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Causes of the Civil War

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Causes of the Civil War Causes of the Civil War 1-18-17 Trouble between the States North and South Divided: • Sectionalism: Exaggerated loyalty to one’s own area of the country rather than the nation. – Economy, weather, climate, vegetation, soil, and land regions were all different. • North = small farms, trade, and Industry. • South = slavery and the Plantation system. ***Both had slaves but the North outlawed the slave trade after the Revolution. Dominoes are Falling… Events leading to Secession: 1. Missouri Compromise of 1820 • By 1819, new settlements in the West created 22 states, 11 slave states and 11 free states. • A free State is a state that did not allow slavery; a Slave State allowed slavery to be legal. • In 1819, missouri applied for statehood as a slave state, disrupting representation in Congress and the Senate. • A compromise was made in 1820 by allowing Missouri to enter with Maine to keep the balance. • A imaginary line was drawn at the 36 North latitude at Missouri’s southern border. All territory to the north had to be free. • Southern states learned the importance of maintaining the balance of votes between slave and free states. • States’ Rights: States should have more rights/influence over Govt. than the country or Nation (SC over US). • Nullification: Refusal or failure of a US state to recognize or enforce (Nullify/Ignore) a federal law within its boundaries. • Secession: To formally leave or withdraw membership from an organization, alliance, or nation. 2. The Nullification Crisis • Argument between John C. Calhoun and Andrew Jackson over States’ Rights vs. a Strong National Government. • Dispute over a Protective tariff designed to taxes on imports to make foreign goods more expensive than goods produced in the US. • The Tariff benefited Northern industries, but prices for goods that SC purchased from either Northern or European businesses. The Nullification Crisis Homework Read pages 137-138 in the textbook (Stop at “The Bank War”) Answer the following questions as you read: 1. Why was South Carolina upset with the tariff of 1828? 2. What did John C. Calhoun encourage the people to do? 3. What did Jackson think of nullification? 4. What did Jackson do in response to South Carolina’s decision to nullify the tariff of 1828 and 1832? Did he have any support? Andrew Jackson v. John C. Calhoun 3. Tariff of 1832 • When Congress passed a new tariff in 1828, VP John C. Calhoun anonymously wrote the…South Carolina Exposition and Protest. – Claimed it was States Rights to declare laws unconstitutional and nullify/ignore it. • State was split into two Political Parties: – States’ Rights Party (Nullifiers) vs. Union Party (Unionists). • Nullifiers won control over the SC General Assembly and voted to reject/nullify a new Tariff in 1832 Crisis ends messy… • John C. Calhoun resigned from VP and became a US Senator to speak against the tariff and for Nullification. • President Jackson condemned attack of Federal/US law + urged Congress to pass a Force Bill. –Would send federal troops to SC to enforce the law. • Compromise: Congress lowered the tariff + SC repealed Nullification of the law. –SC did vote to nullify the Force Bill, which continued the issue of State’s Rights. Project ABC 4. Compromise of 1850 • Shortly after the Mexican-American War, gold was discovered in California and this created a rush! • In 1850, CA wanted to become a new state but this would disrupt the balance. A compromise was needed. • SC’s John C. Calhoun suggested an amendment to have a separate president for the north and south. • After debate, Congress adopted Henry Clay’s plan: – California would be a free state – NM and Utah territories are added with no plans for slavery – Slave Trade was ended in the District of Columbia – Texas Govt. was paid for war debt and land Fugitive Slave Law of 1850: • Made any Federal marshal or other official who did not arrest an alleged runaway slave liable to a fine of $1,000. (Slave catchers) • Law officials now had a duty to make arrests and it only took a sworn testimony of ownership. • Also angered the North because slave owners could trespass on their land! 5. Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 • Result of expansion to the West. Kansas territory was north of MO comp line and could not be slave. • Politicians wanted to build a railroad across Kansas and needed southern support to get it done (slavery). • Act would repeal/remove the MO Comp b/c it allowed Popular Sovereignty (people vote) to decide free/slave state for Kansas. • Controversy over the voting caused northern abolitionists and southern slave holders to move to Kansas to fight. – Caused event called “Bleeding Kansas” where both sides fought violently over the issue of slavery! Citizens voting to decide the issue of slavery. Caused fighting between free/slave voters in Kansas. 6. Dred Scott Decision 1857: • Dred Scott was slave whose master had taken him into free territory. – Abolitionists helped Scott sue his master for freedom claiming ‘once free, always free!’ • Supreme Court decided Slaves were not citizens and had no rights at all because they were considered Private property. • Declared that Congress could not pass acts such as MO Comp or Kansas-Nebraska that limited the expansion of slavery. – Such acts were unconstitutional or violated the law. • Northerners were outraged and declared Congress could not stop them from ending slavery! – SC favored the decision and accepted it as justification of slavery. The Final Straw: The Election of 1860 The Election of 1860: The Democratic National Convention, held in Charleston, SC, brought issues to the forefront: •Stephen Douglas supported a platform encouraging popular sovereignty(Voting) as the method to decide slavery in each state. •Fire-eaters wanted to protect the right to own slaves and said it could not be voted on . •Democrats decided to use Douglas’s plan, which caused delegates from the Deep South to storm out of the Convention in anger! 4 Candidates for President: 1. Stephen Douglas: Northern Democrat from MO who favored Popular Sovereignty. 2. John Breckinridge: Southern Democrat from KY with a platform to protect slavery in every state (Fire-Eater). 3. Abraham Lincoln: Republican from IL with a platform of Anti Slavery, a protective Tariff of Northern business and Railroads for Westward expansion (Free-Soil Party). 4. John Bell: Union Party Representative from TN in support of keeping the Union together at all costs. Results of the Election: ▪ Debate was heated as candidates traveled across the country for votes. When SC found that Lincoln would be elected, they threatened to cheat to steal votes. ▪ Results: ▪ Lincoln- 1.9 Mill mostly from the North ▪ Douglas- 1.4 Mill with support from all over the nation ▪ Breckenridge- 850,000 all from the South and SC ▪ Bell- 590,000 from KY/TN ▪ Electoral College (Max 303): *Lincoln- 180 *Bell 36 *Breckenridge- 72 *Douglas- 12 Impact of the Election • Abraham Lincoln was elected without winning support from any Southern states. • After the election, SC made plans to hold a Convention on Secession. • Date for the Convention on December 17, 1860. Local meetings were held throughout the state to either Secede/leave or remain United..
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