The Missouri Compromise and the Compromise of 1850 were attempts to bring the nation together but ended up pulling it apart. The Missouri Compromise's goal was to end the feud on the border for free and slave states, end the feud on Missouri becoming a free or slave state. The solution for the border was to have an imaginary line at 36 degrees, 30' minutes anything above the line, with an acception of Missouri, would be free and anything below the line would be slave. The solution to Missouri becoming free or slave was Maine would become a free state and Missouri would become a slave state to keep the number of slave states and the number of free states equal. In time the Missouri Compromise would tear the nation apart despite its intentions.
As a result of the Compromise of 1850, which defused the quarrel between the free Northern States and the slave Southern States, the territories acquired during the Mexican-American War were determined to be free, slave, or dependent upon the principle of popular sovereignty. California was admitted as a free state, the Utah and New Mexico territories were to be determined by popular sovereignty, the Texas-New Mexico boundary was solidified, and slave trade was terminated in Washington, D.C., making it easier for the South to recover fugitive slaves (Document A). As stated by an Anonymous Georgian in “Plain Words for the North,” everything the South could ask for was embodied in the Constitution, but two provisions were necessary to the South’s success – “the recognition of slavery where the people choose it and the remedy for fugitive slaves” (Document B). The North saw popular sovereignty and the remedy of fugitive slaves as deceptive encouragement of immoral and unconstitutional activity (Document C). But, southerners viewed the North’s assumption of ownership to be unconstitutional.
In fact, either sides at this time refused to acknowledge the other’s system and thus posed a high risk of war. Therefore, President Polk might have to spend a long time with his officers and cabinet to come up with a solution for this issue. Consequently, it was possible that both countries would eventually agree to an early Compromise proposed by Henry Clay, which was not supposed to appear until 1850 if the war was waged. This Compromise would admit California into the United States as a free state while Texas was considered a slave state and all the remaining area would remain undetermined (“ The
The Missouri Compromise was meant to relieve tension between the North and South. It established states above the 17th parallel to be slave free. It also said there must be an equal amount of slave and free states so they must balance out. After the Mexican-American war, American acquired large amounts of land through both the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and Gadsden Purchase. They received modern day: California, Arizona, New Mexico, among other territories.
Concessions to the North: California admitted as a free state Territory disputed by Texas and New Mexico to be surrendered to New
I agree with what you have stated in your post. The Compromise of 1850 was a very important event that helped lead up to the civil war. The result of the compromise was 15 free states and 16 slave states. I also found that California was the first free state admitted as a free state and that the rest of the Mexican belongings were decided by popular sovereignty, which was a vote of the people of the territories.
The Compromise of 1850 was an attempt by the U.S Congress to settle divisive issues between the North and South, including slavery expansion, apprehension in the North of fugitive slaves, and slavery in the District of Columbia. The Compromise of 1850 failed because Senator John C. Calhoun from the South and Senator William Seward from the North could not agree on what Henry Clay was putting down. Part of the compromise was to make California a slavery free state which benefits the North, and enforcing a stricter fugitive slave law which benefits the South. Both the North and South opposed what the other was benefiting from. What sparked the failure of the Compromise was the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850.
In contrast, other politicians were trying to create temporary solutions to the slavery issue. One of these provisional plans was the Compromise of 1850 which was a series of bills planned by Henry Clay and later overseen by Stephen Douglas that would try to resolve the concerns of slavery in new territories. Therefore, California was admitted to the Union as a free state and the territories in the west determined the issue of slavery based on popular sovereignty. Following this, slave trade was abolished in Washington, D.C. and the new Fugitive Slave Act was passed. The Fugitive Slave Act was a portion of the Compromise of 1850 and it gave a new protection to slavery.
In Robert V. Remini's insightful biography, "Henry Clay: Statesman for the Union," readers gain a profound understanding of the intricate negotiations, political finesse, and sagacious statesmanship that defined these pivotal compromises. The Missouri Compromise of 1820: Addressing the Thorny Issue of Slavery The Missouri Compromise emerged against the backdrop of escalating tensions between slaveholding and free states as the United States expanded westward. Henry Clay's strategic prowess is prominently highlighted in Remini's narrative as he skillfully navigated the contentious issue of slavery in new territories. The Compromise stipulated that Missouri would enter the Union as a slave state, Maine as a free state, and established a parallel at 36°30' latitude, north of which slavery was prohibited in the Louisiana Territory. This delicate equilibrium, brokered by Clay, temporarily assuaged sectional tensions and showcased his ability to forge consensus on a matter that threatened to tear the nation apart.
The compromise was designed to maintain the balance of power between pro-slavery and anti-slavery forces in the country, and it was a significant event in the lead-up to the American Civil War. The compromise was proposed by Senator Henry Clay, who was a Republican from Kentucky, and supported by Senators Daniel Webster and John Calhoun, who were both Democrats. There were five key aspects included in the compromise, the first being the Fugitive Slave Act, the second being the admission of California as a free state, the third being the Texas Boundary Act, the fourth being the establishment of New Mexico and Utah Territories, and the fifth being the Washington D.C. slave trade (P. Scott Corbett, 2014). The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, part of the Compromise of 1850, was a controversial law that required authorities in free states to aid in the capture and return of runaway slaves to their owners in the South. The Act was seen as a compromise between the North and South to help maintain the delicate balance between free and slave states.
As the United states continued to grow in size by gaining territory from others such as Mexico who through the Treaty that ended the Mexican-American war, transferred California to the US. As American continued to grow the seemingly inevitable issue of slavery festered hostility/tensions between the North and the South as they actively continue to try and keep balance of the free to slave state ratio. In the end, the underlying issue became obvious on how the United States did not practice what they preached so vocally, and I reason this by stating America failed to govern according to its own famous principles. In efforts to do so Henry Clay proposed the Compromise of 1850 which stated four main points, 1) California would be recognized as
The Compromise of 1850, was submitted by Henry Clay. He thought the compromise would settle the differences between the North and South. He spoke, “I go for honorable compromise whenever it can be made. Life itself is but a compromise between death and life--the struggles continues through our whole existence until the great destroyer finally wins.” The end of January in 1850, he worked on his plan.
The compromise of 1850 was a series of resolutions to the issue of slavery. As part of the Compromise of 1850, the Fugitive Slave Act was amended and the slave trade in Washington, D.C., was abolished. Also, California entered the Union as a free state and a territorial government was created in Utah. The Kansas-Nebraska Act was passed by the U.S. Congress on May 30, 1854. It allowed people in the territories of Kansas and Nebraska to decide for themselves whether or not to allow slavery within their borders.
Once again, American politicians were forced to revisit the issue of slavery and its expansion west when the United States gained vast tracts of land in the west after the end of the Mexican-American War. The issue of slavery, which had not been at the forefront of national politics, once again came to great prominence. Political factions divided and some threatened that their states would leave the Union if President Taylor brought California and New Mexico into the Union without going through the territorial phase (Shi and Tindall p. 501). As a result, the Compromise of 1850 was formed by the great compromiser Henry Clay, which ensured that both the North and South’s interests remained intact. In short, the Compromise guaranteed that California
Clay’s compromise fell through, because he attempted to force all of his ideas into one package. Later on in the year, Douglas managed to pass Clay’s compromise, albeit slightly altered. The goal of the compromise was to settle the conflict about slavery, but it only helped to push back the inevitable. Many Southerners were upset about how California was allowed into the Union as a free state, upsetting the balance of free vs slave states. Utah and New Mexico were allowed to chose whether or not they would become slave states (using popular sovereignty), only highlighting Douglas’s wishy-washy attitude about slavery.
