You must respond to the two (2) questions below in essay form. Your response should be detailed and use specific material from all parts of our class to support your answer.
A typical response is usually at least 4-5 full pages PER QUESTION, double-spaced (1000 words and a normal times new roman 12-point font with regular margins), but you may have a longer answer. A paper shorter than 3 full pages needs to be very, very good to get a passing grade.
Again…Be sure to use specific examples when answering the essay questions.
BOTH QUESTIONS MUST BE ANSWERED.
- From independence to the early 1830s, how did we become a nation with a stable nation, political system, economy, and national culture? What challenges did we face? By the1830s, was the nation working or was it failing? Please explain and support your answer.
- Was the Civil War inevitable? Were the North and the South doomed to eventually battle each other over the slavery issue? Be specific in your answer and use examples.
first question resources:
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/us-history/the-early-republic
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/us-history/the-early-republic/culture-and-reform/v/the-second-great-awakening-part-1
second question resources:
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/us-history/civil-war-era/sectional-tension-1850s/a/the-slave-economy
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/us-history/civil-war-era/slavery-and-the-civil-war/v/slavery-and-missouri-compromise-in-early-1800s
Britain’s Glorious Triumph
Long peace ended in 1739
· France joins Spain in war against England
· King George’s War
· Petite guerre plagues colonists
· Colonists gain Louisburg
· France regains Louisburg in Treaty of Aix-la-Chappelle
· British see North America as important battlefield
· French outnumbered in North America
· Virginia takes active role
· Ohio River Valley
· Virginians claim territory
· France builds forts in territory
· Virginia sends Washington with troops
· Beginning of Seven Years War
· Braddock’s defeat in 1755
· Early on poor British leadership
· William Pitt redefines English war effort
· Pitt focuses British troops in America
· Pays Prussians to fight in Europe
· James Wolfe recognizes Quebec as key to gaining rivers
· Wolfe at great disadvantage to Montcalm
· Wolfe captures Quebec
Peace of Paris in 1763
· Britain gains Canada, Florida
· Spain gains Louisiana
· France loses New World empire
· Britain new dominant power
Solving the French and Indian problem
Ohio River Valley Indians now under British rule
· Pontiac
· Indians in control of Valley and culture intact
· Had not been defeated in the war
· British General Amherst refuses to give Indians manufactured goods
· Indians rebel in 1763 led by Pontiac of Ottawa Tribe
· Attack Detroit and Fort Pitt
· British put down rebellion at Bushy Run
The Proclamation of 1763
· British close land west of Appalachian divide to settlement
· Reaction to Pontiac’s conspiracy
· Temporary measure due to Indian unrest
· Colonists greatly resent being denied land
· Lined moved gradually westward
British send 10,000 troops to America
· Intended for defense
· Reaction to Pontiac’s Conspiracy
· Did not want war veterans at home
· Quartering Act: Americans must provide food and shelter
· Perceived as oppressive standing army
· Had financed war by borrowing
· Left with large national debt
· Costs of governing empire was up
Parliament and King
· Parliament moves to cut costs
· Patronage and corruption part of politics
· A few families dominated politics
· No real political parties
King George III
· King no longer rule by proclamation without parliamentary approval
· George had “common touch”
· Good person, husband and father
· But not very bright
George Grenville
· First Lord of Treasury in 1763
· Salutary neglect created chaotic colonial policy
· King and Parliament want coherent policy
· Salutary neglect becomes history
· British national finances
· Cost of colonial government soaring
· Heavy taxes on British at home
· Huge debt due to Seven Year War
· British cut some costs; need new revenue sources
· Americans pay few taxes
· Americans gained most from war
· Decides to tax colonies as part of reforming colonial policy
The Sugar Act of 1764
Overhaul of Molasses Act of 1733
· Reduced cost of duties on molasses and other goods
· Enforced by vice-admiralty courts
with no juries
Colonials protest of Sugar Act
· Cities like Boston and New York boycott British goods
· Partly colonists do not want to pay taxes
· See tax as violation of their rights as British subjects
Rights of British Subjects
British subjects consent to taxes they pay
· Colonists do not elect members of Parliament
· Sugar Act primarily to raise revenue, not regulate trade
· Colonists believe Sugar Act “taxation without representation”
Trial by jury
· Right to be tried before jury of peers
· Sugar Act violates this right
· Protest “noisy” but not violent
The Stamp Act Crisis – 1765
British citizens pay stamp tax
· Stamp Act taxes documents, etc. in colonies
· Enforced by vice-admiralty courts
· Money used to defend colonies
· Grenville stamp collector positions to prominent colonists
Colonials objected to Stamp Act
· See tax as internal tax
· Say only colonial assemblies can pass internal taxes
· Taxation without representation
· Heaviest on people able to raise a fuss: editors, lawyers, tavern keepers
· Heaviest on people concentrated in cities
· Arouses the lower classes to violence
Sons of Liberty
· Boycotted English goods
· Turned to violence
· Stamp Act rioters popular
Stamp Act Congress
· Protested of wealthier colonists
· Criticized Stamp Act, Sugar Act
· Acknowledged loyalty to King
What is Representation?
