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-Uncle Tom's Cabin was a novel written by Harriet Beecher Stower that showcases the oppressive life of a slave named Uncle Tom and gained support for the emotional and moral impact it had on readers. -This novel brought upon opposing views, with some believing that the novel was biased and untruthful, while some sympathized with the slaves. -This led to further tension between the North and South, fanning the flames of the Civil War that was to come. -
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-The Republican Party was formed in 1854 by former members of the Whig Party. The party aimed to limit the spread of slavery in the States, and the new territories they were gaining toward the West. -The Republican Party was more favored by the North and their views. Abraham Lincoln was a member of this Party and would win the election of 1860, which outraged Southern states.
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-The Kansas-Nebraska Act was proposed by Senator Stephen A. Douglas, and let the territories of Kansas and Nebraska decide if they would allow slavery. -This Act repealed the previous Missouri Compromise, as it was now left up to popular sovereignty whether or not states/territories would allow slavery. -This led to further conflicts between the North and South, more focused now on the decision of slavery in Kansas territory.
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-"Bloody Kansas" was the title of the conflict that broke out in Kansas territory between the pro-slavery and anti-slavery sides of the US. -The conflict began when pro-slavery forces from the South went into Kansas to hope to sway the vote in their favor through violence. Anti-slavery forces from the North came in retaliation. -Both sides were killing the other in hopes of having the decision of slavery in their favor.
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-The Election of 1856 had 3 candidates: James Buchanan of the Democratic Party, John Fremont of the Republican Party, and Millard Fillmore of the Whig/Know-Nothing Party. -The winner of the election was James Buchanan, as he had majority support from the States aside from some Midwest and Northern states.
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-The Brooks-Sumner Incident was an attack that occurred on the Senate floor when Preston Brookes beat Charles Sumner with a cane after Sumner gave a speech and criticized pro-slavery South Carolinians. -The attack was encouraged and cheered on by members who were in Senate at the time of the attack. -This attack was one of, if not the first major example of a physical altercation caused by politics in the US government.
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-The Dred Scott v. Sanford case was started when Scott–a slave in free territory–tried to sue for his freedom from his owner. -The case decided that as Scott was at one point a slave, he was still a slave and was only property. Therefore, he did not have the authority to sue in the Supreme Court. -It also restated that Congress did not have the power to manage laws relating to slavery, since slaves were seen as property. -It led to further division between abolitionist views and pro-slavery.
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-The House Divided Speech was given by Abraham Lincoln, in which he stated the troubles brough about by slavery and its spread in the Union. -He recognized that the US was divided by slavery in the North and South, and stated that if that division remained, the US would not be able to thrive. -
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-The Lincoln-Douglas Debates were a series of debates in Illinois between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas for a seat in Senate. -The debates focused on the issues of slavery, and the conflict that was arising from coming into new territories. -This debate led to Lincoln asking Douglas about whether or not slavery could be enforced by the Dred Scott law, and Douglas established the Freeport Doctrine.
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-The LeCompton Constitution was the second of four proposed constitutions for Kansas. It was drafted by people of pro-slavery views and aimed to force Kansas to be a slave state despite being voted as free. -President James Buchanan supported the constitution, which caused opposing views to worsen in the states. -Those in Kansas were against the Constitution and would support future ones that were drafted instead.
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-Harper's Ferry was the raid organized by John Brown to attack Harper's Ferry, steal the guns that were there, and arm the slaves to start a rebellion. -His plan would ultimately fan, as he was captured by a Virginian militia.
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-John Brown was executed by way of hanging following his capture after an unsuccessful attempt at a raid to free enslaved blacks. -His death had opposing views. Pro-slavery people thought his death was very deserved for trying to rebel against the government and take property. Some anti-slavery forces viewed Brown as a martyr who died for the larger cause of ending slavery.
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-The Election of 1860 had four main candidates: Abraham Lincoln of the Republican Party, John Breckinridge of the Southern Democratic Party, John Belt of the Constitutional Union Party, and Douglas of the Democratic Party. -Abraham Lincoln was the winner of this election, and as he had Northern Republican views, Southern states feared slavery would be threatened.
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-Lincoln's First Inaugural Address was given in direction to the states, but primarily the Southern States. -The purpose of the speech was to reassure the Southern States–which were threatening secession–that he would not interfere with slavery or try to get rid of it. -The larger purpose of the address was to limit conflicts so that a Civil War would not break out.
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-South Carolina was the first of many Southern States to secede from the US in fear of their rights to slavery and property being violated. -This group of states that seceded from the US became known as the Confederate States. -This was the start of the Civil War...