The Impending Crisis

Events Leading Toward Civil War

North & South
Read Slavery Divides the Nation (page 324-325)
As you read, create a chart in your notes describing
the differences between the North and South
(include economic differences & views on slavery).




What critical question did Americans face as the
nation expanded?
North South








Nullification Crisis
John C. Calhoun of
South Carolina
protested the tariff

promoted nullification
states can nullify, or
void, any federal law
deemed
unconstitutional &
threatened to secede
(withdraw) from the
U.S.

Congress reduced tariff
John C. Calhoun
photo taken in 1844
Aftermath of Mexican War
Opinions of wars aftermath
Wilmot Proviso (Aug 1846) Northern view -
annex Texas as slave state but no extension of
slavery into any territory that may be gained from
Mexico

Southern View (Calhoun): slaves property;
property rights protected by 5
th
Amendment;
Southerners could move anywhere & take slaves
Election of 1848
Zachary Taylor (Whig) popular sovereignty (but a
southern & a slave owner)

Lewis Cass (Democrat) popular sovereignty

Martin Van Buren (Free Soil) - N. Democrats, anti-
slavery Whigs) endorsed Wilmot Proviso
opposed extension of slavery
free soil, free speech, free labor, & free men

Impact of Free Soil Party
Won 10 % of the vote &
split Democrat & Whig
vote in some areas

So..Taylor won
election (war hero)

Impact: slavery became
a political issue in a
national election
Check Point
1. Why did Southerners oppose the Wilmot
Proviso?

2. What was the platform of the Free Soil Party
regarding the extension of slavery?

3. How did the presence of the Free Soil Party
impact the Presidential election results in 1848?
Compromise of 1850
CA petition touched off great debate in Senate
Wanted to be FREE
Key players: Clay, Calhoun, Webster

Henry Clay John C. Calhoun
Daniel Webster
Compromise of 1850
1. California admitted as free state
2. Popular Sovereignty in NM and Utah
3. Texas given $ 10 million for loss of property to NM
4. Slave trade in D.C. ended (slavery remains)
5. Congress would pass a tougher fugitive slave law
Think About It:
N & S Reactions
Look at the list of 5 items that made up the
Compromise of 1850

Write N next to items that would have pleased
the North

Write S next to items that would have pleased
the South
Check Point
1. What developments led to the necessity of
compromise in 1850?

2. Who proposed the Compromise of 1850?

3. Which parts of the Compromise pleased the
South? Which parts pleased the North?
Uncle Toms Cabin
1852 by Harriet Beecher Stowe
Story: Uncle Tom (main
character) is sold to cruel
owner Simon Legree

300,000 copies sold in first
year

Significance: first time many
thought of slaves as people
Reactions to Uncle Toms Cabin
- In North:
spread compassion for enslaved people
convinced Northerners slavery would ruin nation; won
many over to anti-slavery cause

- In South
enraged Southerners
wrote numerous novels in reply w/ their own versions
of slavery; felt threatened & became defensive

Check Point
1. Who wrote Uncle Toms Cabin?

2. Who is the evil slave owner in the book?

3. How did Southerners react to the book?
Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854)
Senator Stephen Douglas
proposed organizing Nebraska
Territory w/ popular sovereignty
to decide slavery issue

South feared it would be a free
state - decided to divide the
territory into Kansas & Nebraska

1854 both organized w/ pop. sov.
to determine slavery status
would repeal Mo. Compromise

Significance of Kansas-Nebraska Act
in further dividing N & S:
Pro- and Anti-slavery forces streamed into Kansas
2 govts formed: 1 pro-slavery, 1 anti-slavery
(map page 336)
Both petitioned Congress for recognition
Caused a bloody civil war in Kansas violence
between the 2 factions
Led to birth of Republican Party

Bleeding Kansas
1855 territority governor called for elections:
proslavery border ruffians from MO came across
border & swayed election in their favor

By 1856 2 govts claimed authority: 1 pro-slavery
(Lecompton) and 1 anti-slavery (Topeka)

Civil War erupted between factions raided
each others settlements and killed each other
over issue of slavery
Troubles in Kansas Continue
May 24-25, 1856 John
Brown & followers;
Pottawatomie Massacre (5
pro-slavery settlers murdered)

Congress adjourned 1856
session w/ no decision on
Kansas

Became main issue in
Election of 1856; eventually
admitted as a free state in
1861
John Brown
Violence spreads to U.S. Senate:
Crime Against Kansas: 1856
Charles Sumners speech:
criticism of pro-slavery forces in Kansas
aimed criticism @ Sen. Andrew Butler from S.C.)

Preston Brooks (Butlers nephew) beat C. Sumner w/
cane on floor of Senate chamber - Sumner absent
from Senate for 2 yrs

Sumners speech & beating inflamed both sides

Check Point
1. What was popular sovereignty?

