Download • What factors made slavery in the United States an issue before

GOAL 3
The Politics of Slavery
Slavery in the United States
• Many southerners believed their economy depended on slave labor.
• Those who supported slavery believed that property rights came first.
• After winning the Mexican-American War, the United States added more than 500,000 square miles of new
territory.
• Now some antislavery activists wanted to ban slavery in the new territory. Others, mainly southerners,
wanted to allow slavery there.
• When California applied to become a state in 1850, the number of free states and slave states were equal. The
balance of political power was about to change.
The Compromise of 1850
California applies: for statehood, bringing the issue of slavery to the surface.
• Five laws were passed based on Clay’s resolutions, forming the Compromise of 1850.
The Fugitive Slave Act- made it a federal crime to assist runaway slaves. The law also allowed the arrest of escaped
slaves in states where slavery was illegal.
• The law was openly resisted in the North
• Harriett Beecher Stowe published in an enormously successful novel called Uncle Tom’s Cabin. The
book outraged many southerners and raised tensions over slavery to a new height.
The Kansas-Nebraska Act
• A proposed railroad connecting California to the rest of the nation was a dividing issue. Southerners wanted
New Orleans as the eastern end, Douglas favored Chicago, but the northern route land had to be officially
opened for settlement by the government.
• Douglas proposed organizing the Kansas and Nebraska Territories, where the issue of slavery would be
settled by popular sovereignty. Southern senators demanded the bill end the Missouri Compromise’s limits
on slavery.
Reactions in the North and South
The North’s reaction
• northern Whigs (Conscience Whigs) opposed slavery on moral grounds. Other Whigs in the North and the
South (Cotton Whigs) strongly supported slavery. The two groups refused to work together.
Rise of the Republican Party
• Free Soil Party was formed in 1848 by some northern Whigs and Democrats, and members of the antislavery
Liberal Party.
• The name was taken because opposition to the spread of slavery was its main issue. People of all political
parties who opposed slavery’s spread were called free-soilers.
• The Republican Party was formed from a meeting of the Free-Soil Party, northern Whigs, and others in
response to the Kansas-Nebraska Act.
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What factors made slavery in the United States an issue before 1850?
How did the Compromise of 1850 seek to settle issues between North and South?
In what ways did the North and South each hope to benefit from the Kansas-Nebraska Act?
How did people in the North and South react to the Kansas-Nebraska Act?
Sectional Conflicts and National Politics
The Struggle for Kansas
• Many acts of slavery-related lawlessness plagued Kansas Territory. By 1856 the territory was being called
“Bleeding Kansas.” A civil war broke out in Kansas. Large bands of pro-slavery and antislavery forces
roamed the territory.
• pro-slavery and free-soil forces soon were fighting for control.
• Each side tried to control the territory’s elections and, later, a vote on a state constitution.
• Emigrant groups from both sides flooded into the territory in an effort to establish or prevent slavery.
• Settlement of the slavery issue by popular sovereignty did not require settlers to vote on whether to allow it.
Instead, the question was settled indirectly, electing a territorial legislature that would then pass laws on the
subject.
• Voter fraud occurred in the November 1854 election to choose the territory’s delegate to Congress,
the legislature met, quickly passed a strict slave code into law. Free-soilers refused to accept the new
legislature, electing an antislavery governor and legislature of their own. By 1856, there were two
governments claiming to be the legal government of Kansas.
• A pro-slavery posse rode into Lawrence to arrest these leaders, looting and destroying much of the town.
• John Brown was a committed abolitionist who went to Kansas, settling in a free-soil town there.
• Brown sought bloody revenge. dragged five pro-slavery settlers out of their cabins and executed them. This
act became known as the Pottawatomie Massacre.
• Violence over Kansas spread to Congress. Sumner of Massachusetts, directing vicious remarks at Andrew
Butler of South Carolina, Representative Preston Brooks, Butler’s nephew, attacked Sumner, beating him
with a heavy walking stick until Sumner collapsed.
The Election of 1856
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Buchanan won the election for two reasons. Immigrant populations in the North were repelled by
the Know-Nothings’ nativism, and the Democrats painted the Republicans as extremists on the
slavery issue.
