Objective 3.01: Trace the economic, social, and political events from the Mexican War to the outbreak of the Civil War. Essential Questions:
How did the issues of sectionalism lead to the Civil War?
How did political, economic, and social differences develop into the sectionalism that split the North and the South?
To what extent did differing opinions on slavery as well as the institution’s expansion become a deciding factor in instituting a Civil War?
The Missouri Compromise 1820 Pushed through
Congress by Henry Clay
Admitted Missouri as a slave state, but balanced by admitting Maine as a free state
Also banned slavery in future states north of Missouri’s southern border, but allowed slavery south of that line
John Tyler 1790 – 1862 10th President (1841-45) Became president after
William Henry Harrison died in office
Virginian, slave-owner 1st president have
impeachment proceedings against him
Changed political parties multiple times – a Democratic-Republican, then a National Republican, then a Democrat, then a Whig, then back to being a Democrat
James K. Polk 1795 – 1849 11th President (1845-
49) Democrat, Southerner,
slave-owner Expanded US through
addition of Texas, Mexican War, and negotiations with Britain for control of the Oregon Territory
Established a national treasury, lowered tariffs
Opened the USNA and Smithsonian
Mexican/American War1846 – 1848US annexed Texas in
1845, as a slave state
After defeating Mexico, US added California and desert Southwest – but would they be free or slave territories?
The Wilmot Proviso & Calhoun Resolutions
Wilmot Proviso proposed in 1846 by Rep. David Wilmot of PA – proposed a complete ban on slavery in any new territories US might acquire from Mexico
Sen. John C. Calhoun of SC countered that the states own US territories in common and Congress holds no authority to ban slavery in the territories
US Senate refused to vote on Wilmot Proviso
Calhoun on slavery Slavery was not an “evil institution”, but rather a “positive one” because it introduced Christianity to the slaves and ensured that they would be cared for
Popular Sovereignty Proposed by Sen.
Lewis Cass of Michigan
Citizens of each new territory should be allowed to decide for themselves on whether to allow slavery there
Idea became popular because it prevented Congress from having to make a decision
The wiggling whigs… Split in the Whig Party Slavery divided
northern Whigs into the “Conscience Whigs” who opposed slavery and the “Cotton Whigs” who supported slavery because Southern cotton fed their northern textile factories
Rise of the Free Soil Party After pro-slavery Zachary
Taylor became the Whig nominee for president in 1848, Conscience Whigs quit the Whig Party and joined themselves with northern anti-slavery Democrats
This new party was called the Free Soil Party (they opposed expanding slavery to the “free soil” of the West).
Election of 1848 Democratic candidate
Lewis Cass promoted popular sovereignty and promised to veto the Wilmot Proviso if passed
Free Soil candidate Martin Van Buren supported a complete ban on slavery in the West
Whig candidate Zachary Taylor was a moderate
Zachary Taylor 1784 – 1850 12th President (1849–50) “Old Rough and Ready” Slave owner, but believed
slavery wouldn’t work in the West because of the climate
Hero of the Mexican War, never held an elected office before president
Died in office
Millard Fillmore 1800 – 1874 13th President (1850-53) Whig (later a Know-Nothing) Anti-slavery, but believed
that it was necessary to allow it to keep South happy and the Union whole
Endorsed the Compromise of 1850 and signed it into law
Sent Perry to open trade with Japan
Refused to support Southern efforts to annex Cuba
Not nominated by Whigs in 1852
Compromise of 1850 5 separate bills pushed through Congress by Clay
and Webster over the opposition of Calhoun:1. California admitted as a free state2. Slave trade (but not slave ownership) was
banned in Washington D.C.3. New Mexico Territory and Utah Territory were
created and would decide slavery issue under popular sovereignty
4. Texas was paid $10 million in return for giving up its claims to lands in the New Mexico Territory
5. The Fugitive Slave Act
Fugitive Slave Act Law enforcement anywhere in
the US were obligated to arrest runaway slaves and return them to their owners
Anyone harboring a fugitive slave or refusing to help apprehend one was subject to fine and prison
Slaves were identified solely by the word of their owner or their representative and received no trial
As a result, any free black was in danger – all it took was a claim that they were a runaway and they were arrested and turned over!
