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Events Leading to the Civil War
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Nat Turner’s Rebellion
In August of 1831, a slave known as Nat Turner triggered a rebellion that recruited 70 others, that spread across several plantations, and killed over 60 whites. This event in Southampton County, Virginia caused the deployment of militia infantry and artillery to suppress the uprising, which lasted two days. After being captured, Nat Turner and 55 others were executed. More small scale uprisings followed and tensions rose, but Nat Turners rebellion was the bloodiest uprising the South had seen. -
The Wilmot Proviso
At the close of the Mexican-American War, David Wilmot proposed a piece of legislation that, if passed, the Proviso would have outlawed slavery in territory acquired by the United States as a result of the war (most of the southwest and California). Wilmot fought to have this passed, but all attempts failed. Although it failed, the intensity of the debate surrounding the Proviso brought the first discussions of secession. -
The California Gold Rush
The Californian Gold Rush caused the largest mass migration in American history. Once the 49ers had settled in California, the territory was eligible to enter the Union. As a result, heavy debates about slavery arose; whether or not that territory should be a free or slave territory. These debates only exacerbated the issues between the north and the south -
The Compromise of 1850
With national relations already tense because of the Wilmot Proviso, senators Henry Clay and Stephen Douglas negotiated for the Compromise of 1850. The compromise admitted California as a free state and didn’t regulate slavery in the rest of the Mexico Cession while strengthening the Slave Fugitive Act (encouraging northerners to capture and return slaves). This only led to increased division in the political parties. -
Uncle Tom’s Cabin
Harriet Beecher Stowe published Uncle Tom’s Cabin on March 20th, 1852, and it quickly became a cultural phenomena. For the northerners, it was an eye opener, the fictional novel explored the horrors of slavery which most people had not been exposed to before. For the southerners, the book was slanderous and it was heavily protested. The gap between the north and the south widened yet again. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854
This act narrowly passed by congress overturned parts of the Missouri Compromise by allowing the settlers in the two territories to determine whether or not to allow slavery by a popular vote. Pro and anti slavery agitators went to Kansas, hoping their numbers would shift the decision. The two factions even had outbreaks of violence towards each other. The violence and conflicts troubled parts of the nation and had people picking sides. -
Dred Scott v. Sandford
Dred Scott was a Virginia slave who to sue for his freedom in court. The case eventually rose to the level of the Supreme Court where the justices determined that, as a slave, Dred Scott was property that had no legal rights. The Dred Scott decision threatened to changed the whole political landscape that managed to prevent the civil war in the first place. The Court also ruled that Congress lacked power to ban slavery in the US territories. -
John Brown’s Raid
In October of 1859, an abolitionist known as John Brown organized a small band of white allies and free blacks and raided a government arsenal in Harpers Ferry, Virginia. His intentions were to hold the arsenal and distribute weapons to southern slaves. Although Brown captured the arsenal, he was quickly surrounded by soldiers. He was tried for treason and was executed soon after. Brown became a martyr for the abolitionist cause, while Southerners began to militarize in prep for future raids -
Abraham Lincoln’s Election
Abraham was elected by a considerable margin in 1860, and as a Republican, he struck fear into many southerners. His anti-slavery outlook troubled the south and caused him to not even show up in many of the southern ballots. On December 20th, 1860, a little over a month after the ballots closed, South Carolina seceded from the Union. -
The Battle of Fort Sumter
With secession, several federal forts, including Fort Sumter in South Carolina, suddenly became outpost said in enemy territory. Abraham Lincoln then decided to send supplies to the surrounded garrisons. On April 12th, 1861, confederate warships turned back the supply convoy to Fort Sumter and began a 34 hour bombardment on the stronghold. The fort surrendered on April 14th, and the Civil war was now underway