Buchanan’s Presidency
The Dred Scott decision
• the Supreme Court ruled against Dred Scott, a slave who sued for his freedom with the argument that by
living where slavery was illegal, he had become free.
• Southerners saw the Dred Scott decision as a victory.
• Northerners feared that slavery could now not be banned in any territory.
John Brown’s Raid
• John Brown and 21 followers attacked a U.S. arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia.
– Planning to use the guns to arm a slave revolt
– Brown and his surviving followers were tried; all were sentenced to hang.
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Why did popular sovereignty lead to violent struggle in Kansas?
In what ways did the presidential election of 1856 illustrate the nation’s growing division?
What events of Buchanan’s presidency further divided the nation?
Why was John Brown’s raid on Harpers Ferry an important event in American history?
Lincoln’s Path to the White House
Lincoln and Douglas Clash
Lincoln returns
• Lincoln helped organize the Illinois Republican Party in 1856.
• taking the most radical stance against slavery with the prediction “A house divided against itself cannot stand.”
• Lincoln-Douglas debates- The debates were a series of public meetings
• The Freeport Doctrine
- Lincoln challenged Douglas to explain how people could use popular sovereignty to keep slavery
out of a place when the Dred Scott decision had said they could not.
-Douglas’s reply came to be known as the Freeport Doctrine. “If the people are opposed to slavery they
will elect representatives to that body who will by unfriendly legislation . . . prevent the introduction of
it into their midst.”
- Lincoln stressed the immorality of slavery in the debates.
- Backed into a corner, Lincoln said, “I will say that I am not, nor have ever been in favor of bringing about in
any way the social and political equality of the white and black races.”
The Debates’ Significance
• Douglas retained his Senate seat
• Douglas’s statements caused him to lose support of southern Democrats,
• Lincoln’s moderate positions increased his standing among northerners, but southerners still thought Lincoln
was a serious threat to slavery
The Election of 1860
• The Democratic convention- Southern Democrats wanted to block Douglas’s nomination and a party
platform protecting slavery. Northern Democrats supported Douglas and popular sovereignty. Southern
Democrats split and later nominated John C. Breckinridge.
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The Republican convention- The Republicans settled on Lincoln as the candidate with the most strengths
and the fewest weaknesses.
• How did Lincoln’s personal views on slavery differ from his political position on the subject?
• How did the Lincoln-Douglas debates benefit Lincoln’s political career?
The South Secedes
Secession!
The states break apart
• South Carolina became the first state to secede, followed within months by Mississippi, Florida, Alabama,
Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas.
Northern response
• Some felt the Union was better off with the slave states gone;
• others worried about the long-term effects of letting secession proceed. President Lincoln agreed, saying that
no state could get out of the Union without the consent of the other states.
Forming the Confederacy
• Jefferson Davis as provisional president.
• The new constitution recognized and protected slavery
• named their new nation the Confederate States of America.
Lincoln’s Inauguration- offered assurances that he would not interfere with the institution of slavery in the South.
• What led to the secession of the states of the Lower South from the Union?
• How and why was the Confederacy formed?
The Civil War
Preparing for War
The Fall of Fort Sumter
• The attack on the fort- Davis ordered a surprise attack before the supplies could arrive.
• Fort Sumter surrendered the next day.
The Border States
Delaware, Kentucky, Maryland, & Missouri
• These divided loyalties meant citizens fought on both sides
Goals and Strategies
Union Goals
• War could not center around the dispute over slavery—border states pushed to secede
• Fight for patriotic reasons—to save the Union
Confederate Goals
• South wanted to be left alone with slavery unchanged
• Prepared to defend themselves against invasion
• Felt northerners would soon tire of war and withdraw
The North’s Strategy
• Larger population = more available soldiers
• With more factories, could produce war supplies
• General Winfield Scott’s plan—slowly seal the South off from the rest of the world—Anaconda plan
The South’s Strategy
• Ardent support for the cause made up for lack of resources
• Fighting for freedom and their homeland—¾ of the population did not hold slaves
• They were convinced of their military superiority— many army officers were southerners.
