Unit 1.1 - Civil War (1848-1865)

Lower South

States of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina in response to Republican President Lincoln. Heavily dependent on cash crop cotton and slavery.

King Cotton Diplomacy

a failed southern strategy to embargo cotton from England until Great Britain recognized and assisted the Confederacy; southerners hoped the economic pressure resulting from Britain's need for cotton for its textile factories would force Britain to aid the South. But direct aid was never forthcoming.

king cotton

1) invention of cotton gin made it easy to harvest short-staple cotton. 2) rich new farm land in the Deep South was opened to cotton. by 1850, the geographic center of slavery was moving southward and westward. 3) rise of textile in England created increase demand for cotton

Monroe Doctrine

1823 - Declaration by Pres. Monroe that Europe should not interfere in the affairs of the Western Hemisphere (the Americas) and that any attempt at interference by a European power would be seen as a threat to the U.S. It also declared that a New World colony which has gained independence may not be recolonized by Europe. (It was written at a time when many South American nations were gaining independence).

Mexican American War

1846 - 1848 - President Polk declared war on Mexico over the dispute of land in Texas. At the end, American ended up with 55% of Mexico's land.

Mexican Cession

1848 - historical name for the region of the present day southwestern United States that was ceded to the U.S. by Mexico in 1848 under the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo following the Mexican-American War. this massive land grab was significant because the question of extending slavery into newly acquired territories had become the leading national political issue.

California Gold Rush

1848 gold was discovered at Sutter's Mill. near San Francisco. News spread, resulting in some 300,000 from the rest of the United States and abroad. Early gold-seekers, called "forty-niners," traveled to California causing the explosive growth of boomtowns and general chaos due to a lack of government; prompted Californians to apply for statehood in 1849 as a FREE state causing irritation in the South and lead to the Compromise of 1850 to settle the dispute.

Uncle Tom's Cabin

1852 - (Harriet Beechers Stowe) powerful novel written in response to the passage of the Fugitive Slave Act - made American's aware of the harsh and inhumane conditions of slavery; increased sectional tensions and put the country on the road to civil war.

Gadsden Purchase

1853 - After the Treaty of Guadelupe Hidalgo was signed, the U.S. realized that it had accidentally left portions of the southwestern stagecoach routes to California as part of Mexico. James Gadsen, the U.S. Minister to Mexico, was instructed by President Pierce to draw up a treaty that would provide for the purchase of the territory through which the stage lines ran, along which the U.S. hoped to also eventually build a southern continental railroad. This territory makes up the southern parts of Arizona and New Mexico.

Battle of Antietam

1862 - Was the bloodiest single-day battle in U.S. history. During this battle, the control of the war was with the Union. As a result, Europe lost hope and stopped supporting the Confederacy.

states' rights

According to the compact theory of the Union the states retained all powers not specifically delegated to the central government by the Constitution. This is stateed specifically in the 10th Amendment.

Missouri Compromise

(1820) Also the Compromise of 1820. Made Missouri a slave state, Maine as a free and set the boundary for slave and free states at the 36-30' degree parallel. Settled the dispute between N anti-slavery & S pro-slavery sectional dispute in Congress the regulation of slavery in the western territories to balance the number of "slave states" and "free states," to keep a balance of Senators for each section.

10th Amendment

(1791) Amendment that gives the rights not delegated to National government or denied to the States to the States. Limits the powers of the Federal/national gov't to those specifically (strictly) stated. Leaned on heavily by the South in protecting its right to expand slavery in the territories and limit the power of the Federal Government as the Constitution did no specifically allow Federal limits on slavery.

10th Amendment

(1791) The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people. This established the concept of states rights and also forms the basis of the "compact" theory that the states and the federal government had an agreement to share power.

nullification

(1798/1860) A legal theory that a state (southern) in the US has the right to invalidate any federal law that the state deems unconstitutional as the last defense of its rights and defends excessive federal power. This was used in the 1830's to resist the tariff and 1860's over the issue of slavery in the territories.

sectionalism

(1800-1860)Loyalty to one's own region of the country, rather than to the nation as a whole. Different parts of the country developing unique and separate cultures (as the North, South and West). Occurred due differences in economic development and moral issues surrounding slavery and therefore conflict over political issues such as the power of government (states v. federal) over issues such as taxation and slavery.

