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Dred Scott
Dred Scott was a slave. He later went to Wisconsin, a free state, and tried to gain back his freedom by taking it to court. His court case, Scott v. Sanford, went to the Supreme Court. They ruled that African Americans weren't citizens, out ruled popular sovereignty, and overturned the Missouri Compromise. This was important because it further split the nation since the north disagreed and chose to ignore it. It further led to the Civil War because of the divided nation. -
John Brown
John Brown was against slavery so he raided a federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia, but was caught and was hanged. He also killed five supporters of slavery. The raid was to help the slaves escape, but failed since he was caught. Since he was caught he was able to voice his opinion in court. He lead to the Civil War by trying to help the slaves cause an uproar. He caused the proslavery and antislavery forces to clash and cause the civil war. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin
Uncle Tom's Cabin was a bestseller written by Harriet Beecher Stowe about a slave living in the south. The north used the novel as propaganda and the south felt that it incorrectly protrayed slavery. the north and south were split over the novel and if it was realistic or not. It lead to the Civil War since the nation was divided. The north wanted slavery gone and the book helped that cause but the book hurt the south, and a war later happened. -
Kansas Nebraska Act
The Kansas-Nebraska Act was to allow popular sovereignty chose whether the states were free or slave states. The popular sovereignty act came from Stephen Douglas. Antislavery and slavery activist flooded into the states to help pursuade the votes. This led to Bloody Kansas. It split the nation because half of the nation wanted it to be a free state while the other half wanted it to be a slave state. It led to the Civil War because it let the people decide, causing a lot of internal problems. -
Republican Party
The Republican Party was founded by the opponets of the Kansas- Nebraska Act. The party supported classical liberalism, opposed the expansion of slavery, and supported economic reform. The party led to the split of the nation because there was a new political party, which believed everything the south didn't. It led to the civil war because the two parties were fighting over what was right and what was wrong. -
Bloody Kansas
Bloody Kansas was also known as the Border War. It was a series of violent civil crimes in Kansas. It happened over the legality of slavery. The proslavery forces gained the upper hand and proposed the "LaCompton Constitution". The antislavery wrote two constitutions. Kansas was later admitted as a free state. this caused a divid because the two sides were fighting. It led to the Civil War because the two sides were gettting violent with each other. -
Election 1856
Democrats warned a Republican victory would bring a civil war. The Republican platform opposed the repeal of the Missouri Compromise through the Kansas–Nebraska Act. The outcome of the election ended with the win of a Democratic candidate, James Buchanan. This led to the Civil War because it showed the division in the nation before the war. -
Brooks- Sumner Incident
Preston Brooks, a pro-slavery Democrat from South Carolina, used a walking cane to attack Senator Charles Sumner. He attacked him in retaliation for a speech given by Sumner were he fiercely criticized slaveholders, including a relative of Brooks. The beating nearly killed Sumner. This led to the Civil War because each side was mad. This incident just made the tension even worse. -
LeCompton Constitution
The LeCompton Constitution was made by pro-slavery advocates and included provisions to protect slaveholding in the state and to exclude free blacks from its bill of rights. The LeComptom Constitution was turned down and Kansas was admitted as a free state. It led to the Civil War because the proslavery and antislavery forces were fighting for different things in Kansas which inreased the tension and division. -
Lincoln- Douglas Debate
It was a series of formal political debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas for a campaign for one of Illinois' two United States Senate seats. The immediate result of the debates was indeed inconclusive and the senators were then chosen by state legislatures. During the debate came the Free Port Doctrine, written by Stephen Douglas. It stated slavery could be excluded from territories of the United States by local legislation. It caused the South to demand a Federal Slave Code. -
House Divided Speech
In this speech Abraham Lincoln said that a divided house will not stand. He basically said the government could not deal with it being permentally half free or half slave. This is important because it marked his entrance into national politics when the nation was split over slavery. It led to the Civil War because Abraham was against slavery and he ran as a candidate. -
Harper's Ferry
John Brown led a small group on a raid against a federal armory in Harpers Ferry, Virginia. It was an attempt to start an armed revolt of enslaved people and destroy the institution of slavery, they were later caught and Brown was hanged. This led to the Civil War and split the nation because the north was against his punishment and were angryr and the south was angry because they thought he was going to ebcourage the slaves to rebel. -
Secession
Eleven states in the Lower and Upper South severed their ties with the Union. The suceeded because they were convincedtheir way of life, based on slavery, was irretrievably threatened by the election of President Abraham Lincoln. It led to the establishment of the Confederacy and this was a big part in causing the Civil War. -
Election 1860
It was the frst time the Constitutional Union Party had a candidate in the race. Abraham Lincoln ended up winning the presidency. The southerners were angry because they knew that he was going to abolish slavery, which would "harm them and their economy". It led to the Civil War because he opposed slavery. During his term, Lincoln refused to accept any resolution that would result in Southern secession from the Union. -
Lincoln's 1st Inaugural Address
Lincoln promised not to interfere with the institution of slavery where it existed, and pledged to suspend the activities of the federal government temporarily in areas of hostility. even though he said this his firm stance against secession and the seizure of federal property remained. He had the support of the north but the south did not support him, because he was against slavery.