to the other. The
black mark of Cain will
stand out on his brow to the
last moment of his disgraced
life.
This excerpt is from the New York
Times shortly after the Sumner
attack shows the rage Northernersfelt towards Brooks and those who
supported him. It says the black
mark of his Cain will stand out on
his brow to the last moment of his
disgraced life. This is interesting
because in his eulogy just one year
after the event it praises Brooks and
his life choices. This again shows
the vast different of opinion betweenthe North and the South.
This cartoon drawing represents a
different view-point on the attack. In
this picture you see and innocent
looking Sumner being attacked by avicious looking Brooks while worried
on-lookers are being held back by
laughing Southerners. The cartoon is
captioned Southern Chivalry which
was obviously mocking the idea that
Southerners were some how more
gallant.
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This is a picture of a newspaper article from
Harpers Weekly. This was written in 1861 and was
published within one week of the outbreak of the
Civil War. This article talks about the event between
Sumner and Brooks, the importance of the Border
States, slavery and briefly about events at Fort
Sumter. All these topics were ones that lead to the
start of the civil war, an inevitable result of thedispute about slavery.
This is essentially a people's contest. On the side of the Union it is a struggle
for maintaining in the world that form and substance of government whose
leading object is to elevate the condition of men; to lift artificial weights from
all shoulders; to clear the paths of laudable pursuit for all; to afford all an
unfettered start and a fair chance in the race of life. Yielding to partial and
temporary departures, from necessity, this is the leading object of the
government for whose existence we contend.
This is a part of the speech Abraham
Lincoln gave after the election to
declare that the only option the Union
had was to enter war against the South.
Lincoln believes the in order for the
United States to remain a country with
a functioning government, there must
be something done to settle the
ongoing dispute over slavery. The act
of violence against Sumner, and later
the attack on Fort Sumter really trigger
the Civil War between the Union and
the Confederates.
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14, 2013).
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Wikipedia. "Charle Sumner." Wikipedia.com/Charles-Sumer. upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/31/Southern_Chivalry.jpg (accessed February 12, 2013).