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Chapter 11: Sectional Conflict Increases

Chapter 11: Sectional Conflict Increases. (1845-1861). Secton 1: An Uneasy Balance. Pages: 344-349. Former president John Quincy Adams was a Massachusetts representative in Congress when he recalled how the House came to adopt the so-called “gag rule.”

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Chapter 11: Sectional Conflict Increases

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  1. Chapter 11: Sectional Conflict Increases (1845-1861) Secton 1: An Uneasy Balance Pages: 344-349

  2. Former president John Quincy Adams was a Massachusetts representative in Congress when he recalled how the House came to adopt the so-called “gag rule.” • The gag rule prohibited “all petitions, memorials, and papers, relating to the abolition of slavery or the slave trade” from being debated, printed, read, or even mentioned in Congress

  3. THE DEBATE REOPENS (344-345) • The gag rule was a clear example of the mounting tensions over the issue of slavery • Congress admitted Arkansas and Michigan to the Union without dispute in 1836 and 1837 • The balance of power in Congress remained the same because Michigan was a free-state and Arkansas was a slave-state • Congressional debates over slavery at times ended in violence; some representatives carried Bowie Knives into the House chamber

  4. THE DEBATE REOPENS (344-345) • The Annexation of Texas (344) a) Further trouble arose when the Republic of Texas petitioned for annexation to the United States b) The addition of Texas, which permitted slavery, would tip the balance of power in the Senate toward the slave states c) Northerners opposed annexation of Texas because of the slavery issue d) Congress not only admitted Texas as a slave state but said the Texas state legislature could divide Texas into as many as FIVE states if it wished – adding to the slave states e) Slavery was banned in the Louisiana Territory according to the Missouri Compromise

  5. An Uneasy Balance • THE DEBATE REOPENS (344-345 • Popular sovereignty and the Wilmot Proviso: (345) a) The prospect of victory in the Mexican War revived the debate of whether slavery would be allowed in any territory acquired from Mexico. b) Pro-slavery and antislavery forces in Congress quickly took sides

  6. THE DEBATE REOPENS (344-345 • Popular sovereignty and the Wilmot Proviso: (345) c)President James K. Polk and others suggested extending the Missouri Compromise Line westward to the Pacific Ocean d)Michigan senator Lewis Cass and Illinois senator Stephen Douglas proposed instead that the territories rely on Popular Sovereignty – this would allow citizens of each new territory to vote on whether to permit slavery or not e)Neither proposal satisfied those strongly opposed to slavery

  7. THE DEBATE REOPENS (344-345 • Popular sovereignty and the Wilmot Proviso: (345) f)In August of 1846, as the House began to consider a bill authorizing funds to buy territory from Mexico, Representative David Wilmot of Pennsylvania introduced an amendment to that bill g)His Wilmot Proviso banned slavery in all lands that would be acquired from Mexico h)Southern states threatened to secede (leave the Union) if it became law. Other Southern politicians suggested cutting off all commercial relations with the North and others proposed refusing to pay debts owed to northern banks and merchants • The Wilmot Proviso was cut from the final bill

  8. THE 1848 ELECTION: (345-346) • As the presidential election of 1848 approached, Congress still had not decided whether slavery would be allowed in the Mexican Cession • Democrats choose Lewis Cass as their presidential nominee – Cass favored popular sovereignty and had publicly denounced the Wilmot Proposal • Whigs nominated General Zachary Taylor – Taylor made no public statements regarding the Wilmot Proviso, leading some to say he has NO support from either the South or the North • The Free-Soil Party nominated Martin Van Buren– was formed by Whigs and Democrats who were against slavery. The Free-Soil Party demanded that Congress prohibit the expansion of slavery into the new territories • Zachary Taylor wins Election of 1848

  9. THE SLAVERY ISSUE IN CONGRESS (346) • When Congress assembled in December of 1849, tempers ran high over the slavery issue 4) Mexican Cession: The question of California and New Mexico either being added as a Free or Slave State? a)California wanted to be a free-state and what about New Mexico? b)Antislavery members of Congress pushed to ban slavery from these territories. c)Southern members of Congress demanded a resolution affirming the right of settlers there to own slaves d)Texas became a source of conflict again, as Texas claimed that its western boundary extended into an area the federal government considered part of New Mexico Territory

  10. CLAY’S PROPOSAL (346-347) • Henry Clay a member of Congress who urged northerner and southern senators to compromise • Daniel Webster, Clay’s rival, and veteran Whig leader, met with Clay and presented a plan for satisfying both northern and southern interests • Clay presented his proposal to the Senate • His proposal is on the next slide

  11. CLAY’S PROPOSAL (346-347) 5) CLAY’S PROPOSAL: a)Proposed admitting California as a free state and abolishing the slave trade – not slavery itself – in the District of Columbia b)Clay advocated paying Texas $10 Million to abandon its claim to part of the New Mexico Territory c)To persuade Southerners to accept the Texas term above, Clay suggested that the New Mexico Territory be divided into two territories – New Mexico and Utah – on the basis of popular sovereignty d) Finally, he wanted Congress to pass a tougher fugitive slave law. This Law would force state and local officials as well as private citizens to aid federal officials in the capture and return of escaped slaves

  12. CLAY’S PROPOSAL (346-347) • CLAY’S PROPOSAL: • Clay closed his speech by urging lawmakers to put aside their sectional differences and prevent the breakup of the UNION • Despite Clay’s pleas, angry calls from both northern and southern lawmakers supported the end of the UNION • Northerners that wanted the Union to breakup were called ABOLITIONISTS • Southerners who wanted the Union to dissolve were called Fire-Eaters – a group of southern political leaders who held extreme PRO-SLAVERY views • Fire-Eaters wanted slavery to be protected by federal law or constitutional amendment • As early as the 1830s, the fire-eaters had called for the secession and the formation of a southern confederacy

  13. THE GREAT DEBATE IN CONGRESS (348-349) • Congress heatedly debated Clay’s Proposal • John C. Calhoun did not like Clay’s Proposal • John C. Calhoun was the South’s elder statesman and a leading fire-eater with pro-slavery views • John C. Calhoun who served in the House of Representatives, the Senate, secretary of war, and vice president. • By the 1820s Calhoun was a supporter of southern rights • He believed the only adequate guarantee for the South’s rights was a dual presidency. One president would come from the North and one from the South

  14. An Uneasy Balance • THE GREAT DEBATE IN CONGRESS (348-349) • President Zachary Taylor, who opposed Clay’s compromise proposal, died suddenly in 1850. • His successor, Vice President Millard Fillmore, favored Clay’s Compromise Proposal • By September 20, Congress had passed Clay’s measures, known as the Compromise of 1850

  15. THE END

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