Colonists do not elect members to Parliament
· Colonists argue Parliament does not represent them
· Colonists say only their assemblies can tax them
British perspective
· Believe in virtual representation
· Colonists actually practiced in many colonies
· All members of Parliament represent all British subjects
· Parliament therefore represents Americans
Some British support from colonists
· Parliament torn into self-seeking factions
· Edmund Burke, John Wilkes, Charles Fox opposed Stamp Act
Lord Chatham
· Led to repeal of Stamp Act
· Parliament passes Declaratory Act
· Parliament retains right to govern colonies
· Most colonists paid no attention
· Chatham becomes ill and retires
Townshend Duties
Charles Townshend
· Chancellor of the Exchequer
· Wants to cut taxes at home; raise them in colonies
· Passes Townshend Acts (duties on various goods)
· Believes acts will be accepted as an external tax
Colonists’ response to Townshend Acts
· Americans boycott British goods
· Little violence
· English merchants demand repeal
· Townshend Acts repealed except for small tea tax
Parliament avoids provoking colonies
· Tensions appear to be easing
· Principal issue of who has what power not settled
· Several incidents indicate underlying problems
Boston Massacre, March 5, 1770
· Locals harass British soldiers
· British fire, killing five Bostonians
· Paul Revere, Sam Adams use incident as propaganda
· Most colonists blame incident on local people
Colonists dislike presence of soldiers
· Soldiers are “rough and lusty,” “dregs” of society
· Troops stationed in towns after Stamp Act Riots
· Soldiers in daily contact with working class colonials
Conflict between locals and soldiers
· Soldiers create more anti-British sentiment than taxes
· Most lower-class colonials also rough; social outcasts
· Both soldiers and lower class drink heavily
· Upper class worries about “mob rule
The Gaspée
· June 1772
· British schooner, the Gaspée, spies ship suspected of smuggling
· The Gaspée follows and runs aground
· Crew set ashore, locals burn the Gaspée
· No locals would provide any evidence for prosecution
The March Towards War
Leaders arouse Americans against British
· James Otis of Massachusetts
· Patrick Henry of Virginia
· Samuel Adams of Massachusetts
The Tea Act, May 10, 1773
· Purpose to bail out East India Company
· Gives Company tea monopoly in America
· Keeps Townshend tax on tea
· British assume Americans will obey
Boston Tea Party, December 16, 1773
· Colonists respond by destroying tea
· 342 chests of tea into Boston Harbor
Intolerable Acts
· Close port of Boston
· Moves trials of soldiers accused of killing protestors
· Limits Massachusetts’ self-government
· Includes new Quartering Act
Colonies coordinate resistance with Committees of Correspondence
Responded to 1774 Acts with Continental Congress
Delegates to Continental Congress
· Gentlemen, prized education and civility
· Differed on what should be done
· Got along remarkably well
Defining Issues at Continental Congress
· Declare Intolerable Acts invalid
· Call for boycott of British trade
· Still support king, but he refuses to compromise
· Congress calls Americans to begin military training
Militias
· Many did not own their own gun
· Americans excellent marksmen
· Little military training and discipline
· Officers elected
Lexington and Concord
· April 1775
· British try to seize supplies and leaders
· Sons of Liberty spies warned
· Shots fired at Lexington
· Americans force British retreat at Concord
· British suffer severe casualties from snipers
Bunker Hill
· June 1775
· 16,000 rebels surround Boston
· British try to seize high ground
· Americans do not fire until British in close range
· Rebels inflict heavy casualties; run short on ammunition
· British win battle, but gain nothing
Ticonderoga & Quebec
· Benedict Arnold-Ethan Allen lead American troops
· British surrender Ticonderoga
· Arnold sent to take Quebec but all poorly managed
Second Continental Congress
· More militant than First Congress
· Armed rebellion a reality
· Send George Washington to lead troops
· Justify taking up arms
Thomas Paine’s Common Sense
· Attacks hereditary monarchy
· Well-written propaganda, convinces Americans on independence
Independence
· Richard Henry Lee introduces resolution June 7, 1776
· Continental Congress debates for three weeks
· Officially declare independence July 2, 1776
· Adopt
Declaration of Independence
July 4, 1776
Declaration of Independence
· Thomas Jefferson primary writer
· Committee tones down some of Jefferson’s rhetoric
· George III bears the brunt of blame, not Parliament
· Focuses anger on visible and vulnerable scapegoat
Declaration’suniversal human rights
· Bases case for independence on rights of all humans
· Insists government must be based on consent of people
· Inspires other people groups for next two centuries
Patriots are traitors to the British
· Patriot chance of success not great
Opposing Armies
· British army one of Europe’s finest
· Britain has 50,000 troops for battle
· Many are mercenaries
· America has hastily mobilized militia
· Continental Army
· Only enlisted for one year
· Fluctuates from 5,000–18,500
British navy best in Europe
· Patriot navy basically non-existent
· Patriots lost few ships they built
· Privateers did most damage to British
The Loyalists
· Approximately one-third of civilian population
· Northern Anglicans, rich merchants, planters, etc.
