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Compromise of 1850
The compromise of 1850 was proposed by Henry Clay. It showed a delicate balance of interests between the North and South. In it, the North received California as a free state, the Territory disputed by Texas and New Mexico was given to New Mexico, and the slave trade was banned in Washington, DC. The South received the remainder of the Mexican cessation, which became the territories of New Mexico and Utah and were open to slavery and popular sovereignty. They also received $10 million. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
The Kansas-Nebraska Act was proposed by Stephen A. Douglas, a senator from Illinois. It said that the territory of Nebraska would be split into Kansas and Nebraska and that these states would decide the issue of slavery by popular sovereignty. This proposal completely contradicted the Missouri Compromise. The South supported it because it was a way to gain back lost momentum in the Senate and get an even say in Congress. -
Bleeding Kansas
Bleeding Kansas, begun in 1856, was an influx of people into the Kansas-Nebraska Territory to influence and force into action popular sovreignty. It was a direct result of the Kansas-Nebraska Act, and was insanity. Eventually, Kansas was admitted as a slave state and Nebraska as a free state, but the skirmishes were, in a sense, the beginning of the Civil War. -
Brown raids Harper's Ferry
John Brown was, pretty much, a lunatic that thought up a scheme to invade the South, free slaves, encourage them to rebel, arm them with weapons, and establish a black free state. This plan was abad idea. At Harper's Ferry, Brown seized the federal arsenal, killing seven people, and injuring ten or more. The slaves, unlike what Brown predicted, didn't rebel, and he and his followers were captured by the US Marines. Brown was convicted of murder and treason and was hanged. -
Fort Sumter
Fort Sumter was a fort in the Charleston area of South Carolina and one of the very few forts still held by the Union after the secession of the South. It couldn't hold out for long, maybe only a few weeks, and Lincoln decided to send supplies to keep the fort going. However, the South saw that as sending reinforcements and fired on the fort. Having no supplies and little troops, the fort surrendered to the South. -
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The Civil War
The American Civil War was the most bloody war of American history and was fought between brothers, splitting homes, towns, states, and the entire country. The causes of this war were numerous, and the result was over 600,000 dead, all American. -
First Battle of Bull Run
The First Battle of Bull Run or First Manassas, as seen by the Confederates, was the first major battle of the Civil War. A few significant facts about this battle was it was really the first battle, and featured Stonewall Jackson. This battle is where he got his famous nickname. The Confederates won this battle for several reasons, a few of which being they knew the territory and had superior fighters and commanders. -
Antietam
Antietam was the single most bloody day in American history, resulting in over 23,000 soldiers, Union and Confederate, dead. People were fighting on top of other dead bodies and one could practically walk a mile and not have to touch the ground because everything would be bodies.Because of the casualty list, the result of the battle was in conclusive, but strategically, it was a Union victory. Another result of this battle was Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation. -
Sherman's March through Georgia
General Sherman is one general who believed in total war, and the chaos he created throughout Georgia outlines that principle. He burned everything, towns and fields, and killed and pillaged everywhere he went. It wasn't a battle and it certainly wasn't ordered by the Union, but he did it anyway, creating chaos and nto helping the situation at hand at all. -
Surrender at Appomattox Court House
The Battle of Appomattox Court House was the last of the Civil War, resulting in the surrender of General Robert E. Lee, along with all of his troops. The war ended there as General Ulysses S. Grant outsmarted and surrounded Lee. The surrender was formal, in the parlor of a house owned by Wilmer McLean and involved the disbandment of all troops, ending the war in Virginia. -
Gettsburg Address
The Gettysburg Address was one of the most famous speeches 16th President Abraham Lincoln gave. It was short, about two and half minutes, but said more than the person before him did. The dedication of the Gettysburg Cemetary was grim and grisly, but Abraham Lincoln swore to maintain the unity of the country there, and he was not ever forgotten for it.
