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The Civil War: The Compromise Of 1850

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The Compromise of 1850 was an agreement that came about after certain events had taken place involving the United States. This compromise also lead to other major happenings in history. The aftermath of the Mexican American war confirmed that there must be a compromise relating to the territory which was obtained. Many other important and impactful events and laws also came from this compromise. These included The Fugitive Slave Act, The addition of California to the union as a free state and also, the addition of all of the territory gained from the success of the Mexican American War. Ultimately, the United States was divided by one thing, slavery. “The South held a pro-slavery identity that supported the expansion of slavery into western …show more content…

victory in the war” (Doctor Gayle Olson-Raymer). The Compromise “divided the remaining former Mexican holdings into two territories - New Mexico and Utah - where the question of slavery would be left to the people - popular sovereignty” (Doctor Gayle Olson-Raymer), and also brought California into the Union as a free state. With this addition of California, the balance of free and slave states was thrown off. There was uneven representation of the free and slave states because there were more free states. The compromise also brought the Fugitive Slave Act into play. The Fugitive Slave act essentially gave commissioners the “authority to ake and remove such fugitives from service or labor, under the restrictions herein contained, to the State or Territory from which such persons may have escaped or fled” (Fugitive Slave Act of 1850). If anyone was found guilty of not turning in a fugitive slave to authorities, they themselves were punished for not doing what was considered their “duty.” In the end, the Compromise of 1850 was based primarily on sectional conflict and came about through sectionalism or the selfish way of supporting what is best for one’s region of the Nation rather than what is best for the Nation as a whole. The Northern states wanted these new territories to be free, causing greater representation in government for the free states. On the other hand, The Southern States wanted the new territories to be slave territories, therefore, increasing their representation in

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