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Uncle Tom's Cabin
Harriet Beecher Stowe’s novel highlighted the brutal realities of Slavery,galvanizing Northern abolitionist sentiment and increasing Southern defensiveness about their way of life. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
This act allowed territories to decide on slavery through popular sovereignty, effectively nullifying the Missouri Compromise and leading to violent conflicts in Kansas. -
Republican Party Formation
Formed in response to the Kansas-Nebraska Act, the Republican Party opposed the expansion of slavery, uniting various anti-slavery factions and heightening sectional tensions. -
Bloody Kansas (1854-1859)
Violent clashes between pro-slavery and anti-slavery settlers in Kansas exemplified the deep divisions over slavery and foreshadowed the national conflict. -
Election of 1856
Buchanan won with Southern support, while the Republican candidate, John C. Frémont, carried most of the North, showing the growing political polarization. -
Brooks-Sumner Incident
The physical attack on Senator Charles Sumner by
Representative Preston Brooks in the Senate chamber symbolized the breakdown of civil discourse and increased animosity between North and South. -
Dred Scott Decision
The Supreme Court ruling that African Americans were not citizens and that Congress could not ban slavery in the territories outraged
Northerners and emboldened
Southern pro-slavery advocates. -
LeCompton Constitution
A proposed pro-slavery constitution for Kansas, It was rejected after much controversy, illustrating the contentious nature of slavery's expansion and further dividing the nation. -
House Divided Speech
Lincoln's assertion that the nation could not endure permanently half slave and half free underscored the irreconcilable differences between
North and South. -
Lincoln-Douglas Debates
These debates brought national attention to the issue of slavery in the territories, with Lincoln's arguments against its spread gaining him prominence and alarming the South. -
Harper's Ferry
Brown's raid aimed at inciting a slave rebellion heightened Southern fears of Northern aggression and radical abolitionism, pushing them closer to secession. -
South Carolina Secession (November 1860)
As the first state to secede following Lincoln's election, South Carolina set a precedent for other Southern states, marking the beginning of the Confederacy. -
Election of 1860
Abraham
Lincoln's election without any
Southern electoral votes demonstrated the political marginalization of the South and prompted secessionist movements. -
Secession of Other Southern States (1860-1861)
Following South Carolina, other Southern states seceded, forming the Confederate States of America and solidifying the division that led to war. -
Lincoln's First Inaugural Address (March 1861)
While attempting to reassure the South that he would not interfere with slavery where it existed, Lincoln's commitment to preserving the Union signaled his opposition to secession, setting the stage for conflict.