The Events Of Bleeding Kansas

The institution of slavery was legal and eventually constitutional in the United States for 245 years. In that time, many compromises were made in the American government regarding slavery. This is particularly evident in the time period prior to 1854 in which the US government made a great deal of compromises in order to maintain the stability of American society. As 1854 began, tensions continued to rise in the United States of America surrounding the topic of slavery. Ultimately, these tensions lead to horrific violence within the nation, beginning with the events of Bleeding Kansas. Bleeding Kansas catalysed a violent reaction to the rising tensions that eventually manifested itself as the American Civil War, beginning in 1861. This progression from compromise to violence in response to a changing society has greatly impacted America. The events of Bleeding Kansas signified a shift from compromise over the issue of slavery towards violence, which would take seven years to culminate in the Civil War. Prior to the Civil War, the American economy relied solely on slavery. African slavery began, in what is now the United States, when slaves were imported from Africa to Jamestown, Virginia, in 1619. These slaves were transported in what became colloquially referred to as the ‘Slave Trade’. The slave’s purpose was to aid in the production of cash crops, such as tobacco. Once America was established as a country, slavery continued to spread, but was primarily present in the Southern states due to their agricultural industry. This ultimately caused the divide that lead to the secession of the Southern states from the Union and the bombardment of Fort Sumter. However, before the beginning of the Civil War, Bleeding Kansas would occur. Bleeding Kansas was a series of violent political confrontations and skirmishes involving anti-slavery "Free-Staters" and pro-slavery "Border Ruffians" or "Southern Yankees". These violent confrontations occurred primarily in Kansas between the years of 1854 and 1861. This violence then continued with the commencement of the American Civil War, which was fought between the years of 1861 and 1865. The Union, the North, fought fiercely against the Confederacy, the South, primarily over slavery and whether or not it should be allowed to continue in the United States. Before to 1854, the United States of America followed a strict policy of compromise in order to stave off any crisis from occurring. The Constitutional Convention, held in Philadelphia during the autumn of 1787, is a strong example of strong compromise during this time period. The Constitutional Convention created many noteworthy and important compromises such as the Connecticut Compromise, the Three-Fifths Compromise, the Commerce compromise, the Slave Trade Compromise, and the Compromise on Executive Elections (Roche). These compromises are highly notable due to their influence throughout the rest of American history, both in regards to short and long-term affects. Whilst the …show more content…
The Kansas-Nebraska Act, passed by Congress on May 30th of 1854, repealed the Missouri Compromise (“Kansas-Nebraska Act”). However, it continued the idea of popular sovereignty that contributed to the theme of compromise in American history. Sadly, the compromise failed to quell the tensions over slavery and ultimately caused Kansas to become a battleground for issues regarding slavery. Evidently, compromise was no longer as effective as it had once been, a development seen especially in the events of the Pottawatomie Massacre. The massacre took place from May 24th to May 25th, 1856 and is considered one of the most noted massacres that occurred during the battles of Bleeding Kansas. It resulted in the death of five proslavery men, which caused outrage amongst the slavery supporters (McPherson). The Pottawatomie Massacre began to illuminate the flaws in the idea of compromise. John Brown was incredibly influential in the violent movement of abolition, and away from compromise. His leadership in the Pottawatomie Massacre and the raid on Harpers Ferry during Bleeding Kansas showed, clearly, that compromise was no longer an option. On the day of his execution, on December 2nd, 1859 John Brown wrote; “I, John Brown, am now quite certain that the crimes of this guilty land will never be purged away but with blood” (Oates). He reiterates the view that compromise is no longer a valid option in American society, and that the only effective way forward was through violent acts, John Brown 's words about the idea of compromise further exemplified that compromise had ceased to be