The Election of 1860 and Secession Mr. White’s US History 1

State of the Country United States was divided into two parts, a slave-holding South, and the free-soil North In the west, most of the territory was unorganized – the question of whether these would be slave or free was important to many people

Election of 1860 Republicans ran on a platform of halting the spread of slavery Lincoln promised not to touch slavery where it existed, but would stop its expansion Abraham Lincoln, the Republican candidate, was elected president

Slavery in 1860 When Lincoln was elected, many southerners thought that they had lost their political voice Southerners viewed black slaves as their property, and thought that nobody had the right to take that property Many southerners thought that Lincoln and others like him would try to get rid of slavery

Secession of the lower South South Carolina seceded shortly after Lincoln was elected – but Lincoln hadn’t even taken office Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas also seceded They formed the Confederate States of America – President Jefferson Davis was inaugurated before Lincoln

Fort Sumter Dilemma Southerners took over most of the forts from the US, except for Fort Sumter, in South Carolina Confederates demanded the fort surrender, or they would take it

Fort Sumter – Lincoln’s Decision Lincoln faced a dilemma Surrender the fort? US looks weak Send more troops to the fort? US looks aggressive However, time was short, as the fort was running out of food Lincoln decides to send just food to the fort – if anyone fires first, it will be the Confederacy

War! Confederacy chooses to fire on the fort, as opposed to letting it be resupplied. On April 12, 1861, Confederates fired on the fort – fort surrendered The war had begun, and the Confederacy had fired first.

Lincoln’s Call for Troops With this violence, Lincoln knew it meant war He called for 75,000 troops to help put down the rebellion Lincoln’s goal was to preserve the Union

Secession of the Upper South With Lincoln’s call for troops, the upper southern states seceded Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Arkansas secede General Robert E. Lee, of Virginia, was offered command of US armies, but refused it

The Beginning of the War Stage was now set for the Civil War. Many, at the beginning, on both sides, thought the war would be short – first recruits only signed up for 90 days. Few knew what would be coming.

SMART Response Quiz! Here’s your SMART Response quiz for this section! You may use your notes to answer these questions.

Question #1 The Republican party’s main goal was to: A. End slavery in the United States B. Stop the spread of slavery into the western territories C. Allow individual states to decide on the issues of slavery D. Avoid the slavery issue in politics

Question #2 The event that prompted the secession of the lower southern states (South Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, and Texas) was: A. Lincoln’s election B. Lincoln’s call for 75,000 troops C. Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation D. Lincoln’s decision to resupply Fort Sumter

Question #3 In regards to the Fort Sumter crisis, Lincoln chose to: A. Abandon Fort Sumter B. Negotiate with the Confederacy for peace C. Resupply Fort Sumter D. Attack the Confederate batteries near Sumter

Question #4 The event that prompted the secession of the upper southern states (Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Arkansas) was: A. Lincoln’s election B. Lincoln’s call for 75,000 troops C. Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation D. Lincoln’s decision to resupply Fort Sumter