· Southern slaves, who hoped to gain freedom
· Indians divided
· Split the Iroquois Confederacy
Patriot advantages
· Defensive war on homeland
· Fight until British war weary
· Had friends in London
· Control countryside
· Arms from Spain and France
Franklin in Paris
· Sent to lobby for French alliance
· A social sensation
· French reluctant to commit troops
· French wanted to see major victory
Stalemate in Boston
· Citizens overwhelmingly anti-British
· Americans heavily fortify Dorchester Heights
· Washington allows British to evacuate without firing
· Howe relocates to New York
Humiliation in New York
· Howe has superior numbers in New York
· Howe invades Long Island
· Americans suffer losses
· Washington’s troops escape to New Jersey
Howe pursues Washington
· Washington retreats into Pennsylvania
· Many patriot soldiers swear allegiance to King
· Howe leaves minimum troops at front line for winter
Trenton
· Washington crosses on Christmas night into New Jersey
· Surprises Hessians at Trenton, wins battle
Princeton
· Jan. 1777
· Washington defeats British at Princeton
· Trenton and Princeton victories save patriot cause
British Strategy
· Burgoyne plans to take Hudson River Valley
· Success will isolate New England
· British fail to coordinate troop movements
· Howe instead moves to Philadelphia
Saratoga: Watershed Campaign
· Howe takes Philadelphia after Battle of Brandywine Creek
· Washington falls back to Valley Forge
· Burgoyne’s grand plan falls apart
· Americans wear down Burgoyne’s forces in New York
· Americans win big victory at Saratoga October 1777
· General Horatio Gates
· Burgoyne surrenders army
British try to negotiate
· British offer Americans control of internal affairs
· Americans turn down British offer
· French form military alliance February 1778
Foreign Intervention
· French provide money, men, fleet
· French contribution vital to war effort
· Spain invades British Florida
· France helps keep peace in Europe
Mercenaries for liberty
· European peace brings military professionals to US
· Marquis de Lafayette of France
· Casimir Pulaski, Thaddeus Kosciusko of Poland
· Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben of Prussia
War Drags On
· U.S. cannot risk a decisive battle
· British continue to win indecisive battles
· British try to strangle colonial economy and fight in south
· U.S. suffers inflation, mutinies, traitors
· American spirit low
Opportunity
· Cornwallis camps at Yorktown
· Cornwallis needs access to sea
· Yorktown is Washington’s “backyard”
· Washington traps Cornwallis by land
· French fleet traps Cornwallis by sea
· More French than Americans
Defeat at Yorktown
· Cornwallis asks for terms Oct. 17, 1781
· Cornwallis surrenders Oct. 19, 1781
· Final battle of war
Treaty of Paris
· Signed – Sept. 1783
· British choose not to continue fighting
· American independence
· Mississippi River western boundary
· Fishing rights off of Canadian eastern coast
· Protection for Loyalists & urge property be returned
George Washington
· Father of his country
· Lacked originality and boldness; no thinker
· Not very successful as field commander
· Contemporaries saw him as man of integrity and dignity
· Washington man of character
Era of Good Feelings
American Nationalist Spirit
·
Begins after Battle of New Orleans
· Includes American System
· Americans see themselves as new chosen people
Patriotic culture
· Fourth of July became popular
· Folk art, songs, verses
· Americanization of language
Inspirational Reading
· Biographies of early patriots exploded
· Mason Weem’s biography of George Washington
· Created a national hero although not all true
· Noah Webster 1783 American Spelling Book
· Created an American language
· Dictionary 1828
· James Fenimore Cooper one of first American writers and used American themes
Henry Clay
· Lawyer, planter, speculator, politician
· Westerner with a national perspective
· Speaker of the House (1810-1821)
· Worked to create compromise
· Most everyone liked him
· Called for internal improvements
· Wanted to create system to bind all sections of nation together
· Make him indispensable man
American System
· Starts with a Bank of the US (BUS)
· Holds government deposits from sell of western lands
· Original BUS had died in 1811
· 1816 another Bank was chartered
· Internal improvements in west help everyone
· Industrials have greater demand for goods
· Westerners have greater demand for food
· Southerners have greater demand for cotton
· Wants to pay with a high tariff
· This was least popular part of the system
Transportation Revolution
· Roads
· Most became impassable in rain
· John McAdam developed an all-weather road
· National Road
· Government funded
· Cumberland, Maryland to Wheeling, Ohio
· Made Henry Clay popular with many small farmers
Erie Canal
· Slashed transportation costs
· Paid for by New York state
· Hudson River to Lake Erie
· Expensive
but paid for itself in first year
· Navigators guided flatboats
· Pulled by mules
· Erie Canal success leads to canal building boom
· Mainline canal in Pennsylvania
· Over 4,000 miles of canals
· Economic bust left states with debts from public projects
River traffic
· Old man river – Mississippi River
· Drained central U.S.
