Timeline Of Events Leading To The Civil War
Published on Nov 20, 2015
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Northwest Ordinance (1787)
This agreement made the Northwest Territory, all the land north of the Ohio River, free states, where slavery was banned. This ordinance was the beginning of the dividing of the North and the South into slave states and free states. This division of the two later lead to the Civil War because of the fact that the two not being able to settle their differences.
Missouri Compromise (1820)
In response to Missouri constantly seeking to become a state, and there already being an equal amount of slave states and free states, the Missouri Compromise was passed. This made Missouri a slave state, but added Maine to the Union as a free state, which maintained the balance of slave and free states. Again, this illustrates the struggle to keep a divided nation together, which ended up failing and leading to the Civil War.
Texas Annexation (February 1845)
Ten years after Texas won independence from Mexico, America added Texas as part of the U.S.. Texas was confirmed as a slave state, which didn't settle well with the North, and raised anxiety between the North and the South. Still, the North wanted more westward expansion, and therefore hesitantly added Texas as U.S. territory to expand. These anxieties were the cause of the Civil War, for eventually the North and the South could not hold together.
Photo by Charles Henry
Mexican American War (May 1845)
The Mexican American War was fought over what the boundaries between America and Mexico would be, and was declared when President James K. Polk was attacked when he crossed over onto Mexican territory and was attacked by Mexican troops. Both the South and the West favored the war, because it could lead to more expansion, while the North hated the idea, claiming that Polk and the South and West were only trying to expand slavery. Though there was disagreement with the idea of the war, Polk continued to fight it, which sent outrage throughout the North. That same outrage was the leading cause for the Civil War, for the South and the North continued to disagree on topics.
Wilmot Proviso (August 1846)
With all the new land gained from the Mexican American War, America had to decide if this territory would be considered slave or free land. The Wilmot Proviso was a proposal made by a North Representative in the house to Congress saying that the land should be made free land, for the North feared if slavery was allowed, the South would become too strong. Though it was dismissed, the South considered this proposal as a attack on slavery, which continued to happen and lead to the Civil War.
Photo by theabyun
Free Soil Party (Summer 1848)
The Free Soil Party was an antislavery political party created by the North that wanted the new territory gained by the Mexican American War to be "free soil", or be non-slave states/land. The observed bitterness the North has against slavery, and therefore against the South, is ultimately what started the Civil War. This aggression for one another eventually could not be held back any longer.
Photo by Vironevaeh
Compromise of 1850 (September 1850)
The Compromise of 1850 was made to ease both the North and the South, by giving the North, California as a free state and the banning of slave trades in the Capitol, and giving the South popular sovereignty on the Mexican Cession land, and the Fugitive Slave Act. This compromise failed miserably, infuriating the North terribly with the Fugitive Slave Act. There was no solution for the extreme differences in the opinions of the North and the South.
Photo by Aidan Jones
Fugitive Slave Act (September 1850)
In the an effort to please the South, the Compromise of 1850 made the Fugitive Slave Act law, which allowed government officials to capture/arrest anyone who is claimed to be a runaway slave, throughout America. The North despised this law, and their anger grew immensely as they witnessed the harsh reality of being a slave. Many rebellions occurred against the law, and the North would just not stand for this treatment being inflicted on any person. These rebellions continued until the Civil War became their rebellion.
Photo by Leo Reynolds
Republican Party is Founded (1854)
After the Whigs disintegrated, a new political party, the Republicans was formed as a replacement. The Republicans didn't believe in slavery, and continuously criticized the inhumane treatment given to southern slaves, and tried to stop the spreading of slavery into the West, having strong support in the North. This lead to the Civil War after Republican Abraham Lincoln was elected president, and southern states seceded from the nation in disagreement with the party's beliefs.
Photo by Kanzis
Kansas Nebraska Act (1854)
The Kansas Nebraska Act declared two new territories in the West, the Nebraska Territory and the Kansas Territory, in which both territories would be free or slave states depending on popular sovereignty. This act shattered the Missouri Compromise, and enraged the North, for they feared only southerners would move into the territory, and expand the South, thus making them stronger in politics. The anger later lead to the Civil War, for both couldn't handle the major differences of the other.
Bleeding Kansas (1855)
After the Kansas-Nebraska Act, both anti-slavery and pro-slavery settlers moved into the nation, hoping to win the vote. But the election became rigged, and soon both sides were starting rebellions and attacks on the other side, trying to win over the territory, and therefore got the territory got the name, "Bleeding Kansas". These behaviors illustrate how there was no tolerance between. The two beliefs for the other, which resulted in the Civil War, where they eventually overcame their differences.
Dred Scott Decision (1857)
In the case Dred Scott vs. Sandford, Dred Scott was the slave suing for his freedom from his master, who lived in Illinois, a free state where slavery was illegal. The final decision shocked everybody, for the Supreme Court decided that Dred Scott could not have his freedom for his was property and therefore did not have the right to sue, along with saying the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional, allowing slavery in all U.S. territory. The North naturally had a very bad reaction to this ruling, and these reactions did not stop until the reaction against the South became the Civil War.
Photo by House Divided Project
Election of 1860 (November 1860)
This election really points out how divided the nation had become. In the South, citizens began throwing eggs and rotten fruit at anti-slavery Stephen Douglas, being very hostile. In the North, the same was done to slavery candidate John Beckridge. People had either one view or another and eventually both sides had to fight a war called the Civil War to come together again as a nation.
Photo by mulberrymint
