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Causes of the Civil
Term | Definition |
---|---|
Wilmot Proviso | Legislation in 1846 that attempted to ban slavery in any territories won by the United States from Mexico. The vote was split on sectional alliances. |
Compromise of 1850 | agreement over slavery by which California joined the Union as a free state and a strict fugitive slave law was passed. |
Fugitive Slave Act | Law passed in 1850 that required all citizens to aid in the capture of runaway slaves |
Popular Sovereignty | In the mid 1800s, a term referring to the idea that each territory could decide for itself whether or not to allow slavery |
Sectionalism | Loyalty to a state or section rather than to the whole country |
Kansas-Nebraska Act | An 1854 law that established the territories of Nebraska and Kansas, giving the settlers the right of popular sovereignty to decide on the issue of slavery |
States' Rights | The right of states to limit the power of the federal government |
Republican Party | Political party established in the United States in 1854 with the goal of keeping slavery out of the western territories |
Dred Scot v. Sanford | An 1857 Supreme Court case that brought into question the federal power over slavery in the territories |
Missouri Compromise | 1820 agreement, proposed by Henry Clay, to keep the number of slave and free states equal |
John Brown's Raid | In 1859, the radical abolitionist John Brown led a group of followers to the town of Harpers Ferry, VA where he planned to raid a federal arsenal, give enslaved African Americans weapons, and lead them in a revolt. |
Platform | A statement of the policies favored by a political party or candidate |
Secede | To withdraw from membership in a group |
Confederate States of America | At a convention in Montgomery, AL, seven states including South Carolina, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas formed a new nation |
Bleeding Kansas | Pro-slavery and Anti-slavery settlers in Kansas engaged in guerrilla warfare, attacking and killing one another. More then 200 people were killed. |
Uncle Tom's Cabin | An 1852 novel by Harriet Beecher Stowe written to show the evils of slavery and the injustice of the Fugitive Slave Act. |