Tallmadge Amendment

(1819) During the Missouri Compromise debate, Rep. Tallmadge of NY proposed an amendment to the bill for Missouri's admission to the Union, prohibited the further introduction of slaves into Missouri and would have mandated the emancipation of slaves' offspring born after the state was admitted. Southern Senators blocked it and were very upset as it was to them a message that northerners were attempting to limit slavery - will be similar Wilmot Proviso in 1846 over the new lands gained in the Mexican War.

Personal Liberty Laws

(1824-1850's) Laws passed increasingly in the north to allow for fugitive or free blacks to have a trial by jury or to allow whites forced to support the capture of runaway slaves to refuse to do so. After the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 many forbade the imprisonment of runaway slaves and guaranteed that they would have jury trials. Response of northern states to the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, was an example of northern resistance - the "nullification" of federal laws deemed unjust. This also fits the "civil disobedience" promoted by transcendentalist, Henry David Thoreau.

Gag Rule

(1836-1844) President Andrew Jackson of Tennessee made it illegal to talk of abolition or anti-slavery arguments in Congress. Created a procedure in the House of Reps by which antislavery petitions were automatically tabled when received so that they could not become the subject of debate. Signifies the growing divisiveness of the slavery issue in the 1830's and 1840's AND coincides with Texas (slave republic) gaining its independence and asking to be added to the Union.

Liberty Party

(1839-1848) Formed by northerners to bring about the eventual abolition of slavery, but short-term hoped to halt the expansion of slavery into the territories and abolish the domestic slave trade. Expansion west increased the issue of slavery in the territories reflecting the fight over who could control its expansion - the states or federal government. It merged with the Free Soil Party in 1848

Manifest Destiny

(1845) Phrase coined by writer John O'Sullivan promoting in the publication "Annexation" arguing for the annexation of Texas and Oregon Territories. Argued that the US was destined (sent by God) to stretch across the continent spreading democracy, capitalism, and American society. Reflected in a growing westward movement of the country in the 1840s and lasting through the rest of the 19th century, leading to conflict with Britain (treaty) and Mexico (war and a treaty).

annexation

(1845) The formal act of acquiring something (especially territory) by conquest or occupation. Usually a declaration by government. In 1836, Texas won its independence from Mexico and immediate declared itself as an independent republic (country). However it also asked for the U.S. to annex it as a SLAVE STATE. This was refused until 1845 as northern concerns about the expansion of slavery in the U.S. - power in the U.S. Senate prevented it from happening.

Wilmot Proviso (provision)

(1846) Wilmot, a northern Democrat from Pennsylvania, proposed an amendment to the declaration of war on Mexico that slavery be prohibited in the areas taken from Mexico. This amendment passed in the House (twice) but failed in the Senate. (James Polk - was President) Created intense debate and animosity among Southerners who saw it as Northern intentions to limit slavery in the territories - especially by John C. Calhoun of South Carolina.

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

(1848) treaty signed by the U.S. and Mexico that officially ended the Mexican-American War; Mexico had to give up much of its northern territory to the U.S (Mexican Cession in ccluding Arizona, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, California and claims to Texas); in exchange the U.S. gave Mexico $15 million.

Fugitive Slave Act

(1850) a law that made it a crime to help runaway slaves; allowed for the arrest of escaped slaves in areas where slavery was illegal and required their return to slaveholders. THE MOST CONTROVERSIAL AND IRRITATING part of the Compromise of 1850 because it required all Americans to help return slaves or face prison/fines. This was a reinforcement of the original "fugitive slave clause" in the Constitution and provisions of the N.W. Ordinance that were supposed to guarantee the return of runaways into the north - protect S'rn property.

Ostend Manifesto

(1854) A declaration issued from Ostend, Belgium, by the U.S. ministers to BR, FR, & SP, stating the U.S. would be justified in seizing Cuba (had slavery & a lot of sugar plantations) if Spain did not sell it to the U.S. for $20 million; an aggressive foreign policy shift supported by pro-South Pres. Franklin Pierce. NOT carried through because the secret discussion became public and Northern anti-slave forces protested seeing it as a plot to add another slave state & southern control of the US Senate.

Republican Party

(1854) A party was formed that was against slavery expanding in the territories and the Kansas-Nebraska Act. Wanted Kansas to be admitted as a free state, and against popular sovereignty to decide on the issue of slavery; key focus was stopping the spread of slavery to the territories while maintaining it where it already was; comprised of anti-slave Demcracts; anti-slave Whigs and Free Soiler's. It was only a party of the north, which also included abolitionists - however, the official message was NOT to ABOLISH slavery - only limit it.

