Introduction

• Welcome back to Heimler’s History – Unit 5 of AP U.S. History.

• Previously covered the Compromise of 1850, which temporarily eased tensions over slavery.

• Present focus: failures of political compromise regarding slavery.

The Context of Compromise

• Multiple attempts at compromise ultimately failed.

• Key factor: westward expansion led to new territories, reigniting the slavery debate.

The Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854)

• Introduced by Senator Stephen Douglas of Illinois.

• Proposed dividing the northern section of the Louisiana Purchase into two: Kansas and Nebraska Territories.

• Each territory could decide on the slavery issue through popular sovereignty (residents would vote to allow or disallow slavery).

• Overturned the Compromise of 1820, which had prohibited slavery in this region.

Impact of the Kansas-Nebraska Act

• Enraged Northerners who were committed to the Compromise of 1820.

• Led to violence in Kansas, known as Bleeding Kansas, between pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions.

• In 1855, elections for the Kansas legislature revealed voter fraud: over 6,000 votes cast when only about 1,500 men could legally vote.

• Pro-slavery Missourians crossed the border to cast illegal votes, establishing a pro-slavery government in Kansas.

• Resulted in two rival legislatures:

  • Pro-slavery constitution in Lecompton, supported by President Franklin Pierce.

  • Anti-slavery constitution in Topeka, which denied the legitimacy of the pro-slavery government.

The Dred Scott Decision (1857)

• Case of Dred Scott, a man enslaved in Missouri, taken by his master to free territories (Illinois and Wisconsin).

• Scott sued for his freedom based on residence in these free areas.

Supreme Court Ruling

• Chief Justice Roger Taney delivered the majority decision:

  • Scott was not a citizen and thus could not sue.

  • Congress could not deprive citizens of property (slaves considered property).

  • Result: Slave owners could bring enslaved individuals into any territory, effectively open to slavery.

• This decision escalated national tensions and moved the nation closer to civil war.

Political Implications of Rising Tensions

• The increasing division over slavery weakened the two-party system.

The Whig Party

• The Whig Party was divided by the Kansas-Nebraska Act into:

  • Cotton Whigs: pro-slavery faction.

  • Conscience Whigs: anti-slavery faction.

• Ultimately led to the disintegration of the party.

The Democratic Party

• Strengthened as a regional pro-slavery party due to the divisions.

• Opposition to the Democrats emerged in the form of a newly formed Republican Party in 1854.

  • Unified abolitionists, free soilers, Know Nothings, and former Whigs against expansion of slavery.

• Republicans aimed to prevent the spread of slavery into new territories, not necessarily to abolish it.

Rising Threat to Southern Democrats

• Republican success in 1858 midterm elections sparked fear among Southerners.

• The potential election of a Republican president in 1860 could threaten Southern interests and slavery.

Conclusion

• Understanding the failures of these compromises helps clarify the tensions leading to the Civil War.

• Stay tuned for the next video on the 1860 election to further unpack the causes of division.