Chapter 5: The Crime Against Kansas
Many antislavery activists decided to turn to violence when Kansas became a slave state. Since Kansas had two territorial governments - one official one at Lecompton and the unofficial one at Topeka (represented what the residents actually wanted) - a war was inevitable. The 1856 presidential election led to more tension as many Republicans advocated for free territories and free people. This frightened many ex-Whigs into voting for Buchanan. Southerners didn't allow Buchanan to forget they'd voted him and he had to bow to their pressures.
In Kansas, border ruffians came in from Missouri to swell the vote for the proslavery candidate. They won at first, but further investigation showed that the ballots were frauds. The second time around, free-soil candidates won most of the elections. Free-soil Kansans outnumbered the proslavery settlers and refused to obey laws by a fake government and drew up a free-state constitution (the unofficial government),
Some Republicans joined to denounce the Ostend Manifesto, say that it was Congress's right to ban slavery, and asserted Kansas's right to be a free state. As Congress became more divided over how to deal with Kansas, the Freeport Doctrine by Douglas soon provoked dissent in the South that he'd turned on them. Still, the South-Democrat controlled Congress voted to make Kansas a slave state.
After violence ensued, Kansas became a free state in Jan 1861, and the North had four more free states than the South. Free-state Kansans organized a Republican government. It also became one of the most Republican states in the country; although many of the original settlers had been Democrats, the problems that arose over slave power turned them into Republicans. In 1859, Brown seized a federal arsea in Virginia and was eventually wad killed; he became a martyr in the north because of his insistence on racial equality. This combined with Democrat issues pushed the Republicans into victory during the presidential elections of 1860. Problems caused by the Buchanan administration, cases presented by the Supreme Court, and Southern Democrats also helped.
In Kansas, border ruffians came in from Missouri to swell the vote for the proslavery candidate. They won at first, but further investigation showed that the ballots were frauds. The second time around, free-soil candidates won most of the elections. Free-soil Kansans outnumbered the proslavery settlers and refused to obey laws by a fake government and drew up a free-state constitution (the unofficial government),
Some Republicans joined to denounce the Ostend Manifesto, say that it was Congress's right to ban slavery, and asserted Kansas's right to be a free state. As Congress became more divided over how to deal with Kansas, the Freeport Doctrine by Douglas soon provoked dissent in the South that he'd turned on them. Still, the South-Democrat controlled Congress voted to make Kansas a slave state.
After violence ensued, Kansas became a free state in Jan 1861, and the North had four more free states than the South. Free-state Kansans organized a Republican government. It also became one of the most Republican states in the country; although many of the original settlers had been Democrats, the problems that arose over slave power turned them into Republicans. In 1859, Brown seized a federal arsea in Virginia and was eventually wad killed; he became a martyr in the north because of his insistence on racial equality. This combined with Democrat issues pushed the Republicans into victory during the presidential elections of 1860. Problems caused by the Buchanan administration, cases presented by the Supreme Court, and Southern Democrats also helped.
Key Terms:
- border ruffians: pro-slavery Missourians who traveled to Kansas to vote in its election during the mid-1850's to make it a pro-slavery government
- John Brown: In 1859, Brown seized a federal arsea in Virginia and was eventually wad killed; he became a martyr in the north because of his insistence on racial equality
- "The Crime Against Kansas": termed by Charles Sumner (see Charles Sumner)
- Lecompton Constitution: the pro-slavery constitution suggested for Kansas' admission to the union that was later rejected after dissent took place by Kansas free-soilers.
- Charles Sumner: a senator who denounced the South for crimes against Kansas and singled out Andrew Brooks, who then caned him, crippling Sumner. He was the first Republican martyr.
- fire-eaters: unorganized group of extremist pro-slavery Southern politicians who wanted to form the Confederate USA in the 1850s.
Questions:
- Was the Kansas problem the only reason Republicans won in the election of 1860 or were there other events that happened that allowed their win?
- In what ways did Charles Sumner become a martyr? (The book didn't go in-depth on this.)
Citations:
- McPherson, James M. "5: The Crime Against Kansas." In Battle Cry of Freedom, 145-169. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988.
- Accessed March 11, 2015. http://cdn2-b.examiner.com/sites/default/files/styles/image_content_width/hash/9b/22/9b2286dff0b38c4ad45cae530b37e5a5.jpg?itok=N0TUB8is
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