Kansas-Nebraska Act

(1854) Proposed by Stephen Douglas and passed by Congress; gave popular sovereignty to Kansas and Nebraska to organized land for a northern railroad; crippled Missouri Compromise of 1820 by allowing slavery above 36 degrees 36 mn line of latitude; Resulted in violence in the west ("Bleeding Kansas") with Northerners and Southerners racing to be in the majority there to determine the futures states status as free or slave. More importantly, it resulted in the formation of the Republican Party - northerners from multiple other parties who sought to repeal it and STOP THE SPREAD OF SLAVERY INTO THE WESTERN TERRITORIES.

Bleeding Kansas

(1856) A series of violent fights between pro-slavery and anti-slavery forces in Kansas who had moved to Kansas to try to influence the decision of whether or not Kansas would be a slave state or a free state according to"popular sovereignty" -an election held by the territorial government to set up a state constitution and include or not include slavery. Essentially the opening act (not official start) of the Civil War - federal soldiers were sent to control the fighting which did not stop until the wars end in 1865. Kansas actually had TWO governments at one time - each trying to submit constitutions to Congress.

Dred Scott v. Sanford

(1857) Supreme Court case that decided Scott could not sue for his freedom because he was property; living in free territory did not make him free; the US Congress did not have the power to prohibit slavery in federal territories and slaves AND all previous compromises over slavery were illegal, as private property, could not be taken away without due process; Since the Compromise of 1850, "popular sovereignty" was generally what N & S could agree on regarding slavery in the west. Southerners now much preferred this to popular sovereignty and the notion that slavery could be anywhere!

Lincoln Douglas Debates

(1858) Senate Debate, Lincoln forced Douglas to debate the issue of slavery, and after the Dred Scott ruling asked Douglas he supported pop-sovereignty - letting the people decide the issue or the S.C. courts ruling - no limits on slavery. Lincoln asserted that slavery should not spread to territories. Lincoln emerged as a strong Republican candidate because of his speaking ability and arguments against slavery even though he lost the election to be state Senator of ILL.

Freeport Doctrine

(1858) a statement made by Stephen Douglas during the Lincoln-Douglas debates in Freeport, ILL that reinforced that the people (popular sovereignty) could still determine if their state or territory should permit slavery even though the S.C. decision in the Dred Scott case determined it could not be limited anywhere. Douglas, a presidential hopeful in 1860 lost all chances of winning as Southerners rejected even a choice of the people to limit slavery.

Harpers Ferry Raid

(1859) Federal arsenal (military ammunition warehouse) in Virginia was seized by abolitionist John Brown in 1859. Brown was convinced that slavery would never go away but with bloodshed. He hoped to incite a slave rebellion by bringing them weapons and fighting in the Appalachian mountains to attack slavery owners in the South. Though Brown was later captured and executed, his raid alarmed Southerners In the north he was condemned and seen as a hero/martyr by northern abolitionists. Southerners were alarmed and frightened believing that Northerners shared in Brown's extremism. The southern response was to begin to organize state militias for defense.

Election of 1860

(1860) Divided by the issue over slavery, this event saw a Democrats split into N & S factions, the formation of the Constitutional Union Party and ended with the first Republican Party candidate (Lincoln) winning the presidency on the party goal of limiting slavery to where it was and not allowing further expansion into the territories. Lincoln was not on the ballot in any southern state. In response, South Carolina and then six other deep south states responded by seceding from the Union and forming the Confederate States of America the same year.

Confederate States of America

(1860) Formed in response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as Republican president after South Carolina seceded in response to his election. Jefferson Davis was elected its president with the original seven states being SC, GA, AL, MS, LA, TX, FL. After Lincoln called for federal troops to go to SC after the attack on Ft. Sumter, FOUR other states seceded to make the total ELEVEN - VA, NC, TENN, and ARK. Four other slave states did not secede as slavery was less intense and dedication to the union was more mixed there. These would be known as the "border states".

Crittendon Compromise

(1860) Proposed by Senator John Crittendon advocating a plan to restore the Union in 1860 by 1) restoring the Missouri Compromise 36.30 line to the pacific; 2) guarantee protection of slavery in south west territories not yet acquired; 3) federal compensation to owners of escaped slaves 4) constitutional amendment forever prohibiting federal gov't from abolishing/regulating slavery in states. Rejected by Lincoln who was not yet sworn in as president and most southern leaders.

