Missouri Compromise

Definition

The Missouri Compromise was a significant legislative agreement reached in 1820 that aimed to balance the power between slave and free states in the United States. It admitted Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state, maintaining the numerical balance in Congress, while also establishing a boundary at the latitude of 36°30′ north for future states, allowing slavery in territories south of this line and prohibiting it in territories to the north. This compromise highlighted the growing sectional tensions over slavery and set the stage for future conflicts.

5 Must Know Facts For Your Next Test

1. The Missouri Compromise was drafted by Congressman Henry Clay, who is often referred to as 'The Great Compromiser' for his role in negotiating significant agreements regarding slavery.
2. This compromise was crucial in maintaining a temporary peace between the Northern and Southern states, but it did not resolve the underlying issues related to slavery.
3. The 36°30′ line established by the Missouri Compromise became a significant point of reference in future debates over the expansion of slavery into new territories.
4. While it created a temporary balance in Congress, the Missouri Compromise ultimately failed to provide a lasting solution, as sectional tensions continued to escalate throughout the following decades.
5. The Missouri Compromise was eventually rendered ineffective by subsequent legislation, particularly the Kansas-Nebraska Act, which allowed popular sovereignty to determine the status of slavery in new territories.

Review Questions

• How did the Missouri Compromise reflect the political climate of early 19th-century America regarding slavery?
  • The Missouri Compromise reflected the intense political struggle between pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions during early 19th-century America. It sought to maintain a delicate balance in Congress between slave and free states, highlighting how deeply entrenched and contentious the issue of slavery had become. By admitting Missouri as a slave state while also creating Maine as a free state, lawmakers aimed to prevent conflict but only temporarily masked the growing divide that would ultimately lead to more severe confrontations.
• Discuss how the Missouri Compromise set a precedent for future legislative attempts to address slavery in new territories.
  • The Missouri Compromise set a critical precedent by establishing a framework for how Congress would address slavery in newly acquired territories. The creation of the 36°30′ line provided a geographical boundary for the expansion of slavery and influenced subsequent legislation such as the Compromise of 1850 and the Kansas-Nebraska Act. However, this compromise also demonstrated that legislative solutions were increasingly inadequate as tensions rose, ultimately leading to conflict over state rights versus federal authority.
• Evaluate the long-term impacts of the Missouri Compromise on American politics and society leading up to the Civil War.
  • The long-term impacts of the Missouri Compromise on American politics and society were profound, as it failed to resolve fundamental issues surrounding slavery and only delayed conflict. By temporarily balancing power in Congress, it masked deeper societal divisions, which continued to fester as new territories were added. The eventual repeal of this compromise through legislation like the Kansas-Nebraska Act contributed to increasing polarization between North and South, culminating in events like Bleeding Kansas and ultimately leading to the outbreak of the Civil War.

Related terms

Compromise of 1850: A package of five separate bills passed by the U.S. Congress in September 1850 that aimed to defuse tensions between slave and free states following the Mexican-American War.

Kansas-Nebraska Act: An 1854 law that allowed residents of Kansas and Nebraska to decide whether to allow slavery within their borders, effectively repealing the Missouri Compromise.

Dred Scott Decision: An 1857 Supreme Court ruling that declared African Americans could not be American citizens and that Congress had no authority to regulate slavery in the territories, undermining the Missouri Compromise.