The Civil War: The Compromise Of 1850

The Compromise of 1850 was an effort to pacify the rising tensions between the north and the south. The issue of slavery was becoming a problem that none could overlook. This bitter rivalry was heating up even more so after the Mexican-American war. America won substantial amount of land, which stretched all the way to Mexico City. This land would give the south a grand portion of political power, surpassing the North. Henry Clay, supported by President Fillmore, created a compromise with the purpose of peacefully defusing the arguments that arose because of the war. However, Congress refused to pass this initial attempt. Fredrick Douglas would not let this answer stand, so he discovered a way to pass is through. He divided Clay’s bill into
It was a grand lot of land, much larger than today’s borders. It was very large, and therefore had many congressional representatives in The House of Representatives. Moreover, because it was a southern state, the representatives usually had southern morals, outbalancing the northerners and stirring up tensions even further. Texas also consisted of land north of the Missouri Compromise line of 1820, opening the possibility for other states with southern morals to creep up to the North. The Compromise of 1850 ordered that the New Mexico and Utah territories would no longer be a part of Texas, as would the land north of the 36, 30° line. The latter was one of the most important parts of the compromise, because the land to the north would be free soil. It also further solidified the boundaries between the north and south. In return for giving up the land, the federal government would release Texas from all of its
In the favor of the south, it prevented the Wilmot Proviso, which would have outlawed the slave trade in all territories gained in the Mexican American War. It also introduces “popular sovereignty,” a vote from the populous, as a way for a new territory to decide whether or not they would be a slave or free soil territory. However, this was not a pure system. The territories faced the same issue as “bleeding Kansas.” The north sent their own people to the territories as did the south. It became a competition of who could send more people. The last two sections dealt with the slavery issue directly. The first of the two banned slave trade in Washington D.C. although, the compromise did not outlaw slavery itself. The last section is best known as The Fugitive Slave Act. Congress enacted the Fugitive Slave Act to assist the South with maintaining a tight rein on slaveholders’ property. It meant that slaves that escaped to the north would be returned to the south. Even though this sounded like it would be a benefit for the south, this law ended up backfiring in a big