2. Whose speech criticized pro-slavery forces in
Kansas?

3. What was Bleeding Kansas?
Republican Party Forms: 1854
Why formed? largely in
response to Kansas-Nebraska
Act and civil war in Kansas

Support drawn from anti-
slavery Democrats and Whigs,
Free Soilers, non-slave state
farmers, professionals, small
business owners & craftsmen

Republican Party
1
st
Presidential candidate: John
C. Fremont in election of 1856

Platform: opposed extension
of slavery; demanded repeal of
Kansas-Nebraska Act and
Fugitive Slave Act


1
st
President: Abraham
Lincoln elected 1860



Election of 1856
James Buchanan (D)
Platform: endorsed Kan-Neb
Act; better enforcement of
Fugitive Slave law; Cong.
should not interfere w/ slavery

John C. Fremont (R)
Platform: opposed ext. of
slavery; admission of Kan. as
free state; condemned repeal of
MO Comp and expansionist
policies of Dems
Election of 1856
American (Know Nothing) Party M. Fillmore
Platform: anti-immigrant & anti-Catholic

Election Results / Significance
Buchanan won
Voting along sectional lines:
Dems won 14 slave, 5 free states
Reps won 11 free states (not on ballot in slave states) & 1/3
of popular votes
Appearance of Rep. Party 1
st
time major party platform took
stand against slavery
Check Points
1. Which issue prompted the formation of the
Republican Party?

2. What was the Partys platform in regards to
slavery?

3. Who was the Partys 1
st
Pres. Candidate?
Its 1
st
President?
Dred Scott v. Sanford (1857)
Circumstances leading to
this case:
Dred Scott slave taken
from Missouri (slave
state) into free state to
live then back to slave
state sued for his
freedom in 1843 after
masters death
Supreme Court (Taney) Ruling:
1. temporary residence in free state did not make
Scott free
2. slaves property, not citizens; could not sue
3. no African American could be a citizen
4. Cong could not ban slavery anywhere because
doing so would take away slave owners
property rights w/o due process of law
** In effect, Mo Comp unconstitutional

Reaction to Dred Scott
Decision basically said Congress could not
exclude slavery - no such thing as a free state

North & Reps enraged: believed slavocracy
conspiracy existed (majority of justices,
including Taney were southerners)

Southerners celebrated decision: said Congress
now obligated to protect property of
slaveholders w/ federal slave codes

Lincoln-Douglas Debates
Lincoln challenged Douglas for
Ill. Senate seat
7 debates in 1858
2
nd
debate Lincoln challenged
Douglas popular sovereignty in
light of Dred Scott decision
Douglas won reelection
Lincoln gained natl attention as
result of debates aided his
nomination in 1860
John Browns Raid
Radical abolitionist
Viewed himself as an angel of
God, avenging the evil of slavery
Goal: Violence towards slave
owners
Oct. 1859 Harpers Ferry, VA
(now W VA)
Planned to seize federal arsenal
w/ hopes of starting an armed
slave rebellion
What was John Browns fate?
Shoot-out w/ townspeople & U.S. forces
Brown captured, tried for treason & conspiracy
to cause a slave insurrection
Found guilty
Sent to gallows & executed
Dec. 2
nd


Reactions to John Browns raid
Northerners condemned Brown & thought
abolitionist activism had gone too far; some in
North called him a martyr

Southerners believed Brown had widespread
support in North esp. among Republicans; in
aftermath, rumors of abolitionist conspiracies
and slave insurrections spread in slave states
Significance of John Brown
Further alienated South & deepened divisions,
distrust & anger between N. and S.

Check Point
1. Which section of the nation celebrated the
Dred Scott decision and why?

2. What was John Browns plan?

3. What was John Browns fate?

4. How did Southerners react to Browns raid?
Election of 1860
Republicans A. Lincoln
opposed ext. of slavery
Democratic Party divided over slavery:
S. Democrats - J. Breckenridge (KY) pro-slavery
platform; federal govt must protect slavery
N. Democrats - S. Douglas supported popular
sovereignty & warned Lincolns election would split
nation
Constitutional Union John Bell federal govt should
support slavery & defend Union
Election Results
Lincoln won Electoral College & 39% of popular
vote; 18 free states (not on ballot in any Southern
state); won because Democratic Party divided

Breckinridge 2
nd
in electoral vote; swept all slave
states except VA, KY, TN (went to Bell)

Significance/ how did S states react? began
to secede from the U.S. (Union)
South Carolina succeeds 1
st
on Dec. 20, 1860

Confederacy Forms: by Feb 1, 1861,
7 states seceded: SC, MS, FL, AL, GA, LA, TX
Adopted constitution of Confederate States of America
(CSA); 1
st
Capitol: Montgomery, AL
Elected Jefferson Davis President
Buchanans reaction: no authority to prevent secession;
sympathized w/ South; no serious effort to resolve crisis
Lincolns reaction: conciliatory tone toward South;
announced intention to preserve the Union; did not believe
secession was legal; wanted to avoid violence

States Seceding After Ft. Sumter
Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, North Carolina
Capitol of Confederacy moved to Richmond, Va
Check Point
1. Who won the election of 1860?

2. How did Southern states react to his victory?

3. Where was the original capitol of the
Confederacy?

4. Which city became the capitol after Virginias
secession?
Last Chance: Crittenden Compromise
Dec, 1860 - Proposed by Sen John J. Crittenden

amendments & resolutions to reunite nation &
prevent war

failed to gain support of Congress
Ft. Sumter Falls:
Charleston, SC Apr. 12, 1861
Major Robert Andersons U.S. forces occupied fort
when S.C. seceded & were running low on supplies

Lincolns dilemma: try to resupply fort and risk
provoking South or let Southerners take the fort?

Lincolns action: notified S.C. he was sending
supplies to the fort food only, no weapons
Bombardment!!
The Civil War Begins at Fort Sumter
Southerners demanded surrender of fort
Forts commander refused
Confederates opened fire on fort Apr. 12, 1861
U.S. forces surrendered
This is considered the beginning of the war
Lincolns response: Apr. 15
th
declared
insurrection existed and called for 75,000
volunteers to fight against the Confederacy
Check Point
Where does the Civil War begin?