Confiscation Acts

(1861 & 1862) Laws passed by Union federal gov't that stated any Confederate property could be seized by federal forces, including slaves; second of these acts authorized the seizure of all property of persons in rebellion. This meant that all slaves that fought or worked for the Confederate military were freed whenever they were "confiscated" by Union troops. Confiscating slaves brought up the question of what would happen to them - would they be free permanently or returned. This would be answered with the Emancipation Proclamationi 1863.

Writ of Habeas Corpus

(1861) A constitutional protection and Latin term meaning "you shall have the body". A court order directing a police officer, sheriff, or warden who has a person in custody to bring the prisoner before a judge and show sufficient cause for his or her detention. This was suspended by Lincoln (without congressional approval as strictly mentioned in the Constitution) during the Civil War to suppress resistance to the war effort in the Border States. A significant first in the expansion of Presidential powers.

Fort Sumter

(1861) Federal fort in the harbor of Charleston, South Carolina and surrounded by SC armed forced in an attempt to take control of it. Lincoln refused to give it up - tried to resupply it with food. Southern response was an order by Confederate Pres. Jeffferson Davis to attack and take it by force. This was the beginning of the Civil War and marked the South as being in "rebellion". Allows for Lincoln to use force to suppress the Southern rebelling states and calls for a federal army to do so.

Anaconda Plan

(1861) Northern Civil War strategy to starve the South by 1) blockading the southern coast & seaports 2) splitting the Confederacy in two by controlling the Mississippi River and 3) capturing the capitol city of Richmond, VA. This plan would prove to be successful over time and really hurt the Confederacy economically as it increasingly could not export cotton for sale or buy war materials it could not make in its mainly agricultural economy.

Border States

(1861) States bordering the North: Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky and Missouri (the Ohio River) and Maryland and Delaware south of the Pennsylvania border. Here there was slavery BUT loyalty to the Union and secession never occurred as they were politically and a mix of Unionists and secessionists. Holding these states was vital to the Union so that the industry and waterways they were connected to could not support the Confederacy. Because of their importance, Lincoln was careful about how he dealt with the slavery issue and kept a strong military hold on them - "martial law".

Emancipation Proclamation

(1863) An executive order taking effect January 1, 100 days after his announcement of it. Stated: 1) slaves in "rebelling states" shall be freed unless they return to the Union; 2) his action is taken as commander in chief with the assistance of the military to suppress the rebellion. 3) allows blacks to enlist in the army. Excludes (did not mention the border states, keeping them on the side of the union, prevents foreign powers from entering the war for slavery, provides a rationale that northerners could better identify - freeing - taking away slaves that supported the effort and could devastate their economy. THUS RESTORE THE UNION!

Sherman's March to Sea

(1864) An movement of the Union army troops by Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman from Chattanooga, TN to Atlanta, and finally the coast at Savanah, with the object of destroying Confederate supplies destruction of railroads, factories, cotton gins, houses, livestock, crops and anything else that might be useful to the South in the war. This was an example of the total war that the North waged, using all of its resources to cripple Southern economy and society - reduce the will and ability of Southerners to fight.

Peace Democrats

(1864) Election of 1864, these people - also known as "Copperheads", opposed Lincoln and the Union (Republican) Party and destruction of the war; 2) proposed reuniting the states through negotiation - allow the Confederation its independence and keep slavery; 3) chose Gen. McClellan (several times fired by Lincoln) as their candidate who was popular with soldiers. The was going badly for the Union with no clear end in site; fortunate victories by Sherman in taking Atlanta and Savanah, GA as well as the capture of Mobile, AL on the Gulf helped bring enough votes to win Lincoln a second term in office.

Compact Theory

(19th C) The idea advanced by Rousseau, Locke, and Jefferson, that the new constitution in 1787 was formed by an agreement (compact) between the federal government and the people/states to share power and that revolution is justified if gov't breaks the compact by exceeding its authority. Southern states felt that increasingly, the federal government was taking on too much power and will eventually secede over the issue of slavery.

Appomattox Courthouse

(April 9. 1865) In Virginia, the site of Robert E. Lee's army of the surrender the Army of Northern Virginia to Union Gen. Grant Grant's troops ending most major resistance in the East. Grant was merciful and respectful at the surrender, allowing Lee's men to keep their horses for the spring plowing. Grant also discouraged the cheers of his soldiers, saying that "the rebels are our countryman again".

