DCUSH Week 14

Wilmot Proviso

1846 proposal that outlawed slavery in any territory gained from the War with Mexico

Popular Sovereignty

A belief that ultimate power resides in the people

Free Soil Party

a political party formed in 1848 to oppose the extension of slavery into U.S. territories

Compromise of 1850

Agreement designed to ease tensions caused by the expansion of slavery into western territories; 1)admitted CA as a free state 2)fugitive slave act passed

Fugitive Slave Act

A law that made it a crime to help runaway slaves; allowed for the arrest of escaped slaves in areas where slavery was illegal and required their return to slaveholders

Uncle Tom's Cabin

a novel published by harriet beecher stowe in 1852 which portrayed slavery as brutal and immoral

Kansas Nebraska Act

a law that allowed voters in Kansas and Nebraska to choose whether to allow slavery

Stephen Douglas

A moderate, who introduced the Kansas-Nebraska Act in 1854 and popularized the idea of popular sovereignty; senator from illinois

"Bleeding Kansas"

A sequence of violent events involving abolitionists and pro-Slavery elements that took place in Kansas-Nebraska Territory. The dispute further strained the relations of the North and South, making civil war imminent.

Lincoln Douglas Debates

series of debates between Abraham Lincoln (accused of being abolitionist) and Stephen Douglas(accused of wanting to nationalize slavery) over the issue of slavery

John Brown's Raid on Harper's Ferry

John Brown's failed scheme to invade the South w/ armed slaves, backed by sponsoring, N. abolitionists; seized the fed. arsenal; Brown & remnants were caught by Robert E. Lee and the US Marines; Brown was hanged; South feared danger if it stayed in Union

Crittenden Compromise

offered a Constitutional amendment recognizing slavery in the territories south of the Missouri comp. line, noninterference by Congress with existing slavery, and compensation to the owners of fugitive slaves - defeated by Republicans

Attack on Ft. Sumter (1861)

The civil war begins when the Confederacy fires on this fort

Causes of the Civil War

-Sectionalism

-States' rights

-Slavery

Death of the Missouri Compromise

California applied for statehood after the population boom caused by the california gold rush, this messed up the balance between slave and free states and ended the Missouri compromise

Conscious Whigs vs. Cotton Whigs

Conscious whigs were the anti-slavery opposers to Andrew Jackson while cotton whigs supported slavery

Formation of the Republican Party

Whigs and Northern Democrats who despised Kansas/ Nebraska Policy formed a new party, some northern abolitionists and free soilers joined, this party was the more liberal of the two

Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857)

The Supreme Court concluded that the U.S. Congress lacked the constitutional authority to ban slavery in the territories, this decision narrowed the scope of national power, while it enhanced that of the states

Rodger B. Taney

Supreme Court Chief Justice who handed down the Dred Scott decision

Slavery and the 5th Ammendment

In the Dred Scott case Taney said slaves are property, this amendment guarantees access to property; congress can no longer limit access to slaves

Election of 1860

Lincoln, the Republican candidate, won because the Democratic party was split over slavery. As a result, the South no longer felt like it has a voice in politics and a number of states seceded from the Union.

Abraham Lincoln

16th President of the United States saved the Union during the Civil War and emancipated the slaves; was assassinated by Booth (1809-1865)

Secession of the Lower South

worked closely with President Lincoln to lead the union army to victory over the Confederacy

Confederate States of America

A republic formed in February of 1861 and composed of the eleven Southern states that seceded from the United States

Jefferson Davis

An American statesman and politician who served as President of the Confederate States of America for its entire history from 1861 to 1865

Border States

in the civil war the states between the north and the south: delaware, mayland, kentucky, and missouri

John Brown

An abolitionist who attempted to lead a slave revolt by capturing Armories in southern territory and gave weapons to slaves, was hung in Harpers Ferry after capturing an Armory

Pottawattamie Massacre

John Brown kills slavery supporters in Bleeding Kansas

Bleeding Sumner

Charles Sumner was attacked because of a speech that he made against proslavery forces in Kansas