Topics 5.2-5.7 Flashcards
Manifest Destiny
The popular belief that the United States had the divine mission to extend its power and civilization across North America
“Fifty-Four Forty or Fight!”
- A slogan, meaning that the United States ought to claim all the territory up to the 54° 40’ in the Oregon Territory or fight Britain for it
- Encouraged Manifest Destiny
James K. Polk
A “dark horse” candidate for the Democratic Party who won the Election of 1844 and who advocated for Manifest Destiny
Alamo
The site of the Texan defeat during the Texan Revolution
Webster-Ashburton Treaty (1842)
Disputed US-British territory was resolved - split Maine and British-Canada, and settled the boundary of the Minnesota Territory
Mexican-American War
A military dispute between Mexico and the United States, caused by the annexation of Texas and the United States’ desire for California and New Mexico
Treaty of Guadalupe Hildago
Mexico ceded 1/3 of its territory to the United States, while the United States paid $15 million to Mexico for such territory
Mexican Cession
Under the Treaty of Guadalupe Hildago, the United States took possession of California and New Mexico, and paid Mexico $15 million for them
Wilmot Proviso
A proposed amendment to an appropriations bill that would forbid slavery in any territory acquired by Mexico that did not pass
Ostend Manifesto
A scheme for the United States to purchase Cuba from Spain for $120 million
Clayton-Bulwer Treaty (1850)
A treaty between the United States and Britain, stating that neither nation would attempt to take control of any future canal route in Central America
Gadsen Purchase (1853)
The purchase of a small land strip from Mexico, forming the southern sections of New Mexico and Arizona
Free soil movement
Aimed at stopping the expansion of slavery into the western territories, arguing “free men on free soil”
Popular sovereignty
Government and policies are based on the consent of the people, or their vote
Compromise of 1850
Five laws passed that dealt with the issue of slavery and territorial expansion, including admitting California as a free state and passing the Fugitive Slave Law
Panic of 1857
A financial panic caused by the declining international economy and the over-expansion of the domestic economy
Nativism
The belief that native-born Americans were superior to foreigners
Underground Railroad
A secret network of antislavery Americans who helped fugitive slaves escape to free states
Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1852)
A novel about the injustices of slavery that fueled the antislavery movements, while spurring Southern opposition
“Bleeding Kansas” (1855-1860)
A period of violent conflict in the Kansas Territory, driven by the struggle between pro-slavery and antislavery groups over slavery’s legality in Kansas
Lecompton Constitution (1857)
Pro-slavery constitution written for Kansas’ admission into the Union in opposition to the antislavery Topeka Constitution, where Congress eventually rejected it
Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854)
Established the Kansas and Nebraska territories and made it so that popular sovereignty would decide the issue of slavery within these territories
Republican Party
A political party formed in 1854 to stop the spread of slavery, joined by antislavery ex-Whigs and Democrats
Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857)
- Since slaves are property of their masters, they are not granted freedom when moved into a free state/territory
- Slaves are not citizens are therefore have no right to sue
Sumner-Brooks Incident (1856)
An incident where Senator Sumner insulted Senator Butler in an abolitionist speech, and Butler’s nephew Senator Brooks responded by beating Sumner into a coma with his cane
Harpers Ferry (1859)
John Brown’s slave revolt, where he planned to attack the federal arsenal Harpers Ferry, causing Southern whites to believe the North would use slave revolts to destroy the South
Crittenden Compromise (1860)
A proposed constitutional amendment that would protect slavery in all territories south of the 36 30 line.
Border states
States in the South that did not secede from the Union - Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky, and Missouri
Fort Sumter
The location in South Carolina where Confederate forces fired the first shots of the American Civil War
Election of 1860
Abraham Lincoln (Republican) wins the election, resulting in the South seceding from the Union in fear of Lincoln’s power and its threat to slavery