• Ardent support for the cause made up for lack of resources
• Fighting for freedom and their homeland—¾ of the population did not hold slaves
• They were convinced of their military superiority— many army officers were southerners.
• Southerners were convinced that France and Great Britain wanted a guaranteed supply of cotton and counted
on this cotton diplomacy as a foreign-policy tool. Cotton diplomacy failed. Both sides continued to try to
gain/block foreign involvement throughout the conflict
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How did the fall of Fort Sumter lead to war?
Why did many northerners and southerners eagerly rush to war?
Why was the loyalty of the border states important, and how did Lincoln obtain it?
What were the Union and Confederate goals and strategies for the war?
Fighting Erupts
The Major Battles Begin
• First Battle of Bull Run- ended hope for a short war.
• General McClellan- Hesitant commander, Fought a series of battles on the peninsula but always delayed
action,
• Smaller Confederate forces more effective and led by better commanders
The Union Is Invaded
• Battle of Antietam- Lincoln’s order to “destroy the rebel army” was ignored. McClellan allowed the
rebels to retreat into Virginia. He was relieved of command.
The War behind the Lines
The Emancipation Proclamation
• No longer about just saving the Union
• It freed the slaves in all areas in rebellion against the U.S.
• Abolitionists were upset slavery continued in the Union. It freed the slaves in all areas in rebellion
against the U.S. With war now about ending slavery, Britain would side with the Union.
• African Americans and the War- The 54th Massachusetts Infantry was the most famous unit.
• Prison camps- Most notorious camps—Andersonville and Elmira
Life on the Home Front
• Southern Home Front- Shortages, few factories, and food production dropped because of war.
• Copperheads and the Union Draft- No shortages, but the Union needed to draft more soldiers,
Antidraft riots fueled an existing antiwar movement, called Peace Democrats by supporters,
Copperheads by critics.
Women in the Civil War
• Southern Women- Spied , volunteer nurses
• Northern Women- teachers went south to educate former slaves after the war, nurses
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How did the Emancipation Proclamation affect the Civil War?
How did African Americans contribute to the war effort?
What was life like in the military?
What similarities and differences existed on the home front in the North and South?
The War Continues
The Civil War at Sea
The Monitor and the Merrimac
• Confederates hoped to destroy the Union blockade with a captured Union ironclad ship, the Merrimack,
rebuilt and renamed the Virginia.
• Union attacked with new vessel, the Monitor. The first battle between ironclads had no winner, but it
changed naval warfare.
Three Major Battles
Battle of Chancellorsville
The Battle of Gettysburg
• Half the men in Pickett’s Charge perished, and Lee finally gave up the fight and retreated back to Virginia.
The Siege of Vicksburg- Mississippi surrendered as well.
The Final Phase
Grant versus Lee
General Ulysses S. Grant
• Lincoln gave him command of Union armies
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Ordered Sherman to “get into the interior of the enemy’s country as far as you can and inflict all the damage
you can against their war resources” Sherman won the Battle of Atlanta and laid siege to Atlanta’s
defenses.
General Robert E. Lee
• Lee planned to make the cost of fighting so high for the North that Lincoln would lose the upcoming
election.
The War Comes to an End
Surrender at Appomattox
• Lee and Grant-Lee decided to surrender.
• Lee’s troops merely had to turn over their weapons and leave.
• What tactics did Grant use against Lee to change the course of the war?
• How did the election of 1864 affect Confederate hopes for victory in the Civil War?
• How did the actions of Sherman and Grant help bring the war to an end?
Plans for Reconstruction
The South after the War
Property losses
Challenges for African Americans
• Had gained freedom, but had no money and little if any education. The poor economy made job prospects
bleak.
• They wanted educational and economic opportunities.
Freedmen’s Bureau was created in March 1865 to help southern refugees and freed slaves.
Lincoln hoped to treat the South “with malice toward none and charity toward all.”
Reconstruction Plans
Lincoln’s Plan
• The Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction, December 1863, gave forgiveness to those who pledged
Union loyalty and support for emancipation.
• When 10 percent of voters had taken the oath, a new state government could be organized. The new
government was required to ban slavery.
