Download The Civil War Terms Compromise of 1850 Fugitive Slave Act of 1850

The Civil War Terms
Compromise of 1850
A negotiated settlement devised by Senator Henry Clay to defuse tensions building between
proslavery and antislavery political factions in congress. The compromise included the admission of
California into the Union as a free state, the passage of a strengthened fugitive slave law, and the
decision to delay the determination of the slave status of the New Mexico and Utah territories.
A negotiated settlement devised by Senator Henry Clay to defuse tensions building between
proslavery and antislavery political leaders. It included the admission of California into the Union as
a free state, a strengthened fugitive slave law, and a motion to delay the determination of the slave
status of the New Mexico and Utah territories.
Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, Fugitive Slave Act
A strengthened version of a law originally passed in 1793, this act was passed as part of the
Compromise of 1850. It gave the federal government authority—and in many ways forced federal
agents—to capture escaped slaves and prosecute anyone aiding runaways. The Act was profoundly
controversial in the North and aroused resentment among those who believed it solidified the
political power of southern slaveholders.
Missouri Compromise
Kentucky Senator Henry Clay proposed this deal in 1820 to resolve disputes between proslavery
and antislavery advocates in Congress. It granted admission to Missouri as a slave state along with
the offsetting entrance of Maine to the Union as a free state, and prohibited slavery in all territory
north of the southern border of Missouri. The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 effectively repealed this
compromise by lifting the ban on slavery north of the Missouri Compromise line.
Kentucky Senator Henry Clay proposed this deal in 1820 to resolve disputes between proslavery
and antislavery advocates in Congress. It granted admission to Missouri as a slave state, but to
offset this, Maine entered the Union as a free state, and slavery was prohibited in all territory north of
the southern border of Missouri. The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, in practice, repealed this
compromise.
Republican Party, Republicans
A political party created in 1854 by antislavery Whigs, Democrats, Free Soilers, and Know-Nothings
in response to the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act.
A political party founded in 1854 by antislavery Whigs, Democrats, Free Soilers, and Know-Nothings
in response to the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act.