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Sectionalism and the Civil SECTIONALISM AND THE CIVIL WAR 11 Pages… SECTIONALISM When people favor the interests of one region over the interests of the country as a whole Tariffs Slavery Industry Uses of land Political Parties North vs. South A SPLITTING COUNTRY Various reasons and issues caused a rift in the country Tariffs: High tariffs helped the industrial North by making their prices cheaper against imports – made people buy American-made goods The South imported most non-agricultural goods, saw tariffs as a burden imposed by the North – their main trade partners were from Europe The West needed funding for roads, canals, railroads, etc. This was funded by the tariffs. NULLIFICATION CRISIS 1832 A very high tariff had split the country Vice President John Calhoun left office to go help his home state of South Carolina South Carolina considered the tariff null and void, threatened military action, and threatened to secede from the Union Henry Clay helped reach a John C. Calhoun compromise tariff Claimed that state Both sides backed down and conflict governments have the was avoided right to reject federal States’ Rights -Revolved around the laws. ability of a state to declare federal laws unconstitutional MISSOURI COMPROMISE 1820 Missouri was admitted to the Union as a slave state Maine was admitted as a free state Any new states above the Missouri Compromise line would be free states Maintain balance in the Senate A SPLITTING COUNTRY Slavery: North – illegal since the Revolution Abolitionist societies and newspapers – Underground Railroad Many didn’t know what was going on with African Americans South – slaves viewed as property Needed to maintain their way of life Considered a state’s right issue Many fugitive slaves West – fight over whether to extend slavery into the new territories AFRICAN AMERICANS Free African Americans could own property and had some rights Slaves had no rights at all Discrimination happened in all areas of the country HENRY DAVID THOREAU He disagreed with a country that had slavery and fought in wars His writing – Civil Disobedience – influenced many people to refuse to obey laws they considered unjust Martin Luther King Jr. would later use this philosophy DEBATE OVER SLAVERY Victory in the Mexican War in 1848 added more than 500,000 square miles to the U.S. This renewed the debate over the expansion of slavery Some northerners wanted to prohibit slavery in all parts of the Mexican Cession ELECTION OF 1848 Many candidates did not take a stance on slavery issues in the West This was in favor to Whig candidate Zachary Taylor – Mexican War hero Zachary Taylor 12th President 1849-1850 Whig COMPROMISE OF 1850 California gold rush caused a population spike that caused it to apply directly to be a state This raised the issue of whether to admit it as a free state or slave state – upset the balance Many Southerners were upset about it – Senator Jefferson Davis of Mississippi warned that they were about to permanently destroy the balance of power between the sections He and many others declared they would oppose the admission of California as a free state COMPROMISE OF 1850 Henry Clay, nicknamed “The Great Compromiser” and Daniel Webster stepped forward with another plan: -Urged Congress to let California enter as a free state -Called for the rest of the Mexican Cession to be organized as a federal territory – popular sovereignty should decide the status of slavery -Addressed a border dispute between Texas and New Mexico – Texas gave up land – in exchange for US paying off their debt. -Called for an end to slave trade – not slavery- in the country’s capital -Called for a new, more effective fugitive slave law DANIEL WEBSTER Known as the “Great Orator” Worked to create compromises with the southern states that would delay the start of the Civil War COMPROMISE OF 1850 This was the last time a compromise worked (Henry Clay died in 1852.) THE FUGITIVE SLAVE ACT Required the return of escaped slaves to their owners Made it a federal crime to help runaway slaves This pleased the South, but angered the North because they felt it was immoral DEATH OF ANOTHER PRESIDENT Zachary Taylor died suddenly after 16 months in office His successor was Millard Fillmore Millard Fillmore 13th President Last Whig to be president 1850-1853 FRANKLIN PIERCE 14th President Democrat 1853-1857 TROUBLE IN KANSAS People wanted to build a railroad to the Pacific In order to do so, the rest of the Louisiana Purchase had to be organized into federal territories In 1854 Stephen Douglas introduced what became the Kansas-Nebraska Act KANSAS-NEBRASKA ACT This would divide the rest of the Louisiana Purchase into two territories – Kansas and Nebraska In each territory popular sovereignty would decide the