History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 6

History - Essay Example In 1850, there was the compromise, famously known as the compromise of 1850. This involved California applying to be part of the Union, this upset the balance of Free states and slaves as California sought to be a free state. The agreed compromise was that California would be admitted as a Free State translating to abolishment of slave trade in Washington D.C, however, the rest of the States won from Mexico would keep their slaves and lenient laws would be passed in this regard (Gallagher 19). In 1850, the Fugitive Slave Act was passed and this sought the assistance of Northerners in capturing runaway slaves. The Act also passed that fugitives would be arrested without warrant and would not be granted a fair trial. This read to the writing of the novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Beecher Stowe’s in 1952. In 1854, the Kansas-Nebraska act was passed this gave the residents autonomy to decide their position on slavery (Gallagher 20). There was an illegal voting that translated t o a civil war this resulted after Missouri residents rigged in favor of slavery. In 1857, the Dred Scott case was heard, Dred an enslaved man argued for his freedom after his master’s death. ... In the elections of 1860, Lincoln who was a Republican won the elections. This prompted secession by the South, who had threatened to withdraw from the Union in the event Lincoln won mainly due to his stance on slavery. The southerners seceded in 1860 forming the Confederate States of America, these elected Jefferson Davis as president. The secession set the stage for a war that would put to test the strength of the American republic, the Civil War (Gallagher 21). How & Why the Union defeated the confederacy Going into the war, the North had some definite advantages. One of the advantages was in the numbers; the North had 22 million people compared to the population of 9 million in the South. Out of the 9 million people in the South only 5.5 million of them were whites. The other advantage was in the industry capacity, by the time of the war the North was producing 94% of the total firearms present in the United States. The Confederates had to rely on firearms supplied by the Europea n trade partners. The trade would later be suppressed by the Union (Gallagher 30). The Union used its superior naval machinery to disrupt the trade which largely took place in the sea. Finally, the Union benefited from the fact that four slave states stack with the Union, these were Delaware, Missouri, Maryland and Kentucky. Abraham Lincoln’s role Abraham Lincoln was the president of United States at the time of cessation by the Southerners, also referred to as the Confederate States. Being the president, he felt he had a duty to protect the Union and ensure that all the States remained United. Therefore, his main role in the Civil War was his stance that the secession was illegal. By declaring it illegal, he set the stage for the War