DBQ: Civil War Causes

2nd Great Awakening

A religious revival movement in 19th century that sought to reinvigorate American Christianity with personal piety and equal salvation

• Promoted social reform through abolition

Cotton Kingdom

An economic and cultural region in the South heavily reliant on cotton and hence slavery

• immense supporter of slavery and it's expansion

Uncle Tom's Cabin

A novel written by Harriet Beecher Stowe in 1852

• reshaped public opinion on slavery

• created high sentiment for abolition

• generated backlash from the South

Black Belt

Area in the South that had an extremely high concentration of African American slaves

• extremely critical in debate over expansion of slavery and states’ rights

Nat Turner's Rebellion

A significant slave rebellion led in Virginia which followed a series of violent attacks on slave-owners and their families

• increased national debate over the morality and future of slavery

• forced South to become even stricter about Slave Codes

Mason-Dixie Line

A boundary between Maryland and Pennsylvania that represented the political and cultural divide between Northern free states and Southern slave states

• polarized North and South increasing existing tensions

Lone Star Republic

A state that declared independence from Mexico and joined the United States in 1845

• their annexation increased debates over expanding slavery

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

treaty that ended the Mexico-American War and gave the extremely large Mexican Cession to United States

• one of the largest reasons for the intensifying debates over slavery’s expansion

• pushed the country into division

Popular Sovereignty

The belief that settlers of a new territory, namely Nebraska and Kansas, should be able to determine their own stance on slavery

• supported by Lewis Cass, Stephen A. Douglas

• caused intense debate and violence over slavery’s expansion

Fugitive Slave Law

Part of the Compromise of 1850 that strengthened laws for capturing and returning escaped enslaved individuals; those assisting them would be subject to punishment

• Created widespread resistance within Abolitionists

• Contributed to increased tensions and violence over slavery

Stephen A. Douglas

An American politician and senator from Illinois best known for his debate over the expansion of slavery, especially advocating for popular sovereignty

• crucial in the supporting Kansas-Nebraska act

• allowed for increased tensions between North and South, now so physical (violent)

Kansas-Nebraska Act

A piece of legislation that created the territories of Kansas and Nebraska and allowed them to utilize popular sovereignty to determine their stance on slavery

• facilitated physical confrontation over expansion of slavery (Bleeding Kansas)

• escalated to mini-war within Kansas (Bleeding Kansas)

The Crime Against Kansas

A famous speech by Senator Charles Sumner who condemned pro-slavery forces in Kansas and the South’s promotion of slavery

• caused Preston Brooks to beat Sumner senseless

  • sparked intense anti-slavery sentiment in the North

    • lit a fire within John Brown to get revenge (Pottawatomie Massacre)

  • sparked deep grudges in the South

John Brown

One of the most famous and extreme radical abolitionist who committed violent actions in the 1850s such as the Pottawatomie Massacre and Harpers Ferry in order to abolish slavery

• became a martyr for the Abolitionist cause, sparking abolitionist sentiments

• created fear in the South of lost of slavery, polarizing America

Election of 1860

A divisive election where Abraham Lincoln of the Republican Party won, setting the stage for the South to fracture

• led to South Carolina seceding in December of 1860

  • other states followed South Carolina

Confederate States of America

A new “country” formed by the Southern states in 1861 led by president Jefferson Davis, a former U.S. Senator and Secretary of War

• reflected all of the South’s grievances

• demonstrated the South’s absolute determination to secede and protect slavery

• marked the final step in starting the Civil War