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The House Divided Speech was delivered by Lincoln at the Republican State Convention. Lincoln warned that the United States could not continue to exist half slave and half free. Arguing that the nation was becoming increasingly divided, and if conflict over slavery was not resolved, it would destroy the Union. Northerners admired Lincoln’s transparency on the danger of division. And Southerners saw it as confirmation that Lincoln wanted to end slavery, divisions later led to the Civil War.
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Lincoln’s First Inaugural Address was to reassure the South he would not interfere with slavery where it already existed but deemed secession as unconstitutional, promising to protect the Constitution’s protection over slavery. Slavery could remain in the South, but could not spread into the territories. Many Northerners believed that the address was firm, but Southerners rejected his reassurances, believing Lincoln still posed a threat; promoting armed conflict.
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Anti-slavery novel established by Harriet Beecher Stowe which exposed the cruel reality of slavery. It was very popular in the North, it had over 10,000 copies printed and stirred strong antislavery sentiments. On the other hand, in the South, Stowe’s novel was criticized and Southerners believed that it misrepresented slavery. The novel deepened the cultural and moral divide between North and South, characterizing slavery as a moral evil rather than just a political issue.
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Free-Soilers, anti-slavery Whigs, and Democrats met up to form the Republican Party after the Kansas-Nebraska Act. It gave Northerners a strong political voice against slavery’s expansion, and Southerners saw the party as sectional and dangerous, aiming to destroy slavery. The creation of this party secured the political division between Democrats and Republicans.
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Senator Stephen A. Douglas created Kansas-Nebraska Act, it repealed the Missouri Compromise of 1820. And allowed settlers in Kansas and Nebraska to decide on slavery in territories through popular sovereignty. Anti-slavery groups were formed in the North to resist it and gave slavery the chance to expand westward. Sparking violence in Kansas, divided the Democratic Party, and led to the establishment of the Republican Party.
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Pro-slavery and anti-slavery settlers fought for control of Kansas due to rising tensions about the issue of slavery. Northerners believed these acts of violence were proof that slavery corrupted democracy and promoted violence. And Southerners believed that Northerners were blocking their rights regarding slavery and the violence was justified. This violence showed both the North and the South that compromise no longer worked, giving them no other choice, but to resort to war.
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Senator Charles Sumner gave a strong anti-slavery speech and Representative Preston Brooks of South Carolina beat him unconscious with a cane in the Senate chamber. Northerners were outraged by the incident as Sumner was a martyr for free speech and anti-slavery. Southerners celebrated and saw Brooks as a hero and even sent Brooks replacement canes. This incident showed the reality of civil debate and highlighted the normalization of violence that slavery brought into national politics.
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The election of 1856 was between candidates Democrat James Buchanan and Republican John C. Frémont, Buchananon won the election, but Frément had strong support in the North. Northerners saw the rise of the Republican Party as a hope for stopping the spread of slavery. And Southerners were alarmed that the Republican Party almost won. This election further proved that the country was dividing politically along sectional lines.
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The Lecompton Constitution was drafted by pro-slavery settlers in Kansas to protect slavery. President Buchanan supported it, but many Northerners opposed it, they believed it was fraud and was proof that settlers in support of slavery would rig the system. Southerners felt betrayed when Douglas refused to support it after Congress rejected it in 1858, which caused divisions in the Democratic Party to worsen. This caused the party to fracture and help Lincoln win the election of 1860.
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The Sumpreme Court ruled against Dred Scott by a 7-2 decision, stating that African Americans were not U.S. citizens, enslaved or free; therefore Scott had no right to sue in federal court, and Congress did not have the authority to ban slavery in territories, making the Missouri Compromise unconstitutional. Northerners were upset, they were against slavery and Southerners were pleased by this decision, they were proslavery.
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The Lincoln-Douglas debates were Senate debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas over slavery. Lincoln gained fame in the North for his moral opposition to slavery’s expansion. Douglass presented the Freeport Doctrine, which allowed settlers to limit slavery despite the Dred Scott ruling. This debate increased Lincoln’s national reputation and widened the Democratic divide between the North and the South.
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Harper's Ferry Raid was led by abolitionist John Brown in which he failed to raid a federal arsenal to spark a slave rebellion. Many Northerners admired Brown’s moral courage, but others distanced themselves from his violence. Southerners believed Northern abolitionists would take extreme measures to end slavery. This raid convinced Southerners that their safety and slavery could not survive in the Union; therefore they wanted to fight for it.
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John Brown was executed for treason after he led the Harper’s Ferry Raid. Northerners rang church bells and honored Brown as a martyr for his courage and convinced Southerners that Northerners supported violent rebellion. And this compromise seemed impossible, as both sides supported completely opposing heroes.
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Abraham Lincoln was elected as the president of the Republican Party, winning without a single Southern electoral vote. Northerners were happy about Lincoln winning the election, as their free-soil principles were being supported. Southerners saw Lincoln’s victory as proof that they had lost permanent political power due to the strong support of Lincoln from the North. And later led to the southern succession and eventually the Civil War.
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South Carolina seceded after Lincoln won in the Election of 1860 followed by six more Deep South states due to the need to separate from the Union. Northerners hoped compromise would bring the states back to the Union and Southerners believed they were protecting slavery and their way of life. Secession eventually led to the creation of the Confederate States of America because secession meant the Union was broken and it needed to be fixed.