Civil War Causes and Consequences Flashcards

Causes of the Civil War

• Sectionalism: Growing regional identity in the U.S. between 1820 and 1860 as the North industrialized and the South depended on slavery due to the cotton gin, leading to heightened tensions.
• Westward Expansion: Mid-1800s migration driven by the search for gold, land, and prosperity ignited debates over the extension of slavery into new territories, a significant catalyst for the Civil War.
• Slavery: The Southern economy's reliance on slave labor increased, particularly after the cotton gin's invention, propelling the abolition movement in the North and exacerbating sectional conflict.

Key Concepts and Events

• Manifest Destiny: The belief held in the mid-19th century that it was America's divine mission to expand westward to the Pacific, fostering a sense of entitlement that led to territorial conflicts.
• Abolition Movement: A robust reform initiative aimed at ending slavery, predominantly supported by Northerners. Key figures included Frederick Douglass and William Lloyd Garrison, gaining momentum amid westward expansion issues.
• Missouri Compromise: Established in 1820 to balance free and slave states by admitting Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state; created the 36°30' line to determine the status of future states, later dismantled by subsequent events.

Legislative Compromises and Their Fallout

• Popular Sovereignty: Concept allowing territories to decide the slavery issue via majority vote, undermining the Missouri Compromise and leading to further discord over slavery in new states.
• Compromise of 1850: A suite of legislative measures addressing tensions over California's admission as a free state, notably strengthening the Fugitive Slave Act, which intensified Northern opposition to slavery.
• Fugitive Slave Act: Enacted in 1850, it mandated that escaped slaves be returned to their owners, inciting anger among abolitionists and promoting resistance through the Underground Railroad.

Resistance and Violence

• Underground Railroad: A network facilitating the escape of enslaved individuals to free states, with Harriet Tubman as a prominent conductor aiding many to safety.
• Uncle Tom's Cabin: A pivotal novel published in 1852 by Harriet Beecher Stowe illustrating the harsh realities of slavery, mobilizing public sentiment against the institution and spurring the abolition movement.
• Kansas-Nebraska Act: Passed in 1854, it allowed settlers in Kansas and Nebraska to use popular sovereignty to decide on slavery, leading to violent confrontations in "Bleeding Kansas."

Violent Confrontations and Legal Decisions

• "Bleeding Kansas": Violent conflicts erupted in Kansas after the Kansas-Nebraska Act, fueled by pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions vying for legislative control, exemplified by figures like John Brown.
• Dred Scott Decision: In the landmark 1857 Supreme Court case, the court ruled that an enslaved African American had no legal standing to sue for his freedom and that the federal government could not prohibit slavery in the territories, nullifying the Missouri Compromise.

Abraham Lincoln's Role

• Abraham Lincoln: During his Senate campaign, he stated that the nation could not endure as "half slave and half free," highlighting the deep divisions over slavery and foreshadowing the impending conflict.