For the majority of American History leading up to the Civil War, civilians had been divided over the issue of slavery and politics. The nation had a long history of compromise that seemed necessary to keep the nation unified. Most of these compromises avoided the issue of slavery, as politicians and “great compromisers” like Henry Clay aimed to prevent the inevitable split between the North and South. There was a turning point, however, in the North and South, when compromise was no longer an option. Although the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 was the immediate and final trigger for southern secession, other attributes including the Kansas-Nebraska Act, Bleeding Kansas, and the Dred Scott decision of 1857 drove the South further towards
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The act repealed the Missouri Compromise as Senator Steven Douglas stated in the act that popular sovereignty would determine if slavery should or should not exist in these territories, while the Missouri Compromise stated that there shall be no slavery passed the 36°30’ line. There were numerous political and social effects this act had on the nation. A major effect would be the increased infuriation of the North from the repeal of the once thought “long-standing” Missouri Compromise. This infuriation led the North to distrust the South and also opened their eyes to what they believed was a Southern obsession with the expansion of slavery. The North would become less lenient to the idea of slavery. After the Kansas-Nebraska Act, Henry Ward Beecher raised money to provide weapons to those who opposed slavery in these territories and called these weapons “Beecher’s Bibles” as a result of the act. This is also an example of the beginning of increased passion for slavery or the demise of slavery on each side. By far the most significant effect after the Kansas-Nebraska Act, however, would have to be the demise of the Whig Party, along with the division of the Democratic Party and the creation of the Republican Party. These changed political standings scared the South immensely and directly ushered them to take the path of secession for fear of a strong Republican Party and a weak Democratic …show more content…
Bleeding Kansas was a series of violent political acts brought on by the anti-slavery citizens and Border Ruffians (pro-slavery activists from Missouri, who crossed the state border into Kansas Territory to force the acceptance of slavery) during the popular sovereignty voting day. Bleeding Kansas consisted of many openly violent acts that threatened to tear the nation apart, including the Charles Sumner-Preston Brooks event. This event highlighted the intensity of the growing split between the North and South views on slavery and was yet another event that seemed to push the divided country even further away. This event consisted of Brooks beating Sumner to death with a cane after Sumner spoke openly about “black power” and the abolition of slavery. Another openly violent attack that attracted much attention was that of John Brown. Brown was an abolitionist who believed in the military overthrow of the U.S. Brown's followers killed five slavery supporters at Pottawatomie and later Brown led an unsuccessful raid on the federal armory at Harpers Ferry that ended with his capture. Brown's raid helped make any further accommodation between North and South nearly
The act repealed the Missouri Compromise as Senator Steven Douglas stated in the act that popular sovereignty would determine if slavery should or should not exist in these territories, while the Missouri Compromise stated that there shall be no slavery passed the 36°30’ line. There were numerous political and social effects this act had on the nation. A major effect would be the increased infuriation of the North from the repeal of the once thought “long-standing” Missouri Compromise. This infuriation led the North to distrust the South and also opened their eyes to what they believed was a Southern obsession with the expansion of slavery. The North would become less lenient to the idea of slavery. After the Kansas-Nebraska Act, Henry Ward Beecher raised money to provide weapons to those who opposed slavery in these territories and called these weapons “Beecher’s Bibles” as a result of the act. This is also an example of the beginning of increased passion for slavery or the demise of slavery on each side. By far the most significant effect after the Kansas-Nebraska Act, however, would have to be the demise of the Whig Party, along with the division of the Democratic Party and the creation of the Republican Party. These changed political standings scared the South immensely and directly ushered them to take the path of secession for fear of a strong Republican Party and a weak Democratic …show more content…
Bleeding Kansas was a series of violent political acts brought on by the anti-slavery citizens and Border Ruffians (pro-slavery activists from Missouri, who crossed the state border into Kansas Territory to force the acceptance of slavery) during the popular sovereignty voting day. Bleeding Kansas consisted of many openly violent acts that threatened to tear the nation apart, including the Charles Sumner-Preston Brooks event. This event highlighted the intensity of the growing split between the North and South views on slavery and was yet another event that seemed to push the divided country even further away. This event consisted of Brooks beating Sumner to death with a cane after Sumner spoke openly about “black power” and the abolition of slavery. Another openly violent attack that attracted much attention was that of John Brown. Brown was an abolitionist who believed in the military overthrow of the U.S. Brown's followers killed five slavery supporters at Pottawatomie and later Brown led an unsuccessful raid on the federal armory at Harpers Ferry that ended with his capture. Brown's raid helped make any further accommodation between North and South nearly