· But hard to bring cargo upriver
· Queens of the Mississippi
· Flat bottomed steamboats
· 1807 Robert Fulton’s Clermont
· Built a paddle wheeler for Mississippi
· Paddleboat operations grew
· Frequent boiler explosions
· Very shallow drafts were needed
·
Early Railroads
· 1825 first railroads
· Could be built more places, cheaper to operate and hardly ever stopped running
1827 first two U.S. railroads
· Built by mining companies
· Other railroads built by entrepreneurs
· Could be expensive to build
· Best for long hauls
· Baltimore & Ohio RR
James Monroe
· Virginia disciple of Jefferson
· Good diplomat and administrator
· Presided during political calm
· Federalists rapidly dying out
· Monroe easily wins in 1816
· Monroe faces no opposition in 1820
· “Era of good feeling”
Politics of Calm
· Little interest in national politics
· People focus on expansion, economics
· Secretary of State John Quincy Adams
· Monroe, Adams focus on foreign affairs
Foreign Affairs
· Oregon
· Rush Bagot Agreement 1817
· Demilitarized Great Lakes
· Set boundary between Canada-US at 49th parallel
· Join occupation of Oregon Territory
Florida
· Spain losing New World empire
· Jackson invades Florida
· Jackson ignores Spanish authority
· Adams buys Florida in Adams-Oñis Treaty
· Pays $5 million
· Set western boundary
Monroe Doctrine
· J. Quincy Adams main author
· U.S. would not intervene in Europe
· Ends colonization in Western Hemisphere
· U.S. not intervene in existing colonies
· European intervention deemed act of war
Why the Monroe Doctrine?
· Spain wants to regain colonies
· Britain wants them independent for trade
· Britain wants alliance with U.S.
· U.S. decides to act alone
Missouri
Missouri Crisis
· 11 slave states, 11 free states
· Missouri asks to become a state
· Proposal made to require abolition in Missouri
· South wants to keep balance of states
Missouri Compromise
· Brainchild of Henry Clay
· Missouri slave; Maine free
· No slavery in rest of Louisiana Purchase north of 36º 30’
· Congress admit states in pairs for 30 years
2nd Missouri Compromise
· State prohibited free blacks from emigrating in
· Violates U.S. Constitution
· Clay convinced Missouri to state did not override Constitution
Industrial Revolution
· Most people live on farms
· Produce goods and food themselves
· Purchase very little
· Small businesses
· Mechanization changes lifestyles
Industrialization
Textiles
· Basic necessity
· Time-consuming and difficult to make
· Expensive
· Most people had few clothes
How cloth was made
· Wool was king in Britain
· Sheep sheared
· Wool cleaned
· Wood was carded or combed
· Spin into yarn
· Yarn woven on looms into cloth
· Woolens versus cotton
· Woolen interests were powerful
· Imported cotton cloth from India competed
Individuals contract with cloth dealer
· Produce at home; work at own pace
· Does not alter social structure
England develops textile machines
· Produces cloth at fraction of cost
· Britain enjoys monopoly
· Cloth better than homespun
· Cloth cheaper than homespun
Machines
· Spinning jenny
Richard Arkwright’s water frame in 1768
· Increased volume of spun thread
· Powered by water
· Changes production as ends cottage industry
· Creates factories where workers come to work
Textile factories
· Machines need power
· Use water, later steam
· Creates need for factories
· Creates industrial working class
U.S. capital for industry
· Northeast merchants, shippers invest
· Convert wealth from ships into mills
· Encouraged by trade restraints during Napoleonic Wars
· Americans quickly industrialize
Inventors
· Oliver Evans: continuous-operation flour mill
· Eli Whitney: interchangeable parts
· Inventors become heroes
· U.S. offers technical education
First Factory Workers
First workers were children
· Cheap
· Climbed onto textile machines
Then Fall River used whole families
· But failed
· Turned to women and children
Lowell Girls
· Francis Cabot Lowell
· Hires young daughters of farmers
· Provides room, board, enrichment activities
· Girls save for dowry
· Most laborers women and children
· But over time became less paternalistic
John C. Calhoun
· “War Hawk” early in career
· First pushes for Southern industry
· Becomes defender of South
· Defends plantation system, slavery
Slavery declining in 1788
· Northern states abolishing slavery
· Southerners apologetic about slavery
· Tobacco production falling
· Congress outlaws importation of Africans
Revival of Slavery in the South
· Cotton gin revives one-crop economy
· Fertile “Old Southwest” ready to settle
· Rapid growth in southern territories
· Slaves now in big demand
Cotton Gin
· South can only grow short staple cotton
· Separating seeds too labor intensive
· Eli Whitney invents cotton gin and interchangeable parts
· Growing cotton now profitable
Western Population Explosion
· Land cheap and plentiful
· Lands equal opportunity
· Mississippi River no longer frontier
· People seem to have no roots
Population
· By 1820, Alabama at 75,000
· States north of Ohio River grew even faster
