Apush Dbq Analysis

In the late 18th century, the Constitution of the United States was ratified and the unification of the union along with it. Although the Constitution was created to produce order and unity, the nation was split into two by the mid-19th century. After a vast amount of territories being brought into the union due to the nation 's’ Manifest Destiny, the issue of slavery became the center of politics. The cause of such political and social chaos was the fact that the Constitution had not specifically addressed the issue of slavery and what was to be done about it. It’s consequences were that the nation had felt it’s repercussions years later. The North had opposed slavery while the South had supported and even wanted to spread slavery. The South …show more content…
In view of the fact that the slavery issue had reached the entire nation and it’s politics, President James Buchanan had written a fourth annual message to Congress addressing such issue. In his message he had blamed the mere existence of slavery among them on the sovereign states (Doc G). Sovereign states, which Douglas proposed, had the option to choose whether they will be a free or slave state. A similar example of political mayhem is the formation of the Republican Party due to Huges’ opposition in the North and had even given the south the opportunity to expand slavery. All of which occurred after two territories were set up, Kansas and Nebraska, also known as the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854. By 1856 civil war had broken out in Kansas and due to the large amount of casualties, Charles Sumner had described the state as “Bleeding Kansas”. Without delay, Congressman Preston Brooks entered Congress and beat Sumner with a cane and it was at that moment that the issue of slavery had spread to Congress, again showing how the issue of slavery affected politics. Speaking of Buchanan, he had been illustrated in caricature portraying the Free Soil position and the democrat position. In the caricature, the democrats are pulling a large Free Soiler while the other Free Soilers were forcing a slave down his throat. …show more content…
To begin with, after the Mexican Secession, California had written a constitution of its own, which banned slavery, and asked Congress for admission as a free state- beforehand, there was equal balance of power in the senate. Sooner rather than later, radical southerners had spoken of secession and the question of a compromise had arisen, which Henry Clay and Douglas favored. Eventually the Compromise of 1850 had been instituted. The Compromise had admitted California as a free state, set up Utah and New Mexico as territories, the nation’s capital banned the slave trade in D.C, and the New Fugitive Slave Law was enacted in the south (Doc A). President Fillmore had believed it to be the end of sectional division but the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 had turned the North as a hunting ground for fugitive slaves and because slaves could not testify, they were denied a jury trial (doc C). Correspondingly, the issue of slaves in the Constitution had appeared again in the Dred Scott case. Dred Scott was a man who had sued for his freedom and had went all the way to the supreme court. However, Congress could not make laws regarding slavery in the territories, thereby making the Missouri Compromise legal and slavery legal throughout the nation. Also, because of the Dred Scott case, slaves were deemed unable to sue. Coupled with this, underground railroads were built and those who