Why Did The Compromise Of 1850 Fail Essay

The cotton-oriented economy of the American South continued to rest on the shoulders of its slaves, even as Northern calls for the abolition of slavery grew louder.

At the same time, the industrialization of the North continued.

Maryland, 1819) and other events expanded the scope of federal authority.

Southerners became particularly skeptical of federal power because they worried that the national government might someday try to outlaw slavery over the objections of individual Southern states.

This acquisition of land, known as the Louisiana Purchase, added more than eight hundred thousand square miles to the United States.

The Louisiana Purchase was a very sound investment for America, since the land would eventually make up all or part of thirteen states (Arkansas, Iowa, Missouri, Minnesota, South Dakota, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Louisiana, Kansas, Colorado, Montana, and Wyoming).Finally, South Carolina's defiant stand introduced the idea of secession to a generation of Southerners.All across the South, from Richmond, Virginia, to New Orleans, Louisiana, white communities began to wonder if secession from the Union might ultimately be the only way for them to keep their way of life intact.From the time that the original thirteen colonies declared their independence from Great Britain in 1776, Americans worked to develop an effective system of democratic government.The first comprehensive rules of government passed were the Articles of Confederation, which were ratified (legally approved) in 1781.Under the terms of this document, the individual states held most of the country's legislative power.The Articles of Confederation also provided for the creation of a central or federal government to guide the nation, but this government was given so little authority that it was unable to do much. Constitution, which provided additional powers to the federal government.Within a few years, most legislators agreed that they needed to make some changes. But congressional leaders also made sure that the individual states retained some rights, inserting language that was designed to strike a balance between federal and state power.Complaints about this arrangement flared up from time to time in both the northern and southern regions of the country, as Supreme Court decisions (Mc Culloch v.Ignoring Southern complaints, Congress passed a second Tariff Act in 1832 that was also seen as providing benefits to the North at the expense of the South. Calhoun (1782–1850), a former vice president of the United States, the South Carolina legislature decided to take a stand against the new tariffs. In early 1833, the tense situation was finally resolved.In November 1832, state legislators passed the Ordinance of Nullification, which described the new taxes as "unconstitutional, oppressive [harsh], and unjust." The language of the bill reflected the legislature's belief that the state had the right to disregard the new federal tariff laws because it did not support them. president Andrew Jackson (1767–1845) was appalled by the passage of the South Carolina bill, and he warned state officials that he was willing to use the military to enforce federal law. Both the federal and South Carolina governments agreed on a compromised system of reduced tariffs.