 Evaluate the relative importance of political events and issues that divided the nation and led to civil war, including the compromises reached to maintain balance of free and slave states, the abolitionist movement, the Dred Scott case, conflicting views on states’ rights and federal authority, the emergence of the Republican Party, and the formation of the Confederate States of America. 3.1a

 The Northwest Ordinance settled the issue for a while as it forbade slavery in the territory.  The real issue was whether or not slavery would expand as the United States expanded.  Several times the issue threatened to upset the balance of power in Congress.  For a while Compromises were made to keep peace. Conflict of Slavery

 Missouri Compromise- when Missouri was ready to become a state, would it be a free state or slave state. Either way this would upset the balance of power in the Senate.  The Compromise brought Missouri in as a slave state at the same time Maine entered as a free state.  Then set the boundary for slavery at the parallel. The Compromises

 The Compromise of 1850  California admitted as a free state  Unorganized territories were free  Utah and New Mexico territories could decide the issue by popular sovereignty. (vote)  * The Fugitive Slave Law- the law required that northern states forcibly return escaped slaves to their owners in the South. Because the law was unpopular in the North many refused to obey the law which angered Southerners. The Compromises cont..

 The U.S. won the war with Mexico which brought the issue of slavery up.  New U.S. territory- Should it be free or slave?  David Wilmot a northern congressman from Pennsylvania introduced a proviso to the bill which would fund the Mexican War. ****The proviso would forbid slavery in any territory (the territory would be free soil) taken during the Mexican War. The Wilmot Proviso  It was voted down, but it reopened the debate about slavery. Both sides grew angry over the issue. The Wilmot Proviso

 In 1854 Congress passed the Kansas-Nebraska Act. ***It allowed the previously unorganized territories of Kansas and Nebraska to choose over the issue of slavery by popular-sovereignty.  This effectively repeals the Missouri Compromise and infuriates Northerners.  It also sets off a civil war in Kansas between those settlers who support and oppose slavery. (This was known in the papers as Bleeding Kansas.  This caused the beating of one Senator by another.  Charles Sumner of Massachusetts was beaten by Preston Brooks of South Carolina on the floor of the Senate. Kansas-Nebraska Act

 Dred Scott v. Sanford  Scott and his wife were taken from Missouri to the free states of Wisconsin and Illinois where they lived in free territory and later returned to Missouri.  When the owner died Scott and his wife sued for their freedom.  Eventually, the Supreme Court ruled, that Scott must remain a slave because the owner could not be deprived of his property without due process. (ruled slaves were not citizens)  Also, they say that Congress can not legislate slavery in any territory which opened up the possibility of slavery spreading to all new territories.  This ruling led Northerners to fear that state laws and popular sovereignty would not be effective in restricting the spread of slavery. This eventually led to the formation of the Republican Party and the election of Abraham Lincoln. The Dred Scott Decision

 In October of 1859 a group of radical abolitionists led by John Brown attacked the federal arsenal at Harper’s Ferry, Virginia too seize weapons and give them to slaves who could then rise up and start an armed rebellion.  Colonel Robert E. Lee surrounded the arsenal and forced Brown’s surrender.  For many this was the turning point toward war, the South began to think it must fight to preserve its way of life.  He was hailed as a martyr by vocal Northern abolitionists leading Southerners to believe the feeling was generalized in the North and thus further dividing the North and the South.  The actions of abolitionists and the controversy over the spread of slavery to the territories eventually led to secession, war, and ultimately abolition. John Brown’s Raid

11. Which of the following laws were BOTH PASSED by Congress for the purpose of dealing with the issue of slavery in newly acquired territories? AA. The Wilmot Proviso and the Compromise of 1833 BB. The Missouri Compromise and the Compromise of 1850 CC. The Doctrine of Nullification and the American System DD. The Doctrine of Nullification and the Missouri Compromise EOC SAMPLE QUESTIONS:

 A. Alarmed, because they saw it as a violent threat to the southern way of life  B. Encouraged, because it showed that some men were willing to go to extreme measures to protect states’ rights  C. Amused, because they dismissed it as an isolated incident let by a fool  D. Saddened, because Brown was a southern hero and news of his death was disheartening 2. Which of the following BEST describes southern reaction to John Brown’s raid on Harper’s Ferry?