Causes of the Civil War
What caused America to go to war?
What caused the Civil War?
The Missouri Compromise of 1820
• The Missouri Compromise was an agreement
passed between the pro-slavery and the antislavery members in the U.S. Congress over
expanding slavery westward.
• It primarily involved the regulation of slavery in
the new western territories
– Prohibited slavery in the former Louisiana Territory
north of the parallel 36 30’
– Allowed slavery in the new state of Missouri
• This agreement would only last 30 years before
being thrown out.
Northern Free States
Southern Slave States
Turn and Talk: Was this a fair compromise?
Sectionalism at Work
• Before the M.C., the United States had three
regions due to geography, economics, and
politics:
– The North- densely populated, industrial, good
harbors for trade
– The South- Rural, agricultural (plantations)
– The West- Wild, undeveloped, will slavery expand?
• The M.C. divided the free (north) and slave
(south) states, therefore encouraging the two
groups to view each other separately
• Accelerates the division which would eventually
lead to the Civil War through the development
of the West
Comparing North vs.
South
The Wilmot Proviso
• Wilmot Proviso (1848):
Attempted to prohibit
slavery in the territory
acquired from the Mexican
War
• DID NOT pass but created
the Free Soil Party
– Dedicated to stopping the
expansion of slavery
Jumpstart – April 12, 2016
1. Pick up a STAAR review questions page from the front tray.
2. Answer the two questions and glue in to your spiral.
The Compromise of 1850
• Used to settle the debate
over California’s statehood
• Terms of the Compromise:
1. California admitted as free
state
2. Congress would not
interfere with slavery in the
lands acquired from the
Mexican Cession
3. Fugitive Slave Act was
passed
•
A stronger law to help
slaveholders recapture
runaway slaves
Henry Clay = The Great
Compromiser
The Compromise of 1850
Understanding the Fugitive Slave Act
The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 was a federal (national)
law stated the following:
– Required the return of any person suspected of being a
runaway slave returned to their owner no matter where
found residing (even in Free States!!!).
– Any person found aiding a runaway would be charged
$1000 and six months imprisonment.
– The “runaway” would not be given a trial to determine
innocence, but a special judge would decide fate.
– Judges would receive a $5 ($140 present day) pay for
innocent verdicts, $10 ($280 present day) for guilty.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCFrObXq3xw
Who does this act favor? How would abolitionists feel about
the act?
Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1852)
• Uncle Tom’s Cabin
(1852): published by
Harriet Beecher Stowe
– made slavery a moral
issue
• Increased anti-slavery
feelings in the North
• Southerners are angered
by the “lies” about
slavery
OL Civil War Causes of Instagram
• Each pair will receive one Instagram template
with an image from 1 of the 3 causes we
discussed today: Compromise of 1850, Fugitive
Slave Act, or Uncle Tom’s Cabin
• Your group must add:
– Instagram user name
– Caption under the image that summarizes the cause
– At least 4 #hashtags that go along with the cause
OL Civil War Causes of Instagram
• User name personas:
– Compromise of 1850: Henry Clay (creator of Act)
– Fugitive Slave Act: Fugitive slave effected by the law
– Uncle Tom’s Cabin: Harriet Beecher Stowe (author)
• Your user name/message/# must:
– Clearly identify the persona you are taking on
– Summarize the cause from your chosen perspective in
the caption
– Be APPROPRIATE
PAP Civil War Causes of Instagram
• Each pair will receive 3 Instagram templates with
an image from the 3 causes we discussed today:
Compromise of 1850, Fugitive Slave Act, or
Uncle Tom’s Cabin
• Your pair must add:
– Instagram user name
– Caption under the image that summarizes the cause
– At least 4 #hashtags that go along with the cause
PAP Civil War Causes of Instagram
• User name options:
– Compromise of 1850: Henry Clay
– Fugitive Slave Act: fugitive slave, Northerner, or
Southerner
– Uncle Tom’s Cabin: Harriet Beecher Stowe, Northern
reader, or Southern reader
• Your user name/message/# must:
– Clearly identify the persona you are taking on
– Summarize the cause from your chosen perspective in
the caption
– Be APPROPRIATE
Election of Lincoln
• 1860 election’s big question:
would the Union still exist?
• Slavery issue split the
Democrats between two
candidates.
• Republican party only had one:
Lincoln
• With the Democrats divided,
Lincoln won a clear majority of
votes, especially in the North.
• The more populous North
outvoted the South
Candidates
(Clockwise): Lincoln,
Douglass,
Breckenridge, and Bell
• South
viewed it as
a threat to
their way of
life.
How could the South view Lincoln’s
election as a threat?
States Rights: The Kansas-Nebraska Act
• 1854-a bill to settle the issue of slavery in the
territories.
• Created the territories of Kansas and Nebraska.
– Before act, western territories would be “Free”
– Goal to repeal Missouri Compromise and let states decide
on the issue.
– “Popular Sovereignty”
• Resulted in “Bleeding Kansas”
– Pro-slavery won the state, anti-slavery refused to accept
the laws.
– Supporters of both sides flooded state, erupting in
violence
Who was Dred Scott and Why Does He Matters?
• Scott was a slave purchased in
Missouri, moved by his master to
Illinois (1830), and then Wisconsin
(both areas banned slavery.)
• 1846 antislavery lawyers helped
Scott sue for freedom.
• Supreme Court said Scott was still a
slave.
– Stated a slave was property and could
not be taken by gov’t without “due
process”
– Congress could not regulate the
practice
– Constitution protected slavery
After Dred Scott
and the Fugitive
Slave act, slavery
and the laws
protecting it no
longer made
“free states”
truly free.
SO! Was slavery the only cause of the Civil War?