1. Name THREE key events/actions (turning points) that you believe led to the start of the Civil War in April 1861. Explain your
choices. 2. Do you think John Brown was right to try to start a slave revolt? Why or why not?
3. In your opinion, was the Civil War inevitable? Were the North and the South doomed from the beginning to battle each other eventually over the slavery issue? Why or why not?
1. The Missouri Compromise - This states that Missouri would be admitted as a slave state and Maine would be admitted as a free state, to maintain the balance of slave vs. free states. But there was a line drawn on the 36-30 lines that divided the north as free and south as slave. This caused great debate among the northern states because of the fear of the south gaining more slave states. The Wilmot Proviso - Stated that any new territory acquired by the US as result of the Mexican-American War, would outlaw slavery. This proviso would include most of the southwest and extend all the way to California. While this plan did not get passed, there was still great debate between the north and south over what the US would do with the new obtained territory. The election of Abraham Lincoln - Running on an anti-slavery outlook, this created fear in the South in fear of losing their slaves. About a month after the election of Lincoln, South Carolina seceded from the Union. 2. John Brown was an abolitionist and wanted to spark a series of slave uprisings. While his actions were not the best way to end slavery, his intentions were. The raid was a major contributor to the start of the Civil War, so without it, slavery would have ended later in history than when it did end. So overall, the John Brown raid was effective in which it helped pushed the south to secede and the north pushing to end slavery. 3. The Civil War was inevitable because the issues on slavery was always a debate between the north and south. There were many times in history when the south had said they would secede from the union whenever slavery was being regulated or when they felt they were not being heard. What made the turn of events was when Lincoln was elected and when he supported an anti-slavery union, the south felt they were not properly represented by their president, so they seceded.
The United States historically had far less imperial actions in comparison to their European counterparts. The United States did not have massive colonial empires like Britain or France. The United States acquired some territories outside of the "continental" US however, it did not maintain an imperial presence like any of its European cohorts.
