John Brown Essay

1751 Words8 Pages

In the United States, during the eighteen-hundreds’, a small group of people believed that slavery was immoral and did many things to abolish it. John Brown, a Caucasian male who was part of this group of people, did two things that many people in United States history didn’t have the passion to do. John Brown’s life was very interesting: His early life and transition to adulthood, his decision to fight for the cause, his actions of violence in Kansas and Harper’s Ferry, along with, the long-lasting effects of these actions led to his hanging. These events were pivotal to the beginning of the Civil War. “John Brown was born in Torrington, Connecticut, on May 9, 1800, five months after the death of George Washington”(Marrin,7). The United …show more content…

On the second of December, eighteen-fifty-nine, he was sentenced to death by hanging in Charles Town, West Virginia. The last words of Brown, shortly before his hanging. Indicated that a Civil War was to take place soon after his death. The raid would come to be one of the events that resulted in the United States Civil War. The Civil War would then ultimately put an end to slavery in the United States. Many tributes were paid to him following his death and most Northerners believed that he truly was a good man who didn’t deserve to be hanged. Many Church Bells were tolled, people held memorial services, Negro businesses were closed and multiple people wore black armbands in sign of respect. Southerners on the other hand, despised Brown and believed that he was very foolish for the acts he committed. Robert E. Lee, one of the Southerners, said that Brown’s death could have been prevented if he just didn’t use as much violence. Lee later said that he believed that the blacks who helped Brown, during the raid were forced to help and didn’t have a choice. Inspired by John Brown, many abolitionists from both the North and South, used violence towards the