AP US History LEQ Info

Mexican-American War

Sparked by the annexation of Texas and a border dispute; resulted in the massive Mexican Cession (California, Southwest) through the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo.

Bleeding Kansas

Violent guerrilla war between pro-slavery and anti-slavery settlers after the Kansas-Nebraska Act, a precursor to the Civil War.

Compromise of 1850

Complex deal including: California as a free state, stronger Fugitive Slave Act, popular sovereignty in Utah/New Mexico, and the end of the DC slave trade.

Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857)

Supreme Court ruling that Congress had no authority to ban slavery in territories (making the Missouri Compromise unconstitutional) and that Black people were not citizens.

Emancipation Proclamation

Changed the war's purpose to include ending slavery, prevented European recognition of the Confederacy, and authorized enlistment of Black soldiers.

Ten Percent Plan

Proposed by Abraham Lincoln, which presented a lenient path for Southern states to rejoin the Union

Andrew Johnson

The 17th President who oversaw Presidential Reconstruction; he was the first president to be impeached after clashing with Congress over civil rights.

13th Amendment

Formally abolished slavery.

14th Amendment

Granted citizenship to all persons born in the U.S. and guaranteed "equal protection of the laws".

15th Amendment

Prohibited denying the right to vote based on race or color.

Black Codes

Restrictive laws passed by Southern states to control and disenfranchise African Americans.

California Gold Rush

Rapid population growth led California to seek statehood as a free state, forcing the Compromise of 1850