Wilmot Proviso and Texas-Mexico Compromise (Chapter 4)

What was the Wilmot Proviso?

A proposal by David Wilmot in 1846 to prohibit slavery in any territory acquired from Mexico, becoming a central point of sectional conflict.

What specific grievances drove the Wilmot Proviso among Northern Democrats?

Concerns over the Walker Tariff of 1846, Polk's veto of a rivers-and-harbors improvements bill, and fears that supporting the Mexican War might be seen as backing the expansion of slavery.

What was Calhoun's constitutional defense against the Wilmot Proviso?

Introduced on February 19, 1847, Calhoun argued that territories were the "common property" of the states, and Congress had no power to deny citizens the right to take their property (slaves) into these territories. He warned that excluding slavery would upset the balance of power between slave and free states.

What were the two main compromise attempts or proposals between Wilmot and Calhoun's positions?

The extension of the Missouri Compromise line (36^\circ 30') to the Pacific, and Popular Sovereignty, proposed by Lewis Cass.

Explain the concept of Popular Sovereignty as proposed by Lewis Cass.

Leave to the people of the territory the decision about slavery for themselves, though ambiguity persisted regarding when (territory vs. statehood) and how the decision would be applied. Northern Democrats understood it as territorial decision-making, while Southern Democrats saw it as state-level control.

How did the Democratic Party split during the Election of 1848?

New York delegates split into Barnburners (pledged to Wilmot Proviso, nominated Martin Van Buren) and Hunkers (pro-South). The Barnburners bolted the convention, and the remaining Democrats nominated Lewis Cass without taking a strong stance on slavery.

What was the significance of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (February 1848)?

Mexico ceded all claim to Texas north of the Rio Grande, and ceded New Mexico and California to the United States. The U.S. paid 15{,}000{,}000 and assumed Mexican debts to Americans, resulting in the acquisition of approximately 1.25 \times 10^6 square miles of new territory.

Name some future Civil War leaders who gained experience during the Mexican War.

Robert E. Lee, Ulysses S. Grant, Thomas J. Jackson, Albert S. Johnston, Joseph E. Johnston, George B. McClellan, Pierre G. T. Beauregard, James Longstreet, Braxton Bragg, Joseph Hooker, George Gordon Meade, George H. Thomas, and Jefferson Davis.