Unit 4 –The Events that led to the Civil War
Objective: The student will demonstrate an understanding of the multiple events that led to the Civil War.
Indicator 8-4.3, 8-4.4 South Carolina Secession
Directions
Read the information below and answer the question that follows.
There were many critical events that led to the secession of the Southern states, including South Carolina, from the Union. In the following sections, you will review the major events involving South Carolina that ultimately led to its leaving the United States.
The Nullification Crisis
In 1828 Andrew Jackson was elected President of the United States. Seen as the hero to the common man, he began to form a new Democratic Party, one that was accountable to its citizens and decreased the power of the wealthy elite. John Calhoun, of South Carolina, was elected as his Vice President. Before Jackson was elected, several tariffs or taxes on British goods were passed that were very unpopular with southerners. They felt as though these taxes were only beneficial to northerners. Southerners imported many goods from Britain and thus had to pay more money for them. Because of the increased price, fewer British products were bought. In turn, the British bought fewer goods like cotton from the South, hurting their profits even more. While manufacturing business boomed in the North, and land purchases increased in the West, but the South was hurting.
Congress passed two more tariffs in the 1820s, despite the cries of unfairness from the South. The tariff of 1828 was particularly damaging. It increased the tax up to 50% on some products. This tariff caused Calhoun to write an anonymous letter calling the tariff unconstitutional and suggesting states that were not in favor had the right to “Nullify” the law. Nullification meant that if a state decided by a vote at a special convention, they could veto the law. If Congress decided to enforce the law, then the state that voted to nullify it could secede or leave the Nation. This created a huge riff between President Jackson and his Vice-President which ultimately led to Calhoun’s resignation. After Jackson ordered troops into South Carolina to resist the nullification, an act that he said was treason, Calhoun resigned as Vice-President and was elected to the US Senate. There he worked on a compromise bill that would reduce the tariff. But the seeds of secession were sewn.
Unionists, Secessionists, and Cooperations
In the tutorial “Compromises and Clashes Before the War”, you learned about the Compromise of 1850. Calhoun was against this compromise and argued over Slavery. He even suggested that there be two Presidents, one for each the North and South. The result was the formation of three different schools of thought as it pertained to South Carolina’s place in the United States. The first group was referred to as the Unionists. They felt that, despite their opposition to the compromise, it was best to stay in the Union. The second group was called the Secessionists. They passionately believed that South Carolina should leave the Union no matter what the other Southern states did. Finally, there were the Cooperationists. They felt the secession was a good idea as long as the other states seceded too.
With the results of the events presented in the tutorial and the election of 1860, the South ultimately made the decision to leave the Union.
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