Challenges to Slavery & Seccession

Republican Party Antislavery political party formed in 1854 Free-Soilers joined with antislavery Democrats & Whigs Message = government should ban slavery from new territories Supported by Northerners Democrats were becoming the Southern party

Democratic Candidate James Buchanan won the election Election of 1856 Democratic Candidate James Buchanan won the election He was from Pennsylvania and supported the idea of popular sovereignty

Dred Scott Decision Until 1857 some slaves who had lived in free states or territories were successful when they sued for their freedom Biddy Mason had done this Dred Scott’s case went all the way to the Supreme Court & changed this Dred Scott was owned by an army doctor in Missouri, but was then moved to free territory & then back to Missouri where the doctor died Scott sued for his freedom claiming he should be free because he once lived on free territory Dred Scott

Dred Scott Decision, continued His case went to the Supreme Court & this gave the court a chance to address the issue of slavery in the territories Chief Justice Roger B. Taney said that Dred Scott was still a slave Scott was not a citizen & had no right to bring a lawsuit Taney said that an enslaved person was property & under the 5th Amend. Congress could not take away property without “due process of law” Taney also said that the Missouri Compromise and popular sovereignty were also unconstitutional for the same reason Southerners were glad that nothing could legally prevent the spread of slavery

Lincoln-Douglas Debates Stephen Douglas & Abraham Lincoln were running against one another in the Illinois senate race of 1858 Douglas– believed slavery issue could be resolved through popular sovereignty Thought people could exclude slavery by refusing to pass laws protecting slave holders Lincoln – thought slavery was wrong all together Douglas wins the Senate seat, but Lincoln became more well-known as a result of the election Scene from a Lincoln-Douglas Debate in the Illinois Senate campaign of 1858

Abolitionist John Brown led 18 men, both whites & African Americans, on a raid on Harpers Ferry, Virginia His target was a federal arsenal (storage place for weapons) The raid was quickly stopped by local citizens & federal troops Brown was convicted of treason & murder and sentenced to hang Some viewed Brown as a hero and a martyr A martyr is a person who dies for a cause Southerners fear that a great Northern conspiracy against them would continue to grow Raid on Harpers Ferry

The South Secedes Lincoln wins the election of 1860 Lincoln & Republicans promise to not disturb slavery where it already exists, South doesn’t trust this promise Dec. 20, 1860 – South Carolina secedes (withdraws) from the Union Senator John Crittenden makes one last effort to save the Union & proposes amendments that would protect slavery south of the Missouri Compromise line --- but Compromise was just not possible at this point

Confederacy The Confederate States of America Formed by the states who had seceded from the Union South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, & Texas Chose Jefferson Davis as their president Southerners justified (or backed up) their right to secession with the theory of states’ rights Saw the Constitution as a contract that had been violated by the national government refused to enforce Fugitive Slave Act & denied Southern states equal rights in territories

Secession http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/historical/ward_1912/us_secession_1860.jpg

Presidential Responses Pres. James Buchanan was in office until March 4, 1861 – he told Congress that the Southern states had no right to secede, but that he had no power to stop them Question of what would happen with the slave states that chose to remain in the Union – many were afraid that use of force against the Confederacy would force those states to secede Pres. Lincoln vowed to hold federal property in the South & enforce laws of U.S. in his inaugural address

By the time Lincoln took office only two Southern forts remained under Union Control – Fort Pickens & Fort Sumter Fort Sumter was located on an island in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina Fort Sumter was low on supplies & Confederates demanded its surrender Lincoln sends an unarmed expedition with supplies to Fort Sumter Lincoln left the decision to start shooting up to the Confederates Fort Sumter

Confederates ordered their forces to attack Fort Sumter before the Union supplies could arrive April 12, 1861 Fort Sumter surrendered This was a small Confederacy victory, but it convinced the North that war was necessary The War Begins

Call to Arms North & South take Action Pres. Lincoln calls for 75,000 troops to fight to save the Union Volunteers also rush to sign up to fight in the South Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, & Arkansas vote to join the Confederacy