Final answer:
The Raid on Harper's Ferry was an unsuccessful attempt by John Brown and his followers to instigate a slave rebellion by capturing a federal arsenal in Virginia in 1859, which ultimately led to Brown's execution for treason.
Step-by-step explanation:
John Brown's Raid on Harper's Ferry
The Raid on Harper's Ferry, which occurred in October 1859, was led by the radical abolitionist John Brown and his followers. They assaulted the federal arsenal in Harpers Ferry, Virginia, with the aim of seizing weapons to arm enslaved people and instigate a slave rebellion. Contrary to a naval battle or immediate abolition of slavery, this event marked an unsuccessful attempt to start a slave rebellion. Brown's raid was also not related to the capture of John Wilkes Booth, who was later associated with the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln.
On the night of October 16, 1859, Brown and his men captured the arsenal, hoping to inspire a large-scale slave uprising. However, the plan failed when local slaves did not rally as expected, and Brown's group was rapidly surrounded by local militia and later by U.S. Marines led by Colonel Robert E. Lee. After a two-day standoff, Brown and his surviving followers were captured. He was subsequently tried, convicted of treason, and executed by hanging in December 1859.
Brown's actions exacerbated the already high tensions between the North and the South over the issue of slavery, making the raid a significant prelude to the American Civil War.