History 11 Week 14

The Politics of the 1800s and the Inevitability of the U.S. Civil War

The Politics of the 1800s and the Inevitability of the U.S. Civil War -Nullification Crisis (South Carolina), 1832 - South Carolina challenged federal tariffs and therefore the ability of the federal government to tax goods and dictate terms of commerce. -Compromise of 1850 - Attempt to save the Union from growing crisis over slavery. Consisted of 5 new laws, including amendment of the Fugitive Slave Act (Fugitive Slave Act of 1850) and admission of California as a free state. -California Gold Rush, 1848-~1850 - January 1848, placer gold discovered at Sutter’s Mill near present-day Sacramento. Set off rush to California from all over the world. Accelerates California’s path to statehood, as well as the development of large mining concerns in the far West.

II. From the Age of Jackson to the Triumph of Lincoln Abraham Lincoln: -Rejected religion from a young age. -Opposed slavery as an adult (1837: first public anti-slavery statement) *However, opposed to the idea of outright abolition. -Compare this vision of Lincoln to his actions as president (Emancipation Proclamation & shepherding of 13th Amendment’s ratification). Was Lincoln a “reformer”?

II. From the Age of Jackson to the Triumph of Lincoln 1830s, two major political parties: -Democrats (inheritors of Jeffersonian democracy) -Whigs (internal improvement and investment) Mid-1850s: Whig Party founders; new Republican Party emerges. -Republican Party: *Anti-slavery *Economic policies similar to the Whigs

II. From the Age of Jackson to the Triumph of Lincoln -Vision of Republicanism for Lincoln and the Republicans: Liberty as economic liberty; individuals could “remake” themselves through markets. -Lincoln and the Republicans: Slavery = recession into a British-style aristocracy. -Kansas-Nebraska Act (May, 1854) - Allowed residents of Kansas and Nebraska to decide on the slavery question within their borders for themselves. Repealed Missouri Compromise of 1820. -Dred Scott v. Sanford (SCOTUS, 1857) - A slave named Dred Scott sues for his freedom. Lived in a free state with his “owner” and argued that this entitled him to freedom. Case appealed to SCOTUS, which rules that no African American could claim citizenship, and upholds the right of Southern states to practice slavery (and the Fugitive Slave Act).

II. From the Age of Jackson to the Triumph of Lincoln -Emancipation Proclamation - Issued Sept. 17, 1862, effective Jan. 1, 1863 -The problem with the EP: Only applied to states still in open rebellion. -13th Amendment - Congressional approval Jan. 1865; ratified by prescribed number of states on December 6, 1865.

I. The Civil War April 12, 1861 - May 9, 1865 -11 slaveholding states secede and form the Confederate States of America. -1.5 million casualties, including ~620,000 soldiers/fighters dead. -The importance of the “psyche” of wealthy Southerners on the eve of the Civil War. *Abolition movement *Republican Party taking up anti-slavery position *Election of Lincoln in 1860

I. The Civil War -Stabilizing institutions failed on eve of war: *Several protestant denominations split into North/South factions. *Political parties fractured. *Heightened differences between Northern and Southern states.

I. The Civil War -Lincoln and the Republicans embodied the fears of wealthy Southerners: -AL did not seek to do away with slavery as it already existed, but to stop its spread to western territories. -Southern states began to secede between late 1860 and 1861. -First battle of Civil War: Southern forces fire on Ft. Sumter, South Carolina on April 12, 1861. *Lincoln responds with a call for 75,000 volunteers. -South had a distinct advantage as held a defensive position, while the north was on the offensive. Consider why this gave the Confederacy an advantage.

II. The Outcomes of the Civil War Effects: -Women assumed larger responsibilities during war, including in employment. Some of this expansion of opportunity for women became permanent. -Freedom for slaves. -Technology was utilized and proven during the war: railroads, telegraph, military advances (rifle, ironclad warships). -Military drafts enacted during the war were controversial. -Dramatic expansion of the Federal budget. -Between 1860 and 1870, Northern wealth increased ~50%; Southern wealth decreased ~60%.