Unit 11 Flashcards
What eventually contributed to the breakup of the Union?
Sectional differences
When and where did the idea of secession first come up in the United States?
During the War of 1812, many New Englanders opposed this war and wanted to secede from the Union
What fraction of southern families owned slaves?
1/4th of the population
What was the key element of the southern economy?
Plantation-owning interests, especially in cotton
What petitions were presented in Congress year after year? How were they stopped?
Petitions for the abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia. By a gag rule, which automatically killed all of the petitions because members of the House did not want any Federal laws about slavery
What was the Wilmot Proviso?
A proposed amendment that would require slavery never to be allowed in any territory that was gained by using $2 million
What middle ground was proposed to help solve the issue of slavery in the territories?
The proposition that territories be organized on the basis of popular sovereignty (people in the state should choose)
What development in the West heightened the question of slavery in the territories?
The discovery of gold in California
What was President Taylor’s position on California statehood?
He thought it should be admitted as a free state
What did the Nashville Convention call for?
To discuss a unified southern position about equal access to the territories for slave owners
Who organized the Compromise of 1850 package and guided it through Congress?
Henry Clay
What was Millard Fillmore’s position on the Compromise of 1850 proposals?
He agreed to them and was willing to sign the compromise
How did the Compromise of 1850 pass Congress?
By different coalitions within Congress enabling the passage of the compromise which were broken apart into separate bills
What were some objections to the Fugitive Slave Law?
It applied to any slave who had ever run away, and it forced northerners to assist in something to which they were morally opposed
Who won the presidential election of 1852 and what party did he represent?
Democrat Franklin Pierce
What was the effect of the 1852 election on the Whig party?
It crushed them, making them soon pass out of existence
Who promoted Chicago as the eastern terminus for a transcontinental railroad?
Senator Stephen Douglas
What was Stephen Douglas’ plan regarding the organization of the Kansas and Nebraska territories?
For them to decide on slavery by popular sovereignty
What happened in the Kansas Territory?
Violence escalated between proslavery and antislavery forces, leading to 200 people being killed and $2 million in property destroyed
Who gave a speech in the Senate, strongly denouncing slave interests?
Charles Sumner
What happened to Charles Sumner as a result of his speech?
He was attacked by Preston Brooks with a gold-headed cane at his desk
What state did Henry Clay represent in Congress?
Kentucky
Politically, Clay was known for crafting what?
The Missouri Compromise
What Cabinet position did Clay hold?
Secretary of State
What two states did Daniel Webster represent in Congress?
New Hampshire and Massachusetts
What was Webster’s skill?
He was a skilled orator
What Cabinet position did Webster hold?
Secretary of State
What state did John C. Calhoun represent in Congress?
South Carolina
Calhoun was a defender of what controversial practice?
Slavery
What Cabinet positions did Calhoun hold?
Secretary of War and Secretary of State
What does Webster say is impossible to conceive?
Peaceable secession
What was the Ostend Manifesto?
The declaration of American interest in buying Cuba from Spain
Who was elected President in 1856 and what party did he represent?
Democrat James Buchanan
Who was the main opposition in the election, and what party did he represent?
Republican John C. Fremont
What was the Dred Scott case?
The case, after the death of Dred Scott’s master, in which slave Dred Scott sued Missouri because Missouri was a free state and since he had lived in that free area, he should have freedom
What was the Supreme Court’s decision in the Dred Scott case?
They ruled that the Missouri Compromise of 1820 was unconstitutional, affirmed the idea that slavery was a state issue only, and said that Scott was not a citizen, so he had no right to sue
In what contest and in what year did the Lincoln-Douglas debates take place?
The senatorial election in Illinois, 1858
What was the outcome of the contest between Lincoln and Douglas?
Lincoln supporters got more total votes, but Democrats won a majority of seats and Douglas was re-elected to the U.S. Senate
On what did John Brown lead a raid in October of 1859?
On the military arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia (now West Virginia) to arm slaves and encourage them to revolt
List the first 15 Presidents of the United States in order
- George Washington
- John Adams
- Thomas Jefferson
- James Madison
- James Monroe
- John Quincy Adams
- Andrew Jackson
- Martin Van Buren
- William Henry Harrison
- John Tyler
- James K. Polk
- Zachary Taylor
- Millard Fillmore
- Franklin Pierce
- James Buchanan
When did Lincoln give his “House Divided Speech?”
1858