question of slavery This did away with the Missouri Compromise line Anti-slavery Northerners were outraged President Pierce was a supporter of this act and got it signed into law Many issues start popping up in Kansas as pro and anti- slavery groups rushed in to vote on the issue of slavery Fights between different groups “Bleeding Kansas” REPUBLICAN PARTY One effect of this bill was to kill off the Whig party who was wishy- washy on the subject of slavery In its place came the Republican Party, which was strongly against the spread of slavery Supported the Union JAMES BUCHANAN 15th President Democrat 1857-1861 DRED SCOTT V. SANFORD Dred Scott was a slave owned by John Sanford He traveled with John Sanford throughout the northern part of the Louisiana Purchase When he returned he sued John Sanford for his freedom claiming he had been living in free lands The Supreme Court decided Scott could not be heard in federal courts because he was not a citizen of the U.S. and therefore had no protection under the Constitution Congress had no authority over slavery in the territories SCOTT V. SANFORD This court case confirmed slaves as property and cannot bring cases to federal court Upon statehood each territory would determine whether or not it would be a slave state or a free state The South favored the decision, Roger Taney Supreme Court Justice but the North did not Appointed by Andrew Jackson This caused further tension between the North and the South SCOTT V. SANFORD A Constitutional amendment would later be passed which completely outlawed slavery This could be considered a response from Congress to the ruling in the case ABRAHAM LINCOLN 16th President Republican 1861-1865 He did not win a single Southern state’s electoral vote. BREAKING THE UNION Many southern states believed that once in power, Lincoln would move to abolish slavery Just four days after Lincoln’s election South Carolina’s legislature called a special convention They were considering secession After three days of speeches all delegates voted to secede LINCOLN’S FIRST INAUGURAL ADDRESS Equality – promised to not interfere with the rights of states and the institution of slavery The Union – argued that the Union could not be dissolved The Government – stated it was against the law to secede from the Union Liberty – “I have no purpose, directly or indirectly, to interfere with the institution of slavery in the states where it exists. I believe I have no lawful right to do so, and I have no inclination to do so.” CONFEDERATE STATES OF AMERICA By February, 1861 Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas had also seceded from the Union They established a new nation – The Confederate States of America They passed their own constitution, closely resembling the U.S. Constitution except that citizens could own slaves JEFFERSON DAVIS Elected president of the Confederate States of America – 1861 His inaugural address states that the secession of the Southern states was similar to the colonists’ revolution against Britain Claimed that secession was a “necessity, not a choice.” JEFFERSON DAVIS Equality – Slaves were not even viewed as an issue of equality The Union – Davis explained breaking away was a “necessity” if they were to continue to engage in commerce with the rest of the world The Government – Similar to the U.S. government Liberty – Contrasting Lincoln’s discussion of liberty for individual people Rights of person and property have not been disturbed Jefferson Davis’ inauguration Alabama State Capital THE CIVIL WAR 1861-1865 CAUSES OF THE CIVIL WAR Sectionalism: Loyalty to local interests instead of national concerns Three different cultural and business practices were happening in our country – North – South – West North – manufacturing and commerce, capital was invested in factories and transportation South – cash-crop, capital was invested in slaves and overseas markets West – depended on cheap land for expansion and good transportation networks to keep in touch with eastern businesses CAUSES OF THE CIVIL WAR State’s Rights: The political position advocating a strict interpretation of the Constitution The South turned to a states’ rights argument to protect slavery Southerners claimed that the federal government was prohibiting their 10th Amendment right Southerners also said the federal government was not permitted to interfere with slavery in those states it already existed Southern states thought they had the right to secede Issues: Right to own slaves as property and federal tariffs CAUSES OF THE CIVIL WAR Slavery: First began in Virginia during the Colonial era Throughout the first half of the 19th century Southern politicians sought to defend slavery by retaining control of the federal government The North
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