People who moved west
· Americans free to move around
· Some anti-social
· Some want to build better life
· Some are developers
· Some are town boosters
Cities in West
· Often develop around military fort
· Sometimes develop on rivers
· Cities include industry
Federal Land Policy
Rapid development leads to speculation
· Speculators hope to buy land cheap and sell it higher
· Some responsible developers
Land policy
· 1790s: must buy tracts of 640 acres
· 1800: can buy 320 acres at $2 acre and on credit
· Land Act of 1804 favors small farmers
· Land Act also favors speculators
Leads to wild speculation
· Drives up cost of land
· Paid for with paper money
· inflation
Panic of 1819
· Bank of U.S. calls in loans to wildcat banks
· Wildcat banks call in loans to speculators
· Speculators cannot pay, banks close
· Closed banks trigger Panic of 1819
Slavery
Essentialto economic development of America
· Mostly from Gulf of Guinea in West Africa
· Brought against their will – involuntary immigrants
· By 1660 they were separated by law
Spanish used slavery in their colonies
English had no tradition of slavery
Indentured Servants
Well suited for plantations who needed labor
· Signed up and passage paid to New World
· Worked for 3-7 years
· Also used convicts
Black Servants
Entered Jamestown in 1619
· Treated as indentured servants
1624 New Amsterdam
· New York high numbers with a few slaves but treated as servants and often gained freedom
Indentured servants cheaper than African slaves
· All newcomers had short life expectancies
The Emergence of Slavery
In Chesapeake and South changing laws:
· Servants for life
· Children had status of mother = enslaved
· 1662 Virginia harsh punishment for sex between blacks and whites
· 1682 Christianity not reason to free black servant
Role of Race
· Could make Africans slaves since not protected by English law
· Harder for Africans to escape than white servants
· In economic interest of tobacco planters to make them permanent slave labor
The African Slave Trade
Some whites captured slaves
· Slaves traded for manufactured goods
· Business transactions; not racially oriented
· British, Swedes, Danes, Germans, Brandenburgers
· Slaving was cooperative between Europeans and African
· Mixed-race intermediaries
· Slaves usually captured by enemy tribes
· Voyage to New World for slaves
· Most inhumane aspect of slave trade
· Crammed into ships
· Preceded and followed by overland marches
· High death rates
10 million slaves taken to New world
· 400 thousand to North America
From lands bordering Gulf of Guinea
· Many different language groups
· Stopped at West Indies first to season
Slavery
Emancipation in early Republic
· North uses gradual emancipation
· South sees some support for emancipation
Southerners on slavery and abolition
· South fears moral consequences
· South sees blacks as inferior
· South fears large black population
· South sees themselves as protectors
American Colonization Society
· Encourages owners to free slaves
· Encourages emigration to Liberia (1821)
· Unrealistic due to numbers
· Little support among African Americans
December 1831
· Virginia considers gradual abolition
· Seriously debates issues
· Loses by fairly close margin
· Last rational southern debate on issue
Fear of rebellion
· Haiti revolt, 1798
Nat Turner’s Rebellion – Virginia 1831
· Turner: literate, religious fanatic, slave
· Turner’s visions inspire revolt
· Rebels kill 60 whites; revolt ends
· South becomes terrified of revolts
South protects “peculiar institution”
· South insulated from outside ideas
· South depicts slavery as a positive good
· South reforms slave codes
Suppression
· Distribution of abolitionist literature forbidden
· Passage of “gag rule” in House of Representatives
Slavery as a “positive good”
· “superior labor system”
· John C. Calhoun: “a positive good”
George Fitzhugh, sociologist
· A Sociology for the South
· Slaves have better life than northern laborers
· Slaves cared for all of their lives
The Bible, the Ancients and Culture
· Stated Bible approved slavery
· Pointed to great Greek and Roman societies having slaves
· More southerners college educated
· Believed descendants of aristocracy
Slave control
· Harder to set slaves free
· Illegal to teach slaves to read
· Slave patrols keep slaves on plantation
· Masters control religious teachings
Conflicting images of slavery
· Romantic view of warmth between master and slave
· Abolitionist view of horrible inhumane acts
Minstrel “blackface” performers
· Provide light entertainment
· Perform songs in dialect
· Project racist stereotypes
· Depict slaves as carefree
Stephen Foster
· Composer, romanticizes slavery in song
· Depicts warm relationships
· Creates nostalgia for Old South
Slave traders
· Slaves chattel property
· Slave trade very ugly
· Slave auctions very crude
· Trade flows from upper to lower South
Life in the quarters
· Slaves have no civil rights
· Cannot own property, marry, learn to read
· Cannot leave plantation, congregate, etc.