Battle of Vicksburg (1863)

(July 4, 1863) Confederate forces surrender to Ulysses S. Grant after a long siege of this city on the banks of the Mississippi River and the Union gains control of the Mississippi River and splits the confederacy in two - east from west. This occurred one day after the critical Union victory at Gettysburgh, PA - A key part of the Anaconda Plan achieved! This allowed the Union to virtually stop all trade from & into the interior of the Confederacy.

Compromise of 1850

(MF) by Daniel Webster, California wanted to join the Union, but if California was accepted the North would gain control of the Senate, and Southerners threatened to secede from the Union. This compromise set up California joining the Union as a free state, New Mexico and Utah use popular sovereignty to decide the question of slavery, slave trading is banned in the nation's capital, The Fugitive Slave Law is passed, and the border between Texas and New Mexico was set.

Gettysburg Address

(Nov. 1863) A 3-minute speech by Abraham Lincoln for the dedication of a national cemetery after the Battle of Gettysburgh, PA. Indicated that the war's purpose was to bring about a "new birth of freedom" (referencing the emancipation of slaves) and to reaffirm the superiority of the national government over individual states., and emphasized a renewed his commitment to winning the Civil War for a "new birth of freedom". Lincoln's war goal was to always focus on restoring the Union and never to say it was about abolishing slavery. This message though - after the Emancipation Proclamation - still emphasized Union, but a Union that was closer t the ideals set forth by the founding fathers.

state's rights

All rights kept by the states under the Constitution. Supporters of states' rights sometimes argued that states were not obliged to honor federal laws that they believed violated the Constitution. It was also linked to Compact Theory which held the belief that states could voluntarily leave the Union if the contract with the Federal government protecting their rights was violated. Associated with the 10th Amendment.

Lincoln's Assasination

April 14, 1865 - 5 days after Lee surrendered; part of a larger conspiracy of ten confederates sympathizers whose targets also included Vice president Johnson and Secretary of State Seward, killed at Ford's theater by John Wilkes Booth with a goal to destabilize the entire Union government.

9th Amendment

Asserts the existence of un-enumerated (unlisted) rights retained by the people.; A statement that other rights aside from those listed may exist, and just because they are not listed doesn't mean they can be violated.

Free Soil Party

Formed in 1847-1848 from the remnants of the Liberty Party in 1848; adopting a slogan of "free soil, free speech, free labor, and free men," it opposed the spread of slavery into territories gained from the Mexican Cession and supported free homesteads, and internal improvements. It ran Martin Van Buren (1848) for president and was absorbed into the Republican Party starting in 1854.

Battle of Gettysburg

Lee invaded Pennsylvania, bloodiest battle of the war, Confederate Pickett's Charge (disastrous), Lee forced to retreat (not pursued by Meade), South doomed to never invade North again, considered the turning point of the war

Upper South

Refers to 8 of the Southern states: Virginia, Delaware, Maryland, North Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee, Missouri, and Arkansas. Tended to have fewer slaves and more yeomen farmers with political power. Accounted for two-thirds of the South's white population, more than three-fourths of its industrial production, and more than half of its food and fuel.

popular sovereignty

The concept of the settlers of a newly organized territory have the right to decide weather to accept slavery. [Promoted as a solution to the slavery question, popular sovereignty became a fiasco in Kansas Territory in the 1850's., Federal policy where residents in the western territories would hold local elections to vote and decide whether the territory would allow or abolish slavery. This concept allowed for compromise over slavery's expansion in the west after the Mexican American War.

secession

The formal withdrawal of a state from the Union. Supported by the 'states rights' advocates that the Union formed by the ratification of the Constitution in 1787 by each of the states was by their choice and an agreement to a contract allowing the federal government greater powers as long as the rights of states were respected. Secessionists argued they could choose to secede when federal government broke the contract - just as the chose to get in.

Republic of Texas

The nation established in 1836 when American settlers in the Mexican province of Texas declared and fought for their independence, also commonly known at that time as the "Lone Star Republic." Requested to be formally added to the U.S. (annexed) as a state but was refused until 1845 for fear of causing tension between N & S sections over the issue of slavery.

Civil Disobedience (Thoreau)

The refusal to obey a law out of a belief that the law is morally wrong. Author Henry David Thoreau wrote an important essay justifying such action. In 1846, he refused to pay a Massachusetts "poll tax" and was briefly put in jail. This tax he believed was being used to fund the Mexican American War. "The only obligation which I have a right to assume is to do at any time what I think right."

13th Amendment

This post-Civil War amendment freed all slaves without compensation to the slaveowners. It legally forbade slavery in the United States January 1, 1865.