Uncle Tom’s Cabin Novel by Harriet
Beecher Stowe that brought the suffering of slaves to life for many readers and helped swell the abolitionist ranks
Published in 1852, written in direct response to the Fugitive Slave Act
Sold 300,000 copies in first year
Underground RailroadOrganized network
of individuals who helped hide and move runaway slaves north
Moved thousands of slaves to freedom in Canada
These people risked imprisonment to help slaves escape
Harriet Tubman 1820 – 1913 Escaped slave who
risked herself by returning to the South over and over to guide runaways along the Underground Railroad, despite being an epileptic
Later worked as a spy for the Union Army during the Civil War and as a women’s rights activist
Calhoun, Clay, & Webster Die
1850 Summer 1852 Fall 1852
Franklin Pierce 1804 – 1869 14th President (1853-1857) Democrat Ostend Manifesto-
Supported acquisition of Cuba from Spain, but his ministers sent to broker a deal created a scandal when they threatened Spain with force if they refused to sell Cuba
Was not nominated for a second term by his party in 1856
Kansas-Nebraska Act 1854 Created two new
territories out of the Great Plains – Kansas and Nebraska
Repealed the Missouri Compromise and allowed the 2 new territories to exercise popular sovereignty on the issue of slavery
“Bleeding Kansas” Settlers moving into
Kansas from Missouri brought their slaves
New England Emigrant Aid Company began organizing and equipping northern settlers to move to Kansas and oppose slavery
Both sides were armed and willing to fight and periods of violence ensued
Stephen A. Douglas 1813 – 1861 Senator from Illinois
nicknamed the “Little Giant”
Helped draft the Compromise of 1850 and was the author of the Kansas-Nebraska Act
Strong believer in democracy and the will of the people – so he supported the idea of popular sovereignty
Andrew P. Butler 1796 – 1857 Senator from SC Co-author of the
Kansas-Nebraska Act Strong, outspoken
supporter of slavery Verbally trashed in the
Senate in 1856 by Senator Charles Sumner of Massachusetts for his support of slavery
Charles Sumner 1811 – 1874 Senator from MA Opposed the Fugitive
Slave and Kansas-Nebraska Acts
Delivered his 3-hour “Crime Against Kansas” speech in May 1856, which made personal attacks against Sen. Butler including making fun of his speech which had been impaired from a stroke
Preston Brooks 1819 – 1857 Rep. from SC Nephew of Andrew
Butler Decided to act to defend
the honor of his disabled uncle and that of SC
First considered challenging Sumner to a duel but decided that was too much of an honor for Sumner
Sumner-Brooks Incident May 22, 1856 Brooks attacked
Sumner with a cane on the floor of the Senate, savagely beating him until the cane broke
Sumner took 3 years to recover from his injuries
Dozens of proud Southerners sent Brooks new canes in support
The Republican Party Founded in 1854 by a
mixture of former Whigs, Free Soilers, and anti-slavery Democrats
Direct response to the Kansas-Nebraska Act
Number one goal became to contain the spread of slavery to the South and not allow it to spread to new states or territories
Know-NothingsThe American
PartyNativist party that
opposed immigration and was fiercely anti-Catholic
Initially successful, but short-lived since its members were divided over slavery
Election of 1856Republicans
nominated explorer John C. Fremont
Democrats nominated career politician and moderate James Buchanan
Know-Nothings nominated former president Millard Fillmore
James Buchanan 1791 – 1868 15th President (1857-61) Only unmarried
President Believed that South
could only be kept in the Union through concessions and compromise, but this infuriated Northern supporters
Failed to successfully deal with increasingly violent sectionalism
Dred Scott 1799 – 1858 Slave who sued for
freedom on the grounds that his master had carried him into states and territories where slavery was illegal
Given freedom by his owner in 1857 after Dred Scott lost his case in the Supreme Court
Dred Scott Decision 1857 Dred Scott v. Sandford Southerner-dominated
Supreme Court under Chief Justice Roger Taney ruled that since persons of African ancestry were not citizens of the US but were instead private property, they were not protected by US laws and could not sue in US courts
Court also overturned the Missouri Compromise as unconstitutional – ruled that Congress could not pass laws that denied citizens their right to private property (slaves) without “due process” (5th Amendment)