· Rights only to life and minimum subsistence
Humans Without Rights
· Master cannot legally kill slave
· Slave dying during punishment not murder
· Whipping most common punishment
· Slaves too expensive to mistreat to point of death
Diverse Institution
· Many owners maintain higher standards of treatment
· Small owners often develop “partnership” with slaves
· Rations tend to be better on large plantations
· Some masters permit slaves more rights
Slaves found ways to protest
· Malingering normal
· Thieving common
Runaways constant problem
· Clear indication of slave discontent
· Success hard outside of border states
· Underground railway
· Harriet Tubman
Most slaves Protestant Christians
· Typically Baptist or Methodist
· Identify with ancient Hebrews
· Express discontent in sermons, spirituals
Protest through folk tales
· Br’er Rabbit stories (Uncle Remus)
· Roots in West African folklore
· Weak outwit the strong
The slave community
· Slave family vital force
· Two-parent families typical
· Slave population grew through reproduction
Slavery and the West
Controversy over slavery
· Moderates try to keep debate at periphery
· Mexican Acquisition intensifies debate
Congress and Slavery
· Extremists push slavery issue
· Constitution makes slavery state issue
· Slave states equal free states
· Constitutional amendment not possible
Dead Letter
· In Washington, D.C.
· Over runaway slaves crossing state lines
· Interstate, international slave trade
· Congress could regulate slavery in territories
· Missouri Compromise limited slavery
· Mexican acquisition reopens question
Wilmot Proviso
· No slavery in territory from Mexico
· Proviso passes House, but not Senate
· Calhoun defends right to take slaves to territories
· Free Soil Party: no slavery in territories
Election of 1848
· Democrats: Lewis Cass
· Whigs: Zachary Taylor
· Free Soil: Martin Van Buren
· Taylor wins
The Crisis of 1850
1848: gold discovered in California
· 1849: gold rush to California
· December 1848: California applies for statehood as free state
· Issue of admitting California creates crisis in Congress
· Pro-slavery forces oppose admitting California as free state
Henry Clay’s Omnibus Bill
· California would be a free state
· Boundary dispute settled between Texas and New Mexico
· No reference to slavery in other new territories
· Fugitive Slave Act
Omnibus Bill fails to pass
· Extremists oppose it
· Clay, Webster speak for it
· Calhoun warns of danger to Union
· Taylor threatens veto
· Taylor dies; Millard Fillmore president
· Fillmore willing to compromise
· Stephen Douglas splits bill into five parts
· Compromise of 1850 passes
Old Guard passes
· Andrew Jackson dies in 1848
· Calhoun dies in 1850
· Clay, Webster die in 1852
· Thomas Hart Benton loses Senate seat
Extremists and Moderates
· Extreme southerners: “fire-eaters”
· Southern Whig party dwindles
· Abolitionists unpopular in north
· Militant antislavery delegation in congress
· Northern Democrats sympathetic to South
President Franklin Pierce
· Relies on southerner Jefferson Davis
· Tries to take Hawaii, Cuba
· South wants transcontinental railroad
· Makes Gadsden Purchase to help South
Kansas-Nebraska Act
North wants transcontinental railroad
· Railroad must pass through unorganized territory
· South will not vote to organize territory
· Douglas proposes Kansas–Nebraska Act
· Allows for “popular sovereignty” to decide slavery
· Douglas hurt by rise of Know-Nothing Party
Immigration
· Many Catholics
· Irish
· Germans
Rise of Know-Nothings
· Immigrants congregating in communities
· Drinking
· Catholicism
· Job competition
· Anti-Catholic riots
· Order of the Star-Spangled Banner or Know-Nothings try to stop immigration
Republican Party
· Whigs decline; parts form Republican Party
· Against slavery in the territories
· Develops comprehensive program
· Only attracts voters in North
Early abolitionists
· Focus on moral, religious issues
· Mostly Quakers
· Usually support gradual emancipation
· Includes educated African-Americans
Black Abolitionists
· Contributed most of money to newspapers and speakers
· Sojourner Truth
· Frederick Douglass
Harriet Beecher Stowe and Uncle Tom
· Great abolitionist propaganda
· Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1852)
· Condemned slavery as institution
· Most readers attracted by lurid descriptions
Kansas
· Slave or free?
