VSC 5.4: Compromises leading to the Civil War

D. Hales
US History
Swansea High School/MTCC

​VSC 5.4: Compromises leading to the Civil War

​Henry Clay: "The Great Compromiser"

​--Tries to balance free and slave states; prevent a civil war

​Missouri Compromise (1820)--MO is admitted as a slave state; ME is admitted as a free state. Bans slavery in LA Purchase territory above 36/30 latitude line

--Compromise of 1850--CA is admitted as a free state; South gets a stronger Fugitive Slave Act that required citizens to help return runaway slaves, abolishes slave trade in DC (but not slavery)

ALSO--Sets boundary between TX and Mexico, sets up territorial government of ​UT and NM

​Kansas Nebraska Act--1854

​Illinois Senator's Stephen Douglas' idea

--What did it do?

• ​Created two new territories--Kansas and Nebraska

• Repealed the Missouri Compromise by allowing enslavement of people north of Missouri's southern border (undoes Henry Clay's hard work!)

• Allowed each territory to decide whether to allow enslavement inside its borders--an idea called "popular sovereignty"

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While this bill passed, it fueled growing sectionalism and conflict over enslavement, producing a violent uprising in Kansas and Nebraska, known as “Bleeding Kansas.” As a result, the Kansas-Nebraska Act's promotion of popular sovereignty had avoided the debate over enslavement and moved the country closer to the Civil War

​Uncle Tom's Cabin

Harriet Beecher Stowe Uncle Tom’s Cabin, a novel showing the reality experienced by enslaved persons in the South. The novel chronicles the heartbreaking journey of Uncle Tom, whose owner whips him to death for not divulging the whereabouts of other runaway enslaved persons.
RESULT--South starts talking about slavery as a "peculiar institution" and a "positive good"--see writings of George Fitzhugh

Multiple Choice

Whose nickname was "The Great Compromiser?"

• John C Calhoun

• Henry Clay

• Daniel Webster

• Charles Sumner

Multiple Select

Which of the following was NOT a part of the Missouri Compromise? (Pick two)

• Missouri is admitted as a slave state; Maine is admitted as a free state

• The South gets a stronger Fugitive Slave Act

• Slavery is banned above the 36/30 line in the LA territory

• California was admitted as a free state

Multiple Choice

Allowing each territory to decide on whether or not it will allow slavery

• Direct democracy

• Indirect democracy

• Popular sovereignty

• Federalism

Multiple Choice

What was NOT an impact of the Kansas Nebraska Act?

• By undoing the MO Compromise it worsens sectionalism and conflict

• It allowed settlers in those areas to vote on whether or not they would have slaves

• It started a mini civil war called "Bleeding Kansas"

• It reduced sectional conflict and created an era of peace for the next 50 years

Multiple Choice

This novel showed the horrors of slavery and encouraged Northerners to support abolition. Southern states said it wasn't true and banned it.

• The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne

• Uncle Tom's Cabin by Julia Ward Howe

• Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

• Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe

Tensions worsen

​​Brooks-Sumner Incident--After a speech by MA Senator Charles Sumner insulting an elderly pro-slavery SC Senator, a relative of the SC senator, Rep. Preston Brooks approached Sumner, beat him over the head with his cane until it broke. The North sees Brooks as a criminal; the South a hero

​Free Soil Party--1848

​“Free Soil Party.” First national anti-slavery party. This party's platform opposed the extension of slavery into the Western Territories.
Not very successful; they break apart. Some members found a new party with the same ideas in 1854--Republican Party

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Fearful of expanding southern power within the national government, Representative David Wilmot of Pennsylvania introduced into Congress his famous Wilmot Proviso, calling for the prohibition of slavery in the vast, southwestern territory acquired from Mexico. The Proviso passed the House, but the Senate stopped it.

Multiple Choice

Massachusetts senator attacked with a cane after giving a speech attacking slavery. The attacker was seen as a criminal in the North and a hero in the South.

• Andre

• Charles Sumner

• Preston Brooks

• Zebulon Vance

​Dred Scott Case--

​--MO slave is taken to a free state by his master--so he's free right?

​--His master says no; Dred Scott sues and takes his case to the Supreme Court!!!

​--Chief Justice Roger Taney says it is unconstitutional to tell people where they can bring their property. Therefore any laws restricting slavery are ILLEGAL. He also says that black people aren't citizens of the US and therefore have no right to sue.

​--This makes the South happy; angers the North

​--Makes tensions over slavery EVEN worse

Abraham Lincoln's "House Divided Speech" 1858

​“A house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe this government cannot endure, permanently half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to be dissolved—I do not expect the house to fall—but I do expect it will cease to be divided. It will become all one thing or all the other.”

Impact

This speech made Abraham Lincoln a prominent political figure in the debate over slavery. He put into words the fears of both Northerners and Southerners that this debate would eventually end in war. This speech intensified both fear and tension as many Southerners believed that Lincoln intended for the entire country to be free. 

Multiple Choice

What was NOT a part of Chief Justice Taney's verdict in the Dred Scott case?

• Dred Scott was free

• Dred Scott was still a slave

• Taney said that Black Americans were not citizens; didn't have the legal right to sue in court

• Taney said that states couldn't prevent people from bringing their slaves with them

Multiple Choice

What speech by Lincoln warned about the dangers of a possible Civil War and scared the South into seeing Lincoln as an enemy

• Emancipation Proclamation

• Second Inaugural Speech

• House Divided

• Gettysburg Address

​John Brown's Raid

​On October 16, 1859, John Brown led a small army of 18 men into the small town of Harper’s Ferry, Virginia. He planned to instigate a major slave rebellion in the South by seizing weapons and ammunition in the federal arsenal, arming slaves in the area, moving south along the Appalachian Mountains, and attracting slaves to his cause. 

​

​--Slaves don't rise up to join him; after a battle he and his men are captured. Brown was quickly tried and hanged on December 2.

​Impact of John Brown's Raid

​North--Many greeted Brown’s raid with widespread admiration. While they recognized the raid itself was the act of a madman, some northerners admired his zeal and courage. Church bells rang on the day of his execution, and songs and paintings were created in his honor. Brown was turned into an instant martyr.

Southerners--Angry at those who encouraged slave rebellions! How could they live under a government whose citizens regarded John Brown as a martyr? Southern newspapers labeled the entire north as John Brown sympathizers. Southern politicians blamed the Republican Party and falsely claimed that Abraham Lincoln supported Brown's intentions.

Multiple Choice

Which was NOT a result of John Brown's raid in 1859?

• John Brown and his followers were captured and hanged

• The North sees him as a martyr; the south a murderous villain

• Brown's raid shocked the South into seeing the danger of slave revolts and they pledged a gradual end to slavery to avoid any more violence

• Tensions worsened and helped lead to the Civil War