Kansas & the Lecompton Constitution Buchanan encouraged
Kansas to apply for statehood to decide the slavery issue there and end the violence
Constitutional Convention was called in the territory’s capital of Lecompton, but was boycotted by abolition supporters as “rigged”
Result was a state constitution that allowed slavery in Kansas
Congress refused to admit Kansas under the Lecompton constitution in 1858 – Kansas not a state until 1861
Lincoln-Douglas Debates 1858 Republicans ran Abraham Lincoln
against Democrat Stephen Douglas for Senate in Illinois
The 2 men participated in a series of public debates centered on slavery
Lincoln opposed the spread of slavery, Douglas promoted popular sovereignty
Douglas argued the Freeport Doctrine – that the Dred Scott decision was correct, but that states wanting to keep slavery out had only to refuse to pass laws needed to enforce slavery
Douglas won re-election, but Lincoln won national attention for himself & the Republicans
John Brown 1800 – 1859 Businessman who
experienced bankruptcy, the death of his wife and a number of his children before becoming an ardent abolitionist
Moved to Kansas in 1856 and participated in the murder of 5 pro-slavery settlers (The Pottawatomie Massacre) and the more organized fighting between abolitionist and pro-slavery forces
When fighting died down in Kansas, Brown returned east
John Brown’s Raid on Harper’s Ferry
Oct. 16-18, 1859 Brown mounted an attack
on the federal armory at Harper’s Ferry, VA in an effort to seize weapons with which to arm slaves and start a rebellion
Brown took the armory, but slaves did not rebel and no support came
Brown’s forces were defeated by US Marines led by Col. Robert E. Lee and Brown was captured, tried and hung for treason
South turns against Republicans After John Brown’s Raid,
Southerners became convinced that abolitionists were determined to destroy the Southern way of life
Republican Party was closely tied to the abolitionist cause
Southern leaders vowed that they would rather dissolve the Union than tolerate a Republican-led government
Election of 1860 Democratic Party Split Northern Democrats who
favored popular sovereignty nominated Stephen Douglas
Southern Democrats who demanded federal protection of slavery nominated John Breckinridge
Republicans nominated Abraham Lincoln
Former Whigs created the Constitutional Party which argued that the Union could still be preserved through upholding the Constitution
Abraham Lincoln 1809 – 1865 16th President (1861-65) Republican His election would
prompt the South to secede; Lincoln would have to decide whether to let them leave the US or to fight to force them to stay – chose to fight
The fight would be The Civil War
Assassinated in 1865
South Carolina Secedes Dec. 20, 1860 President Buchanan
(Lincoln had been elected but not inaugurated) declared secession to be illegal but refused to use military force to stop it
US forces in SC retreated to Ft. Sumter in Charleston Harbor
SC was followed by Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas
Crittenden’s CompromiseSen. John Crittenden
of Kentucky proposed amending the US Constitution to forever guarantee slavery where it already existed, and reinstating the Missouri Compromise line
Republicans refused
The Confederate States of America
NOT THIS -----
-----THIS
Jefferson Davis Feb. 1861: Secessionist
states declared themselves to be an independent nation, the Confederate States of America
Wrote a new constitution and elected former Mississippi senator Jefferson Davis as President
Ft. Sumter April 1861: Lincoln
announces that he intends to reinforce Ft. Sumter, Charleston SC
South demanded that Ft. Sumter surrender; when the fort refused, it was bombarded with cannon-fire for 33 hours (official start of Civil War)
April 13, 1861: Ft. Sumter surrendered to South, start of Civil War
Upper South SecedesLincoln began to
build an army to fight the South
This prompted states of the “Upper South” to secede in support of the Confederacy
Virginia, Arkansas, North Carolina, & Tennessee leave the Union
The Border States Must Decide Lincoln needed the
remaining 4 slave states (Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky, and Missouri) to stay in the Union
Delaware committed to the North
Lincoln imposed martial law in Maryland
Kentucky sided with North after Confederate forces invaded the state
Missouri voted to stay with North
West Virginia is formed