Untitled Flashcards Set

Position of African Americans in the early 19th century

African Americans faced systemic racism, enslavement in the South, limited rights, and discrimination in the North, despite some free African Americans advocating for rights.

The impact of abolitionist movements

Abolitionist movements aimed to end slavery and promote equality, with figures like Frederick Douglass and William Lloyd Garrison advocating for African American rights.

The role of the Underground Railroad

A network that helped enslaved African Americans escape to free states, symbolizing resistance against slavery.

The Missouri Compromise (1820)

An agreement that admitted Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state, maintaining balance in Congress and highlighting sectional tensions.

The Compromise of 1850

A series of laws aimed at resolving territorial disputes over slavery, it included the controversial Fugitive Slave Act.

The Fugitive Slave Act

Part of the Compromise of 1850, it mandated the return of runaway slaves to their owners, leading to increased tensions between North and South.

Harriet Tubman

An escaped slave who became a key figure in the Underground Railroad, helping hundreds of enslaved people to freedom.

The Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854)

Legislation that allowed states to determine their own slavery status, leading to violent conflict known as 'Bleeding Kansas'.

John Brown's Raid (1859)

An attempted uprising to abolish slavery through armed insurrection, highlighting radical opposition to slavery.

Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857)

A Supreme Court case ruling that African Americans were not U.S. citizens and had no standing to sue, further inflaming sectional conflict.

The Election of 1860

Abraham Lincoln's election as president prompted Southern states to secede, viewing his anti-slavery stance as a threat to their way of life.

Secession of Southern States

The withdrawal of eleven Southern states from the Union following Lincoln's election, directly leading to the Civil War.

Immediate Causes of the Civil War

Tensions resulting from issues such as slavery, states' rights, and sectionalism culminated in the outbreak of war in 1861.