Wilmot Proviso
The Spark for Stopping Slavery
Aditya Agashe #28
Impact: Other Movements
The "Great Triumvirate" Die
Similar to the Wilmot Proviso, the Great Triumvirate illustrated the turmoils brewing between the North and South. It represented three men, from the north, west, and south, each signifying a different perspective of the slavery issue , and dominating
much of the Senate. Together, they made substantial progress in minimizing the conflict between the sides, such as by drafting the Missouri Compromise of 1850, which unlike the Wilmot Proviso, managed to pass. Yet, all three died during its third year, ending any chance at a peaceful solution between the conflicting views.
The Missouri Compromise of 1850
With the failure of the Wilmot Proviso, the nation, largely due to the impact of the Great Triumvirate, passed the Missouri Compromise. While weaker than the proposed Wilmot Proviso,
it was a "halfway point" between the two sides, adding Maine as a free state and Missouri as a slave state. Further, it helped end any future conflicts on the matter, as it permanently added a provision with the 36' 30'' latitude line, above which slavery would be abolished, and below it would be allowed.
The Kansas-Nebraska Act
Similar to the Missouri Compromise, the Kansas-Nebraska Act was a hope of finding a common middle ground between the north and south on the slavery issue. Though it initially regarded expansion, it quickly morphed into a
slavery bill, allowing territories to vote through popular sovereignty to be free or slaved. It caused mass migration into Kansas for people to vote, eventually resulting in its declaration as a slave state.
The Ostend Manifesto
In 1854, the Ostend Manifesto was drafted, as a document threatening war on Spain if it refused to sell Cuba to the United States. However, similar to the territories received in the Mexican American War, it led to vast conflicts between the north and south . With the south
wanting to expand slave states, while the north was strongly against it, the Ostend Monifesto, like the Wilmot Proviso, became a source of fierce debate.
The Caning of Sen. Charles Sumer
The physical violence didn't end with Bleeding Kansas. In fact, it only got worse from then on. After Senator Charles Sumner delivered an anti-slavery speech to Congress, he was attacked by Southern Senator Congress Brooks. Clearly,
the conflict between the north and south was quickly spiraling out of control, with violence extending to the government itself. As shown with Sumer's attack, the Wilmot Proviso vastly raised resentment between the two sides on the slavery issue.
The Lecompton Constitution
In many ways, the Lecompton Constitution was the mirror image of the Wilmot Proviso. While the Wilmot Proviso was a provision by abolitionists, the Lecompton Constitution was pro-slavery. It concerned
Kansas's governance, including slave holding and excluding free blacks. And like the Wilmot Proviso, both documents ended up failing to pass through Congress. Still, they both lived on through history by further brewing the turmoil existing between the north and south.
The Raid on Harper's Ferry
Inevitably, the attempt at peace through the Freeport Doctrine did not last. However, with the Raid on Harper's Ferry, the source of conflict came from the slaves themselves. John Brown led
a slave rebellion to attack the town of Harper's Ferry in Virginia, and steal weapons and ammunition. Yet, Brown included neither rations nor an escape route in his journey, sending his conquest into inevitable doom. With it lasting a mere 36 hours, its lifetime was even less than that of the Wilmot Proviso. However, like the document, the raid further deepened divides due to conflicting views on the treatment of Brown. The north hailed him as a martyr, while the south despised him.
The Election of Abraham Lincoln
With the election of Abraham Lincoln on Nov. 6, 1860 as president of the United States, the south lost any chance of reaching an agreement with the North on the issue of slavery. Like the Wilmot Proviso and its founder, Lincoln was a firm abolitionist, with his main goal as president to end slavery forever. And unlike the Wilmot Proviso, there was no longer anything the south could do. With
Lincoln controlling the presidency, the north effectively had the entire government on their side. The spark separating the two had officially begun to ignite.
The Secession of South Carolina
As the first of many, South Carolina officially seceded from the union on December 20, 1860 soon after the election of Abraham Lincoln as president. Its leaders realized the little they could
do as the north had officially taken control of the reigns of the government, leaving secession the only option, as other states soon came to the conclusion of as well. This secession marked the full blown fuse that resulted from the igniting of the spark between the north and south, a process that had begun with the Wilmot Proviso over a decade prior and ending with the secession. With the secession, the conflict had crossed the point of no return. It was only a matter of time before others left as well, and war broke out between the north and south. The Civil War had begun.
The Birth of the Republican Party
The Republican Party's rise was largely due to the ideas presented throughout the Wilmot Proviso, as its initial basis for conception was the abolition of slavery, which the Wilmot Proviso fiercely tried to make law across all new territories. Yet, unlike the Wilmot Proviso,
the Republican Party managed to find success in its quest to do so, as it managed to put a president in office, Abraham Lincoln, and eventually reached its goal through the conclusion of the Civil War.
Bleeding Kansas
With the Wilmot Proviso deepening divides between the North and South, this hatred would inevitably lead to physical violence between the two sides. The first of many took place in the state of Kansas, soon
after it suspiciously voted for slavery in the election. Eventually words weren't enough for the two sides, leading to bloodshed in the region. Bleeding Kansas eventually became a symbol of how far the conflict had come, with a series of attacks in the region lasting a year.
The Dred Scott Decision
In 1857, a slave of the name Dred Scott tried to sue his slave owners for freedom. However, he didn't get the chance, as the Supreme Court denied his request to start a case, stating that African Americans were not American citizens and thus were ineligible to sue in court. This decision, prompted severe backlash from the north, as the
case was severely pro-slavery. Like the Wilmot Proviso, this further deepened political and regional tensions in the country, bringing the spark for the Civil War closer to ignition.
The Freeport Doctrine
The Freeport Doctrine was yet another attempt at compromise between the north and south on the issue of slavery, due to the difficulties that previous documents such as the Wilmot Proviso had faced
passing when fully one one side. In the Freeport Doctrine, Stephen A. Douglas debated against Abraham Lincoln for popular sovereignty, not the north or south, should be used to determine each new territory's stance on the issue of slavery. Though only temporarily, the Freeport Doctrine helped ease the growing resentment between the two parties.
The Jefferson Davis Resolutions
Jefferson Davis was a slave owner from the south and a powerful slavery activist. Yet, wanting to reach an agreement and avoid bloodshed, he offered many solutions to the matter, which became known as "The Jefferson Davis Resolutions." These overall presented the claim that citizens in added territories should decide the issue of slavery for themselves rather than having the
north and south decide in their place. Though like the Wilmot Proviso, Jefferson Davis's resolutions dealt with the issue of slavery in territories, its compromise approach helped limit the growth of hatred between the two sides, but still only prolonged the inevitable start of war.