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SS8H5a Causes of the Civil War

Terms in this set (20)

American Civil War
1861-1865: War between North (union states) and South (confederate states) over slavery and states' rights.
Alexander Stephens
Georgia Congressman who supported the Georgia Platform in 1850 and fought against secession in 1861 but eventually became the Vice President of the Confederate States of America.
What was Georgia's contribution to the Civil War?
Manufactured equipment for the Confederate States of America.
Slavery
the condition of being owned by another person and being made to work without wages
Reason slavery was a cause for the Civil War
The south's economy depended on slave labor to plant and harvest cotton; The North was against slavery for moral and economic reasons.
What was the attitude of the North on slavery in new territories?
The North was against slavery in new territories.
What was the attitude of the South on slavery in new territories?
The South wanted slavery to expand into new territories.
States' Rights
The amount of power a state government has in relation to the amount of power held by the federal government.
Why was states' rights a cause of the Civil War?
The southern states favored states' rights while the northern states thought the power of the federal government overrode the state government.
What states' rights issue dealing with tariffs led to the Civil War?
Nullification Crisis
Nullification Crisis
Argument between South Carolina and the federal government regarding the role of national government's authority to place tariffs on imported goods.
What was the goal of President Andrew Jackson when he placed tariffs on imported goods in the early 1800's?
The North needed the South to buy manufactured goods from them, but the South could buy things cheaper from Great Britain. President Jackson placed tariffs on imported goods to force the South to buy from the North.
Compromise of 1850
compromise between the North and South that allowed California to enter the union in exchange for the passage of the Fugitive Slave Act.
Fugitive Slave Act
A law that made it a crime to help runaway slaves; allowed for the arrest of escaped slaves in areas where slavery was illegal and required their return to slaveholders
Georgia Platform
Georgia's attempt to stay in the Union by reaching a compromise with the Union over California entering the U.S. as a free state with no slave state to keep the balance in government. Georgia agreed with compromise as long as the Fugitive Slave Act was enforced.
Dred Scott Case (1857)
a legal case involving a slave who sued for his freedom, the Supreme Court denied that he had any legal rights at all including the right to be heard in court because slaves were not citizens, denied him his freedom, stated that the federal government could not ban/outlaw slavery in newly admitted states
Election of 1860
Lincoln, the Republican candidate, won because the Democratic party was split over slavery. As a result, the South no longer felt like it has a voice in politics and a number of states seceded from the Union.
Secession
Formal withdrawal of states or regions from a nation
Did everyone in Georgia want to secede from the Union?
No, small farmers and non-slave holders did not want to leave the Union.
nullification
An action by a state that cancels a federal law to which the state objects
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