Glossary
14th Amendment
An amendment to the U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1868, that granted citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the United States, including former enslaved people.
Example:
The 14th Amendment was later passed to overturn the Dred Scott decision, ensuring birthright citizenship and equal protection under the law.
Abolitionist
A person who advocated for the complete and immediate end of slavery.
Example:
As a radical abolitionist, John Brown believed that violence was a necessary means to end the institution of slavery.
Bleeding Kansas
A series of violent civil confrontations in the Kansas Territory between 1854 and 1859, stemming from the debate over whether Kansas would enter the Union as a free or slave state.
Example:
The brutal events of Bleeding Kansas served as a grim preview of the larger Civil War to come, demonstrating the deadly consequences of popular sovereignty.
Border Ruffians
Pro-slavery activists from Missouri who crossed into Kansas to influence elections and intimidate anti-slavery settlers.
Example:
The Border Ruffians engaged in voter fraud and violence, attempting to ensure Kansas would become a slave state.
Caning of Senator Sumner
An 1856 incident in which Representative Preston Brooks attacked Senator Charles Sumner on the Senate floor with a cane, due to Sumner's anti-slavery speech.
Example:
The shocking Caning of Senator Sumner in the halls of Congress underscored the extreme passions and violence that the slavery debate had provoked.
Conscience Whigs
Northern Whigs who opposed slavery on moral grounds and were often critical of the Mexican-American War.
Example:
The Conscience Whigs found themselves increasingly at odds with their Southern counterparts, prioritizing moral opposition to slavery over party unity.
Cotton Whigs
Southern Whigs who supported slavery due to its economic importance to the South's cotton-based agriculture.
Example:
For the Cotton Whigs, the economic prosperity tied to slave labor outweighed any moral objections to the institution.
Dred Scott Decision
A landmark 1857 Supreme Court ruling that stated African Americans, whether enslaved or free, could not be American citizens and that Congress had no power to prohibit slavery in federal territories.
Example:
The infamous Dred Scott Decision invalidated the Missouri Compromise and intensified the national debate over slavery, pushing the nation closer to war.
Free-Soilers
A political party and movement that opposed the expansion of slavery into the western territories, advocating for free labor and free soil.
Example:
Free-Soilers migrated to Kansas, determined to counter the pro-slavery forces and establish a free state.
John Brown's Raid on Harpers Ferry
An 1859 attempt by abolitionist John Brown to initiate an armed slave revolt by taking over a United States arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia.
Example:
John Brown's Raid on Harpers Ferry terrified the South, confirming their fears of Northern aggression and abolitionist plots.
Kansas-Nebraska Act
A 1854 law that allowed voters in the Kansas and Nebraska territories to decide whether to permit slavery, effectively repealing the Missouri Compromise.
Example:
The Kansas-Nebraska Act ignited fierce debates, as it opened up new territories to the possibility of slavery, leading to violent clashes.
Lecompton Constitution
A pro-slavery constitution proposed for Kansas in 1857, which was highly controversial and ultimately rejected by Congress.
Example:
Despite widespread opposition, pro-slavery forces attempted to push through the Lecompton Constitution, further fueling tensions in Kansas.
Missouri Compromise
An 1820 agreement that admitted Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state, while prohibiting slavery in the Louisiana Purchase territory north of the 36°30′ parallel.
Example:
For decades, the Missouri Compromise had maintained a fragile balance, but its repeal by later acts shattered that peace.
Popular Sovereignty
The principle that the authority of a state and its government are created and sustained by the consent of its people, who are the source of all political power.
Example:
The idea of popular sovereignty in the territories sounded democratic, but in practice, it often led to intense conflict and violence over the issue of slavery.
Republican Party
A political party formed in the 1850s, primarily composed of anti-slavery Whigs, Free-Soilers, and abolitionists, dedicated to preventing the expansion of slavery.
Example:
Abraham Lincoln rose to prominence as a leader of the newly formed Republican Party, which quickly gained traction in the North.
Second Party System
The political party system in the United States from the 1820s to the 1850s, characterized by the dominance of the Democratic and Whig parties.
Example:
The Kansas-Nebraska Act proved to be the death knell for the Second Party System, as the Whig Party fractured beyond repair.
Sectionalism
Loyalty to one's own region or section of the country, rather than to the country as a whole.
Example:
The growing divide over slavery intensified sectionalism, making compromise between the North and South increasingly difficult.
Stephen Douglas
An American politician from Illinois who designed the Kansas-Nebraska Act and was a leading proponent of popular sovereignty.
Example:
Stephen Douglas championed the transcontinental railroad, believing the Kansas-Nebraska Act would pave the way for its construction by appeasing Southern interests.
Third Party System
The political party system in the United States from the 1850s to the 1890s, marked by the rise of the Republican Party and the continued presence of the Democratic Party.
Example:
The emergence of the Republican Party, focused on opposing the expansion of slavery, signaled the beginning of the Third Party System.
Whig Party
A major political party in the United States during the Second Party System, formed in opposition to Andrew Jackson's policies.
Example:
The Whig Party struggled to maintain unity as the slavery debate intensified, eventually leading to its collapse.