Even though the Civil War changed the course of
our history, there were many chances it could have swayed in one direction or
another. One of those most turbulent and confusing times was the onset of
secession. Even though the seceding states mostly all did so in the fear that
the new administration would make the institution of slavery illegal. After the
states began to secede the issue at hand was no longer whether slavery would
remain an institution, but whether this country would remain a whole entity.
This is the problem that faced President Lincoln
in his first year in office. Lincoln would not accept that the countries were a
separate and sovereign union. The eventual conclusion to stop the southern
states from seceding would be an all-out war which would cost the country
millions of lives. However, there were others who intended on the same thing,
one of his was Kentucky’s own Senator John Crittenden. As we learned in class,
Crittenden put forth several key ideas that he thought would prevent the nation
from plunging into war. He, like Lincoln, didn’t want to see the country divided
into two nations. Crittenden aimed to appease the southern states by extending
the latitudinal line put forth by the Missouri Compromise. Making slavery legal
in all states north of the line, and an eternal institution to the south. The
compromise went on to say that Congress would be forever forbidden to make any
changes.
Other inclusions were no prohibitions on the
slave trade, slavery couldn’t be abolished under any area of its jurisdiction,
and the continuation of fugitive slave laws. Keep in mind, that this only
further exemplifies Kentucky’s overall stance within the war. It further shows
that Kentucky had a leg in each camp and even in some cases its citizens didn’t
wish to see the war come to blows. This was a very attractive offer for those
states seceding, but it was struck down when it was put on the table. From what
research I can find, the vote was actually very narrow and received support
from four other border states. It only failed by a single vote in the senate
and a total of 11 to 80 in the House, the main source of opposition came from
northern republicans who were intent on abolition.
In an article I found in the New York Times, it
was stated that it would be foolish of President Lincoln to accept the democrat’s
ideas to halt the seceding of states and to appease them to make sure that they
remain part of the union. They go on to say that no northern democrat who
values any nation honor should give this notion any attention. It just seems
that if just a few people had thought otherwise, then maybe our country would
have shifted in a very different direction and toward a much darker path
through history.
Simpson, Brooks D., Stephen W. Sears, and Aaron
Charles Sheehan-Dean. The
Civil War: The First Year Told by Those Who Lived It. New York, N.Y.: The
Library of America, 2011.
New York Times, “The Crittenden Compromise,” NYTimes.com, accessed March 9, 2013.
http://www.nytimes.com/1861/02/06/news/the-crittenden-compromise.html?pagewanted=1
No comments:
Post a Comment