· Increases sectional controversy
· Free-soilers and border ruffians
· Anti-slavery groups aid emigration to Kansas
· Fewer southerners emigrate to Kansas
· “Border ruffians” from Missouri worsen crisis
Border ruffians shoot up and burn Lawrence
· John Brown kills group of proslavery settlers
· Extremists on both sides no longer rational
Charles Sumner and Preston Brooks
· Sumner insults South Carolina in Senate
· Congressman Brooks canes Sumner in Senate
· Southerners honor Brooks
· Massachusetts honors Sumner
Fugitive Slave Act angers North
· South pleased with act at first
· Underground Railroad extended to Canada by 1856
· North resistance continued
Election of 1856
· Democrats run James Buchanan
· Buchanan free from taint of Bleeding Kansas
· Republicans choose John C. Frémont
· Buchanan wins, especially in the South
Dred Scott
· Scott a slave who lived in free territory
· Scott sues for freedom
· Dred Scott v. Sanford reaches Supreme Court
· Chief Justice Roger Taney
· Scott not a citizen, could not sue
· Missouri Compromise unconstitutional
· Slavery cannot be forbidden in territories
Republican Panic
· Dred Scott decision outrages Republicans
· Dred Scott decision kills popular sovereignty
· Kansas asks to become a slave state
· Anti-slavery forces gain support
1858 Illinois Senate election
· Democrat Stephen Douglas vs. Republican Abraham Lincoln
· Debate Dred Scott decision; popular sovereignty
· Douglas: territories keep out slavery by not passing slave codes
· Douglas wins the race
John Brown’s Insurrection
· Brown gains support from a few abolitionists
· Plans guerrilla-style slave insurrection
· Plans to begin with attack on Harper’s Ferry
Brown captures Harper’s Ferry arsenal
· Robert E. Lee captures Brown
· Brown tried for treason; hung
· Some abolitionists honor Brown as martyr
· Many Southerners hysterical in reaction
The Election of 1860
Democrats split
· Northern Democrats run Stephen Douglas
· Southern Democrats run John C. Breckinridge
Republicans decide for moderate
· Republicans nominate Lincoln
· Lincoln opposes slavery in territories
· Republican platform comprehensive
Fourth party enters race
· Constitutional Unionists
· Run John Bell
Republican Victory
· Lincoln gains 40% popular vote
· Lincoln wins in electoral college
· Most Americans want settlement
South Carolina fire-eaters demand secession
· South Carolina secedes December 20, 1680
· Deep South follows
· Buchanan unable to shape compromise
Crittenden Compromise
· Proposed extension of 36º 30’
· John Tyler proposed constitutional amendment
· Lincoln cannot accept slavery in territories
· Compromises fail
Confederate States of America
· Seven states of deep South
· Montgomery original capital
· Constitution similar to that of U.S.
· Constitution protects slavery
President Jefferson of CSA
· Model slave owner; not fire-eater
· Cold personality, irritable, inflexible
· Lacks self-confidence
· Surrounds himself with yes-men
President Abraham Lincoln of United States
· Knows value of unity, competency
· Appoints rivals to cabinet
· Brunt of jokes, criticism
· Sharp native intelligence, humble
Border states
· Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Arkansas join CSA
· Maryland, Kentucky, Missouri stay with Union
· West Virginia secedes from Virginia
A war of nerves
· Two Southern forts in U.S. hands
· Davis willing to let status quo stand for moment
· Lincoln decides to re-supply forts without force
· Confederates fire, beginning April 12, 1861
Art of War influences commanders
· Focus on occupying high ground
· Focus on taking enemy cities
· Retreat when necessary
· Jomini’s 12 models of war
The Armies
· Calvary: for reconnaissance
· Artillery: weakens enemy
·
Infantry
: backbone of army
· Also support units
Infantry
· Brigades of 2,000–3,000
· Form double lines of 1,000 yards
· Advance into enemy fire
· Then fight hand-to-hand
· Most battles in dense woods
Yanks and Rebs
· Most between 17 and 25
· From all states, social classes
· Draft exempts upper class
· Anti-draft riots in New York City
· Draft dodgers in South
· Some bounty hunters
· High desertion rates
· Shirking duty not common
First Battle of Manassas (Bull Run)
· Both sides thought war would be short
· First battle 20 miles from Washington
· South wins, Union forces flee in panic
First Battle of Manassas (Bull Run)
· South fails to attack Washington
· South celebrates victory
· Stonewall Jackson hero for South
· South disorganized even in victory
Consequences of Manassas (Bull Run)
· South becomes overconfident
· North prepares for long fight
· George McClellan given command of Army of Potomac
Northern strategy
· Defend Washington; take Richmond
· Split Confederacy by taking Mississippi River
· Blockade southern coastline
Mismatch
· North had population advantage of 22 to 9 million
· Industry in north
· Railroads mainly in the north
· Southerners knew the battleground
· Interior lines in the south
· More southerners had military training especially officers
Southern hope for help from abroad fails
· Southern strategy = Hold off North until help comes from abroad
· Hope North grows weary of fighting
· France decides to intervene in Mexico
· British government pro-Confederate