Opposition
• Congress refused to allow members from the states readmitted under Lincoln’s plan to be seated.
Congress Makes a Plan
• Wade-Davis Bill- A majority of white male citizens would be required to take a loyalty oath before elections
could be held.
• Lincoln killed the bill using a pocket veto,
Lincoln’s Assassination
• Lincoln was shot at Ford’s Theater
• John Wilkes Booth
Johnson and Congress Differ over Reconstruction
• Johnson’s plan added to Lincoln’s list of exceptions. Wealthy southerners would have to apply for pardons
• What challenges faced the South after the Civil War?
• What actions did Union leaders take during wartime to reconstruct the nation after the war’s
end?
• How did Lincoln’s assassination affect the nation?
Congressional Reconstruction
Reconstruction under President Johnson
• Johnson pardoned nearly everyone who applied, and prewar leaders were restored to power. Congress
refused to seat these former Confederates.
• The Black Codes- Designed to keep freedmen in slavelike conditions
• White citizens formed private groups, supposedly to keep order in the South. The Ku Klux Klan formed in
1866 and soon began terrorizing African Americans and whites who were loyal to the Union. Violence
against blacks was rarely prosecuted.
Congress Takes Control of Reconstruction
• Radical Republicans -They wanted freed slaves to have economic opportunities and political equality.
• Congress passed the Fourteenth Amendment- granting citizenship
• the southern states under U.S. military control and required them to draft new constitutions.
• Tenure of Office Act in March 1867 to keep Johnson from using his power as commander in chief to
interfere with Reconstruction.
Johnson’s impeachment
• The House of Representatives voted to impeach Johnson for violating the Tenure of Office Act.
• The Senate failed to convict by one vote, and Johnson remained in office.
The Fifteenth Amendment
• Republicans pushed through the Fifteenth Amendment, which extended suffrage to all African American
males nationwide.
• the African American vote in the South gave Grant an electoral college victory.
• How did the South respond to Reconstruction under President Johnson?
• Why did Congress take control of Reconstruction, and what changes did it make?
• How did Radical Reconstruction differ from earlier Reconstruction plans, and what were its
effects?
Republicans in Charge
Republican Government Brings Change to the South
Scalawags
• name given to southerners who supported the shift in power to Congress and the army.
• Some joined the Republicans to prevent the planter class from returning to power; others were southerners
ruined by the war; still others wanted to end the dependence on plantation agriculture.
Carpetbaggers
• northerners who came south to take part in the region’s political and economic rebirth. Many bought
abandoned land cheaply or formed partnerships with planters
African Americans in government
• Forming the largest group of Republican voters in the South
• served in southern state legislatures during Reconstruction
Life after Slavery for African Americans
• churches became centers of community life.
Reconstruction and Land Ownership
Southern Homestead Act- Congress passed a law setting aside 45 million acres of government-owned land to
provide free farms.
New labor system
• sharecropping system the employer provided the land, tools, seed—basically everything but the labor.
• tenant farming, renting the land they farmed from the landowner
Industrial growth- textile mills,
• What changes did Republican government bring to the South?
• What was life after slavery like for African Americans?
• How did Reconstruction affect patterns of land ownership and land use in the South?
Reconstruction Collapses
Problems with Reconstruction
Terrorist Groups
• The KKK and similar organizations wanted to restore the old political order.
• Their methods included threats, house burnings, and killings against not only blacks but whites as well.
The End of Reconstruction
The election of 1876
• The presidential election was disputed with charges of massive voting fraud. With the Compromise of 1877
Republicans agreed to withdraw federal troops in the South, and in return, Rutherford B. Hayes became
president.
Reconstruction’s Legacy
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The 14th and 15th Amendments began permanent changes across the United States. Former slaves were now
citizens with voting rights.
The New South was becoming industrial, but in many ways it remained the same. White southerners deeply
resented that the federal government controlled their states.
after Reconstruction ended, the South was know as the Solid South, always voting Democratic. It was not
until the 1970s that the Republican Party was able to gain ground in the South.
• What problems caused support for Reconstruction to decline?
• What events brought Reconstruction to an end?
• What was Reconstruction’s legacy for the South and for the rest of the nation?