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Missouri Compromise
The Missouri Compromise was a significant legislative agreement in the United States aimed at balancing the power between free and slave states. It allowed Missouri to enter the Union as a slave state while admitting Maine as a free state, maintaining an even balance between slave and free states in the Senate. Additionally, it prohibited slavery in the remaining Louisiana Territory, except for Missouri. The compromise slowly eased tensions between the North and South over the issue of slavery. -
Abolitionist Movement
The Abolitionist Movement was a social and political campaign in the United States during the 19th century aimed at ending the practice of slavery. Prominent figures included Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, William Lloyd Garrison, and Sojourner Truth. The movement gained significant momentum in the 1830s and played a crucial role in shaping public opinion against slavery, ultimately contributing to the Civil War and the eventual abolition of slavery. -
Texas annexation
The Texas annexation was the process by which the Republic of Texas was incorporated into the United States as the 28th state. Originally part of Mexico, Texas declared its independence in 1836 after the Texas Revolution. For nearly a decade, it existed as an independent republic. Ultimately, the U.S. Congress approved the annexation, leading to Texas joining the Union on December 29, 1845. This act contributed to the onset of the Mexican-American War. -
Mexican-American War
The Mexican-American War was a conflict between the United States and Mexico, primarily over the annexation of Texas and territorial disputes. The war began after the U.S. annexed Texas in 1845, which Mexico considered part of its territory despite the Texas Revolution and its subsequent independence in 1836. The war resulted in significant U.S. victories, leading to the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, in which Mexico ceded a large portion of its northern territories to the U.S. -
Compromise of 1850
The Compromise of 1850 was a series of rules passed by the U.S. Congress to ease tensions between free and slave states. Key factors include admitting California as a free state, deciding if Utah and New Mexico should be admitted as slave states, settling Texas's border disputes, banning the slave trade in Washington DC, and forcing a stricter Fugitive Slave Law. The compromise aimed to keep the balance of power between North and South, but it ultimately provided only a temporary solution. -
Fugitive Slave Act
The Fugitive Slave Act was a federal law that required the return of runaway slaves to their owners, even if they were found in free states. It imposed severe penalties on anyone helping escapees and mandated that all citizens help capture them. The law denied fugitives the right to a trial and increased the involvement of federal officers in these cases. The act grew sectional tensions, fueled abolitionist sentiment in the North, and contributed to the beginning of the Civil War. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
The Kansas-Nebraska Act was significant in making the territories of Kansas and Nebraska. It repealed the Missouri Compromise by allowing settlers in those territories to determine whether they would allow slavery. The act aimed to construct a crossing railroad and promote westward expansion. However, it led to violent conflicts between pro-slavery and anti-slavery settlers, an event known as "Bleeding Kansas." It grew tensions between the North and South, pushing the nation closer to Civil War. -
Dred Scott v. Sandford
Dred Scott v. Sandford was a Supreme Court case in which an enslaved man, Dred Scott, sued for his freedom after living in free land. The Court ruled that African Americans, enslaved or free, could not be American citizens and had no right to sue in federal court. The decision also declared that the federal government had no power to regulate slavery in the territories disregarding the Missouri Compromise. This caused national division over slavery, pushing the United States closer to Civil War. -
Election of 1860
The Election of 1860 was an important presidential election in U.S. history that resulted in Abraham Lincoln winning the presidency. Deep national divisions over slavery marked the election. Lincoln's platform opposed the expansion of slavery into the western territories, which gained him much support in the North but almost none in the South. Lincoln's victory, without any Southern electoral votes, led to the secession of several Southern states and ultimately the beginning of the Civil War. -
Battle at Fort Sumter
The Battle of Fort Sumter was the first military engagement of the American Civil War. Located in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina, Fort Sumter was held by Union forces. However, after the secession of Southern states, Confederate forces surrounded the fort, demanding its surrender. When Union reinforcements failed to arrive, the fort's commander surrendered after a 34-hour attack. The battle marked the beginning of the Civil War and prepared the North and the South for the upcoming conflict.