· British people anti-slavery
· Britain never helps South
Jefferson Davis tries to force Britain’s hand
· Withholds sale of cotton
· British mills stockpile cotton before war
· British need grain more than cotton
Diplomacy
· U.S. captures Confederate diplomats on British ship, Trent
· Britain threatens war
· British build ships for South
· U.S. uses diplomacy to keep Britain out of the war
· Copperheads: Northern sympathizers of South
· Defeatists: Believe war is not worth the effort
· Lincoln suspends writ of habeas corpus
· Jails many dissenters, weakens their effectiveness
War in the West
· Union moves troops to Kentucky
· Union captures Forts Grant and Donelson
· Next major battle at Shiloh, Tennessee
· North wins in incredibly bloody battle
War at sea
· Confederates use commerce raiders
· Confederates try to outrun North’s blockade
· South’s Merrimack, North’s Monitor ironclad ships
· March 9, 1862 first clash of ironclad ships
· North builds more ironclad ships; South lacks resources
McClellan has the “slows”
· Army well-trained and equipped
· McClellan reluctant to attack
· McClellan was Democrat and disliked Lincoln’s war policy
· Lincoln frustrated with McClellan
Peninsula Campaign
· Union troops between York and James Rivers
· McClellan delays; South maneuvers
· 7-day battle; Lincoln recalls troops
· Lincoln replaces McClellan
Antietam
· Eastern theater stalemates
· South invades Maryland
· North stops south of Antietam
· Lee retreats to Virginia
Emancipation Proclamation
· Lincoln’s war aim to save Union
· Antislavery sentiment growing
· Lincoln frees slaves in states fighting Union
· Effective January 1, 1863
Slavery: The Beginning of the End
· Reassures slave states
· Allows North to use black troops
· Improves morale
· Mollifies Radical Republicans
Stalemate renewed
· McClellan replaced with Anthony Burnside
· Burnside loses at Fredericksburg, Virginia
· War bogs down in West
· War stalemates as both sides retreat for winter
1863
War at standstill
· South: shortages and inflation
· North: frustration
Chancellorsville (May 1863)
· Joseph Hooker commands Union troops
· Hooker outnumbers Robert E. Lee
· Lee outmaneuvers Hooker, wins
· South suffers severe casualties
· Including Stonewall Jackson
Fortress of Vicksburg
· South held small section of Mississippi River near Vicksburg
· Union forces unable to take Vicksburg
U.S. Grant
· Re-enlists when Civil War breaks out
· Wins Forts Henry and Donelson
· Shiloh creates questions about soberness
Siege of Vicksburg
· Grant marches down west bank of river
· Crosses river south of Vicksburg
· Takes surrounding area
· Lays siege to city
Gettysburg July 1-3
· Lee invades Pennsylvania
· Surprises Army of Potomac commanded by Meade
· Armies meet at Gettysburg
· North gains strategic advantage
Pickett’s Charge
· Lee plans frontal assault on Union center
· Loses 10,000 men in less than an hour
· Lee waits for counterattack
· Union fails to counterattack
July 4, 1863
· Gettysburg ravages Southern morale
· Vicksburg falls
Tennessee Campaign
· Union troops occupy Chattanooga
· Battle at Chickamauga Creek
· South lays siege to Chattanooga, fails
· Grant becomes commander of all Union forces
Total War
Grant’s tactics
· Totally destroy enemy’s ability to fight
· Union has numerical superiority
· Force Confederacy to fight on all fronts
· William T. Sherman heads toward Atlanta
Richmond
· Grant marches into the wilderness
· Lee outmaneuvers Grant and attacks
· Heavy losses on both sides
· Union can withstand losses; South cannot
Petersburg and the Shenandoah Valley
· Grant lays siege to Petersburg
· Petersburg rail center serves Richmond
· Siege lasts nine months
· Union forces lay waste to Shenandoah Valley
Sherman in Georgia
· Union troops occupy Atlanta (September 1864)
· Sherman marches to sea (Atlanta to Savannah)
· Intends to destroy South’s ability to fight
· Destroys everything in path
The sudden end: April 1865
· Lee abandons Petersburg, Richmond
· Lee tries to make last stand, fails
· Lee, Grant meet at Appomattox Court House
· Grant gives Lee generous terms
Deaths
· Totaled 620,000
· More deaths than all other wars combined
Lincoln’s Assassination: April 14, 1865
· John Wilkes Booth shoots Lincoln
· Shot in Ford’s Theater, Washington
· Booth part of a conspiracy
· Booth killed; four more hanged
“Father Abraham”
· Not overly popular as president
· Worries about winning 1864 election
· Wins due to victories
· Democrat Andrew Johnson running mate
· Had won respect with his humility and eloquence
Consequences of the Civil War
Union victory
· Establishes inseparability of the states
· Destroys political dominance of South
· Northeastern industrial, financial interest now dominant
New Economic Policies
· Pacific Railways Act: transcontinental railroad
· Morrill Tariff: high protective tariff
Union financing of war
· Heavy taxation: tariff, income, and excise taxes
· Paper money: greenbacks
· Borrowing: bonds sold
Free land
· Homestead Act gives 160 acres of public domain; must live on it for 5 years
· Morrill Act gives land to states to fund colleges
Free people
· Slavery immoral, archaic
· Thousands of slaves flee to Union Army
· 15,000 blacks serve in Union army
· Thirteenth Amendment ends slavery