Compromise of 1850
The Compromise of 1850 was a package of five separate bills passed in the United States in September 1850, which defused a four-year confrontation between the slave states of the South and the free states of the North regarding the status of territories acquired during the Mexican-American War (1846–1848). The compromise, drafted by Whig Senator Henry Clay of Kentucky and brokered by Clay and Democratic Senator Stephen Douglas, reduced sectional conflict. Controversy arose over the Fugitive Slave provision.
The Compromise was greeted with relief, although each side disliked specific provisions.
The Compromise became possible after the sudden death of President Zachary Taylor, who, although a slaveowner, had favored excluding slavery from the Southwest. Whig leader Henry Clay designed a compromise, which failed to pass in early 1850, due to opposition by both pro-slavery southern Democrats, led by John C. Calhoun, and anti-slavery northern Whigs. Upon Clay's instruction, Democratic Senator Stephen Douglas (Illinois) then divided Clay's bill into several smaller pieces and narrowly won their passage over the opposition of those with stronger views on both sides.
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American History USA Articles
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Although the Civil War was disastrous for the South, there's been little analysis on the wisdom of seceding in 1860. Here we examine the alternatives.
Books/Sources
- On the Brink of Civil War: The Compromise of 1850 and How It Changed the Course of American History (The American... - John C. Waugh
- The Compromise of 1850 - edwin rozwenc
Youtube
- 6. Expansion and Slavery: Legacies of the Mexican War and the Compromise of 1850
- Block VIII Lecture 1 Compromise of 1850