The Disunited States of America

Political Parties, Regional Cold Wars and Secessionist movements in the U.S.A.

1783-1860

*Not related to Harry Turtledove book of same name.

A timeline of U.S. political parties to 1836

Most important parties are Democratic Republican, Federalist, Democratic and Whig.

The beginning of the split: 1790s

George Washington hoped that their new country would have unity and be motivated by common purpose. It was not to be.

The Federalists (of which George Washington was one) were led by Alexander Hamilton and supported giving more power to the federal government. They also loosely interpreted the constitution.

The Democratic-Republicans were led by Thomas Jefferson and felt that minimum federal interference in state affairs was the best policy. They used a strict interpretation of the constitution to limit the government’s power.

www.coloradohumanities.org

http://edsitement.neh.gov/lesson-plan/first-american-party-system-us-political-parties-principle-legitimate-opposition

Federalists v. Democratic Republicans

http://faculty.polytechnic.org/gfeldmeth/chart.feddr.pdf

Like today’s Democrats Like today’s Republicans

Demise of the Federalists, Democratic Republicans

The Federalists weakened after 1808 and became unpopular due to opposing the war of 1812. The party died during the 1820s because the things it supported ( national bank, commerce) were not popular with many of the regular citizens.

http://www.history.com/topics/federalist-party

The Democratic- Republican party split in 1824 over whether to support Andrew Jackson or John Quincy Adams. The Democratic party and the New Republican party formed as a result of the split. The New Republicans would soon become the Whigs.

http://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-by-era/early-republic/timeline-terms/democratic-republican-party

U.S. political party timeline to 1860

Important parties are the democrats, the Whigs, the free soilers and the republicans.

http://nkogan.wordpress.com/2012/01/07/political-party-timeline-an-outstanding-example-of-information-reorganization/

Slavery: forming new parties and splitting old ones.

The increasing controversy of slavery led to factions of the Whig party ( which was the alternative to democrats) splitting off and becoming the Free Soil party. They were one of many parties formed to advocate the abolition of slavery.

The free soilers, elements of the Whigs and the nativist know-nothing party formed the modern Republican party.

The 1860 presidential election

The 1860 presidential election saw the southern democrats split from the main democratic party ( and secure Lincoln's election ironically) The result of Lincoln’s victory was secession and civil war.

The green is Breckinridge, the southern democrat canidate.

The other side of the storyThe rapid formation and dissolution of political parties can seen as just one part of a larger regional struggle, one which until 1860 was largely a cold war between the agricultural southern states and the industrial northern states that dated back to the founding of the republic. The exact phase of the “ real “ cold war that this corresponds closest to is the Détente period of the 1970s

The regional cold war was brutal, leading to intense shouting matches, fighting in the capitol building and eventually, a civil war.

www.dipity.com

www.smithsonianmag.com

The Beginning of the Split: Part 2

The origin can be found in the different visions that the federalists and Democratic- Republicans had for the country. The Federalists dreamed of a commercial empire for the young republic, while the D-Rs believed in the notion of the citizen farmer being the ideal person for the nation.

The regions mirrored the split in thinking, with the northern states developing into industrial areas ( and supporting the federalists though the middle states defected to the D-Rs) while the rural, agricultural southern states supported the D-Rs.

www.symonsez.wordpress.com

Slavery: Divide and Stalemate

Slavery led to the states polarizing along 2 axes: slave and free.

They wanted a constant balance in numbers of states so that their power would not be diminished.Thus every time a new state was added, another state had to be created to counterbalance it. Map from Wikipedia.

Compromise-1820

http://teachers.henrico.k12.va.us/tucker/strusky_m/webquests/VUS6_madisonmonroe/MissouriCompromise.html

The Missouri Compromise was the first compromise attempt, splitting the new territories into 2 parts: open to slavery and closed to slavery along 36 degrees north.

Compromise of 1850California’s request to enter the union as a free state caused a crises ( because it upset the delicate balance and showed the unsustainibility of their attempts at regional détente .

Henry Clay negotiated a compromise that added the fugitive slave act, abolished the Washington D.C. slave trade and let California in. The Fugitive slave act enraged many northerners and only increased the tension.

http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/Compromise1850.html

www.ushistory.org

Last Attempt: 1854Only 4 years after the Compromise of 1850, the Kansas-Nebraska Act was passed and virtually repealed the earlier act.

http://www.milestonedocuments.com/documents/view/kansas-nebraska-act

While the 1850 compromise banned slavery in the Kansas-Nebraska area, the 1854 compromise mandated popular sovereignty to solve the issue of slavery in the territories

It would have several unforeseen consequences

Stephen Douglas ( D-Il) wanted to build a transcontinental railroad in Chicago but had to organize the Nebraska territory to do it. He added popular sovereignty to get southern votes.

Hijacking Kansas

To try to influence the vote, pro- and anti- slavery people poured into Kansas.

Sharps rifles became known as Beecher’s Bibles after a minister who provided them.

The northerners started it but a rumor that stated about 20 times the actual number were coming sent southerners rushing to Kansas, which caused a cascade of movement.

Pro-slavery forces won the election and set up a legislature, but northerners set up their own legislature in Topeka. Now 2 governments claimed jurisdiction over Kansas.

Many northerners wanted land and hated slavery because of the large plantations. To that end, they banned blacks from Kansas.

Bleeding KansasScattered violence had occurred, but it would escalate due to one attack.

Pro slavery men burned a hotel and ransacked homes. John Brown retaliated by killing 5 pro slave people.

The fighting was increasing and would spread to congress.

Pro slave senator Preston Brooks beat abolitionist senator Charles Sumner with a cane.

A new territorial governor restored order. 55 people had died.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part4/4p2952.html

America fracturing

The abolitionists grew as a movement and became more radical, gradual elimination of slavery wasn’t good enough, it had to be soon. This view alienated people in the north as well as the south. Many mill owners depended on slave cotton and farmers worried about the effect that millions of freed blacks would take up the land that they felt should be awarded to free whites.

The radicalism of the abolitionists, spurred on by Uncle Tom’s Cabin led to the slavers becoming more firm in their demands. The country was polarized and congressional actions weren’t helping.

http://www.civil-war.net/pages/timeline.asp

In 1857, the rates on tariffs went down by a congressional action. The south loved it, the north hated it. While previously, compromise had happened by common interest, both side’s interests were starting to diverge and some groups were considering secession.

America falling apartAlso in 1857 was the Dred Scott Decision. This Supreme court ruling found that blacks weren’t citizens and slaves could be taken into free territory and remain slaves. It was very controversial.

More free states were joining and in 1859, John Brown made his ill-fated raid on Harper’s Ferry, Virginia. He was captured and hung. In the south he was viewed as a dangerous maniac but in the north, some viewed him as a martyr. This particular northern view deeply worried the southerners as they perceived an increasingly hostile environment.

Pict

ure

fro

m W

ikip

ed

ia

ww

w.s

oci

als

tudie

sfork

ids.

com

The Election of 1860The election of 1860 in many ways, foreshadowed what was to come. The southerners split from the Democrats and formed the Southern Democrats. They ignored perhaps rule # 1 of elections: never split voters.

Lincoln won the election (despite not being on the ballot in most southern states) and many southerners, dreading the consequences of a Lincoln victory for slavery, prepared to secede.

The end of the beginning

April 12, 1861, LT. Henry Farley sat by his mortar. It was aimed at Fort

Sumter and when fired, would serve as a signal to the other guns

to start firing. In other words, it would become the first shot of the American Civil War, a culmination

of events dating back to the founding of the country, a war that would cause immense devastation

and suffering.

He fired.