Freedom in 1865 (Edexcel A-Level History): Revision Notes
Freedom in 1865
The geographical expansion of slavery and growing conflict
During the 1850s, the question of whether slavery should expand into new western territories became a critical issue that divided the nation. This geographical dimension of slavery would ultimately contribute to the outbreak of the Civil War.
Previous attempts to manage this tension included the Missouri Compromise of 1820, which admitted Missouri as a slave state whilst Maine entered as a free state in 1820. Similarly, the Compromise of 1850 tried to maintain a balance between free and slave states. This balance mattered because each state sent two senators to the US Senate, giving them significant political power.
Understanding Senators' Power
Each state has the right to elect two senators to the US Congress. Each senator is elected for a six-year term. The 100 senators have considerable power. They have the power to approve or reject presidential nominations to the president's cabinet and justices to the Supreme Court. They also have the power to ratify treaties with foreign governments, and must pass all legislation before it becomes law.
The rivalry between northern and mid-western free states and southern slave-owning states became known as sectional conflict. This tension reflected fundamentally different economic systems, political interests and views about human rights.
The Kansas-Nebraska Act 1854
The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 dramatically intensified the conflict over slavery's expansion. This legislation opened up the possibility of extending slavery westward into new territories.
Key features of the Act:
- When new states were created from the Kansas-Nebraska territory, the decision to become either a free state or a slave state would be made by the adult male population
- This process was called popular sovereignty – letting the people decide
- The Act led to large numbers of both pro-slavery and anti-slavery white migrants entering the territory, particularly Kansas
- Armed conflict erupted in Kansas in the late 1850s, even before the Civil War began
Political consequences of the Act:
Anti-slavery political groups came together to oppose the westward spread of slavery. In 1854, the Republican Party was formed specifically to oppose the creation of any new slave states in the west. This marked a significant political realignment in American politics that would reshape the nation's future.
Lincoln's election and southern secession
In 1860, Abraham Lincoln of the Republican Party was elected as the sixteenth president of the USA. His election proved to be the catalyst for southern secession and civil war.
Why southern states seceded:
- Southern slave-owning states viewed Lincoln's election as a major threat to the future of slavery
- The wealth of these states depended entirely on slave labour
- Southern states believed the USA was a voluntary union of states, originally created in 1776
- They claimed they had the right to leave or secede from the USA if they wished
The secession process:
South Carolina became the first southern state to secede in December 1860, immediately after the presidential election. Other southern states followed during 1861. In total, 11 states seceded from the Union. These states formed their own country, the Confederate States of America, to preserve slavery.
The northern perspective:
- Northern states believed the USA was an indissoluble union – once a state joined, it could not leave
- They viewed the war as the 'Great Rebellion' and called Confederates 'rebels'
- Initially, the North fought to preserve the union of states
- Only from autumn 1862 onwards did abolishing slavery in Confederate areas become a northern war aim
Within a month of Lincoln's inauguration in March 1861, the country was plunged into civil war.
Black Americans and the Civil War
The Civil War fundamentally transformed the position of black Americans in several ways.
Black participation in the Union army:
- Many black Americans joined the federal (Union) army during the war
- By the war's end, over 300,000 black Americans had served in the US armed forces
- As federal forces penetrated Confederate-held areas, tens of thousands of black slaves fled to join federal forces as civilian workers
Confederate responses and atrocities:
In 1862, the Confederate Congress declared that any former slaves caught serving in the federal army would be summarily executed. Any white officers leading black American troops would also be executed. Confederate troops openly attempted to kill all black American Union soldiers, as occurred at Fort Pillow and the Battle of the Crater in 1864.
Black Americans were not allowed to join the Confederate army until April 1865, just before the war's end. Only a small token force of a few hundred black soldiers was based in Richmond, Virginia.
Legal transformation: the Emancipation Proclamation and Constitutional Amendments
The Civil War brought about profound legal changes that redefined freedom and citizenship for black Americans.
The Emancipation Proclamation (January 1863):
- President Lincoln issued this proclamation during the war
- It declared all slaves under Confederate control to be free
- This made the abolition of slavery an official Union war aim
The Civil War Amendments
Three constitutional amendments fundamentally transformed the legal status of black Americans:
Thirteenth Amendment (1865):
- Declared slavery to be abolished throughout the United States
- This was the legal end of slavery as an institution
- Over 3.5 million black Americans were removed from slavery
Fourteenth Amendment (1868):
- Granted all US citizens equal protection under the law
- This theoretically meant black Americans had the same legal rights as white citizens
Fifteenth Amendment (1870):
- Granted all adult male US citizens the right to vote
- This gave black men the right to participate in democracy
These three amendments meant that all black Americans were now legally free and equal with white citizens, at least in theory.
The reality of freedom: economic challenges after 1865
Despite these legal transformations, the practical reality of freedom for former slaves proved deeply disappointing.
Government assistance efforts:
- During 1863-77, the federal government attempted to assist black Americans in the transition from slavery to freedom
- A Freedmen's Bureau was established to help former slaves
- Former slaves were promised land to cultivate
The Southern Homestead Act 1866:
Passed by the US Congress to help freed slaves acquire land, this act set aside 44 million acres (approximately 20 million hectares) for freed slaves. However, very few freed slaves could take advantage of this opportunity.
Main obstacles included:
- Lack of money to buy land
- Inability to afford farm implements
- Active opposition from southern whites
As one South Carolina slave observed in 1865, just because his master said he was free, it did not mean he was white and did not mean he was equal.
The rise of sharecropping:
With hopes of land ownership failing to materialise, a new exploitative system emerged:
- Old plantations that had employed hundreds of slaves were divided into small farms of 30 to 50 acres
- Freed black Americans and poor white Americans worked these small farms
- Rent was paid by giving the white landowner a share of the crop produced
- To raise money for crops and farm tools, a local credit system developed
- This credit system charged very high rates of interest
- Many sharecroppers faced mounting debts they could not repay
- By 1880, sharecropping was commonplace from east Texas to South Carolina
The hopes that the abolition of slavery would lead to a better life for freed black slaves proved illusory. Legal freedom did not translate into economic independence or genuine equality.
Key Points to Remember:
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The Kansas-Nebraska Act 1854 and the concept of popular sovereignty intensified sectional conflict over slavery's westward expansion, leading to violence and the formation of the Republican Party.
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Lincoln's election in 1860 prompted 11 southern states to secede and form the Confederate States of America, triggering civil war between two opposing views of the Union.
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Over 300,000 black Americans served in the Union forces during the Civil War, transforming their role from enslaved people to active participants in their own liberation.
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Three Constitutional Amendments (13th, 14th, and 15th) legally abolished slavery, granted equal protection, and gave black men voting rights, freeing 3.5 million people from bondage.
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Despite legal freedom, economic reality proved harsh as land redistribution failed and most freed slaves became trapped in the exploitative sharecropping system, demonstrating that freedom did not mean equality.