Many events occurred leading up to the Civil War, that divided the nation and would cause long term effects on the country. Debates, discriminatory encounters, and political disputes were all contributors to the downfall of the nation before the Civil War. The Constitution, secession, and the Inaugural Address also threatened the unity of the country. The Missouri crisis was more or less the turning point of the country and provided a reason for disunion to be in the future. There was an argument over whether Missouri would be a slave state or a free state. This issue threatened disunion and civil war. However, after deliberation, Congress passed the Missouri Compromise. It stated that “in the newly acquired Louisiana Territory, slavery would
In the years leading up to the Civil War, the Nation struggled to resolve many different sectional issues. These issues and conflicts produced a distinct series of crises and subsequent compromises made in attempts to unify the nation. Nevertheless, the pre-Civil War compromises from 1820 to 1860 only contributed to growing tensions over slave states’ rights. The first compromise of the 1800s that contributed to growing tensions over slaver and states’ rights would have to be the Missouri Compromise of 1820.
I don’t think that the Missouri Compromise dealt with the sectional conflict over slavery. Even with many of the people upset with the compromise congress went ahead and passed it or shove it out of the way. The Missouri Compromise did nothing but intensified the conflict over slavery between the North and the South taking away the grip of the Northern states. Missouri was considered a slave state, making it so the north could outlaw slavery above the 36° 30° line and the south expanded their region of slavery. The Missouri Compromise split the democratic republican alliance which held most of national politics for about twenty years.
Then the very thing both sides were looking for happened. The first chunk of land was taken out of the Louisiana purchase, and that land was invaluable to both sides. Acquiring the land would mean tipping the odds in their favor for both sides. But on the other side of this the land would have created an imbalance in the states, which would have led to a larger conflict, and perhaps a fight. Then the idea which would later become the missouri compromise was set on the table.
Missouri Compromise The Missouri Compromise was the effort of Congress to end the sectional and political rivalries triggered by the request of Missouri late in 1819 for admission as a state in which slavery would be permitted. The Missouri Compromise happened in 1820. It is important because Congress passed a bill granting Missouri statehood as a slave state under the condition that it was to be forever prohibited in the rest of the Louisiana Purchase. Henry Clay, John Quincy Adams, and James Tallmadge were involved in the Missouri Compromise.
So, in 1820, Henry Clay instigated the Missouri Compromise, the third critical event that led to the coming of the American Civil War. Missouri would be added as a slave state, but with that, a piece of Massachusetts, Maine, would be broken off and enter the union as a free state to ensure the balance. With this, a line was also drawn along the southern border of Missouri at the 36°30′ parallel and went across the remainder of the United States to the Pacific Ocean. This line divided the north and south literally as to where slavery was allowed and where it was not. This created greater diversity from the two sides and wedged the gap that was beginning to grow far wider.
Between the creation of the Constitution and the Civil War, there was a period of implementation . In this period the Bill of Rights were ratified. During the years that followed and before the Civil War, there were a variety of “constitutional” violations and interpretations. For example, we read of John Adams who created a military without a Congressional declaration of war.
The growing tension between proslavery and antislavery with the United States had the nation divided by sectional differences regarding slavery. At the time there were twenty two states in the U.S. which were evenly divided between free and slaves states. So when the State of Missouri requested to be admitted as a slave state conflict arose. This meant that the balance of free and slave states would be disrupted and the clash of whether Missouri should be a free or slave would be put before the North and South. As expected, The North and the South turned to a bitter debate.
The issue was settled in 1820 with the Missouri Compromise which prohibited slavery north of the 36°30’ border of the Arkansas territory. The compromise set the precedent that for every new slave state accepted into the Union, a new free state must be established as well. Furthermore, the compromise was a clear recognition that Congress had no right to impose upon a state asking for admission into the Union conditions which do not apply to those states already in the Union. Yet, this only delayed the inevitable and served as a “quick-fix” solution. Thomas Jefferson, himself, wrote in a letter to John Holmes that the division of the country created by the Compromise line would eventually lead to the destruction of the Union.
With the increasingly polarizing debates and discussions surrounding slavery as the Civil War approached, the North and South were at a breaking point. Abraham Lincoln's election into office, the Dred Scott decision, and Bleeding Kansas brought the country at odds with itself and many people believed that this problem could only be solved through violence and division. When Abraham Lincoln was elected to be the President of the United States, the South was aggravated and not willing to have a president that did not share their opinions on slavery. Because Lincoln was so outspoken against the institution of slavery, the South felt directly attacked. Their way of life since slavery was introduced was threatened.
The Civil War, from 1861-1864, was a collection of brutal battles between the North and South as a result of their sectional differences. Although the North won the military victory against the South, the South was able to keep many of its policies in place after the Civil War. During the Reconstruction Period, 1865-1877, it was evident that the South won the Civil War in many ways because of their political and social policies that they implemented or kept in place. While the 13th through 15th amendments changed social issues for a period of time in the South by allowing more opportunities and rights for former slaves, the South continued their social dominance over black people. Also, politically, near the beginning of Reconstruction and
The great Civil War that engulfed the United States in 1861 resulted from a fundamental cleavage between its two most powerful sections, North and South. (Reid: 88) Prior to the American Civil War there were significant differences between the Northern and the Southern States in terms of social, economic and political preferences. The Industrial Revolution transported from Great Britain to the Northern States fueled this dichotomy. The society in the North was industrializing and urbanizing, creating a suitable environment for entrepreneurship and improved job opportunities. In addition, the enormous expansion of the railroad network, new means of communication and the politics of economic liberalization contributed to the formation of
A War by Another Name A Fractured Union would be a better name for the American Civil War. This name demonstrates that the main cause of the war was run away slaves, Lincoln’s election and the Emancipation Proclamation. A Fractured Union would be a better name for the Civil War because the Union used to be made of the North and the South but then it split. It split between the North and the South states; between states that support slavery and states that are against slavery.
Student’s Name Professor’s Name Course Date Did the United States at the end of the Civil War represent the culmination of the Revolution or betrayal of the Revolution or an entirely different type of nation than one could have imagined at the Revolution? Introduction The Civil War that took place in the United States of America is an etched in people’s mind and experience in nation’s historical consciousness.
The Civil War is the bloodiest battle in American History. Some people would like to think that if things were done differently beforehand that the outcome would be less detrimental. I like to think it all played out in a certain way for a reason. Many of the preceding events had a great influence on the war itself. Moreover, the most impactful conflicts prior to the war consist of the Compromise of 1850, the raid on Harpers Ferry, and the Battle of Fort Sumter.
However, the Missouri Compromise caused some problems. The compromise equaled the concerns and interests in the North and South, but the South was upset about how Congress gave itself the power to create and pass laws dealing with slavery. Much of the North was upset because Congress let slavery spread into another state. There were people who didn’t want to compromise, and others who did, such as Henry Clay.