Slavery and Secession Section 10-4 pp

Slavery Dominates Politics The Dred Scott Decision – Decided by Chief Justice Roger B. Taney – Court ruled that: Living in a free territory did not make Scott free Slaves are considered property under the Constitution States can’t deny a person their property Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional – Impact: Slavery can exist anywhere in the U.S. Worsened sectional tensions

Slavery Dominates Politics The Lecompton Constitution – President Buchanan endorses pro-slavery government of Lecompton, KS – Caused Democratic Party to split

Lincoln-Douglas Debates Lincoln and Douglas debate slavery in the territories Douglas favored popular sovereignty Lincoln believed slavery was immoral

Lincoln-Douglas Debates The Freeport Doctrine – Douglas’ position that a territory could exclude slavery by refusing to pass laws supporting it

Passions Ignite The Raid at Harper’s Ferry, VA – John Brown attempted to seize a federal arsenal and start a slave uprising John Brown – U.S. Marines capture Brown, who is tried and executed for treason

Passions Ignite Reactions to John Brown’s Hanging – Some Northerners saw him as a martyr – Southerners saw him as a criminal – Worsened tension between North and South

Lincoln Is Elected President The Election of 1860 – Candidates: Stephen Douglas (Democrat) John C. Breckenridge (S. Democrat) Abraham Lincoln (Republican) John Bell (Constitutional Union)

Southern Secession Reaction to Lincoln’s Election – Southerners believe they will have no voice in the national gov’t – South Carolina secedes from the Union on December 20, 1860 – Six more states secede before Lincoln’s inauguration

Southern Secession The Shaping of the Confederacy – Secessionist states form Confederate States of America – Write constitution that protects slavery – Elect Jefferson Davis as their president