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The Missouri Compromise was a United States federal legislation that stopped northern attempts to forever prohibit slavery's expansion by admitting Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state.

Could the MO Compromise have been a lasting solution to the debate between slave and free states?

Though the Missouri Compromise managed to keep the peace—for the moment—it failed to resolve the pressing question of slavery and its place in the nation’s future. Southerners who opposed the Missouri Compromise did so because it set a precedent for Congress to make laws concerning slavery, while Northerners disliked the law because it meant slavery was expanded into new territory.

https://www.history.com/topics/abolitionist-movement/missouri-compromise#:~:text=a%20final%20sentence.%E2%80%9D-,Repeal%20of%20the%20Missouri%20Compromise,place%20in%20the%20nation's%20future.

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The Wilmot Proviso was designed to eliminate slavery within the land acquired as a result of the Mexican War.

Why was the Wilmot Proviso protested by Southerners?

Southerners vigorously opposed the Wilmot Proviso, fearing that additional free states would decisively tip the balance of power to the North.

https://whitmanarchive.org/criticism/current/encyclopedia/entry_743.html

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The Compromise of 1850 was a package of five separate bills passed by the United States Congress in September 1850 that defused a political confrontation between slave and free states on the status of territories acquired in the Mexican–American War.

What hurdles were faced in trying to pass the Compromise of 1850?

In 1849 California requested permission to enter the Union as a free state, potentially upsetting the balance between the free and slave states in the U.S. Senate.

https://guides.loc.gov/compromise-1850

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The Fugitive Slave Act or Fugitive Slave Law was passed by the United States Congress on September 18, 1850, as part of the Compromise of 1850 between Southern interests in slavery and Northern Free-Soilers.

How was Henry David Thoreau involved in the fight against the Fugitive Slave Act?

In July of 1846, while living at Walden Pond, Thoreau was arrested and jailed for nonpayment of the poll tax, a form of protest against government complicity in slavery. He deplored the likely expansion of slave territory through war with Mexico (declared in May of 1846).

https://concordlibrary.org/special-collections/antislavery/39

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It became law on May 30, 1854. The Kansas-Nebraska Act repealed the Missouri Compromise, created two new territories, and allowed for popular sovereignty.

Why did Douglas want to repeal the Missouri Compromise and replace it with the KS/NE act?

Douglas hoped this idea of “popular sovereignty” would resolve the mounting debate over the future of slavery in the United States and enable the country to expand westward with few obstacles.

https://www.history.com/topics/19th-century/kansas-nebraska-act#:~:text=Kansas%20was%20admitted%20as%20a,expand%20westward%20with%20few%20obstacles.

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Bleeding Kansas describes the period of repeated outbreaks of violent guerrilla warfare between pro-slavery and anti-slavery forces following the creation of the new territory of Kansas in 1854.

If the Missouri Compromise had not been repealed and replaced, would this violence have occurred? Explain.

Kansas with slavery would violate the Missouri Compromise, which had kept the Union from falling apart for the last thirty-four years.

https://www.ushistory.org/us/31a.asp

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Dred Scott v. Sandford, 60 U.S. 393, was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court in which the Court held that the United States Constitution was not meant to include American citizenship.

Should the Supreme Court always be trusted? Explain.

It shouldn't always be trusted because they can discriminate you depending on race, age, gender, religion or more. They can also falsely accuse you of something.

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The Lincoln–Douglas debates were a series of seven debates between Abraham Lincoln, the Republican Party candidate for the United States Senate from Illinois, and incumbent Senator Stephen Douglas, the Democratic Party candidate.

What was the “Freeport Doctrine” and how did it both help and hurt Douglas?

The Freeport Doctrine is derived from Douglas's response in which he argued that slavery could only exist in places with support from local police regulations. By unequivocally supporting this doctrine, Douglas hurt his chances to achieve victory in 1860.

https://www.battlefields.org/learn/articles/lincoln-douglas-debates#:~:text=The%20Freeport%20Doctrine%20is%20derived,to%20achieve%20victory%20in%201860.

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John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry was an effort by abolitionist John Brown, from October 16 to 18, 1859, to initiate a slave revolt in Southern states by taking over the United States arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia.

Was John Brown justified in his plan?

The trial’s high point came at its end when Brown was permitted to make a speech, which appears on this broadside printed in December 1859 by the abolitionist newspaper, the Liberator. In his address, Brown asserted that he "never did intend murder, or treason, or the destruction of property, or to excite or incite Slaves to rebellion, or to make insurrection," but rather wanted only to "free Slaves." He defended his actions as righteous and just, saying that "to have interfered as I have done—In behalf of His despised poor, was not wrong but right."

https://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-resources/spotlight-primary-source/john-browns-final-speech-1859

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The Republican Party was relatively new; 1860 was only the second time the party had a candidate in the presidential race. The Constitutional Union Party was also new; 1860 was the first and only time the party ran a candidate for president. The results of the 1860 election pushed the nation into war.

How did divided political parties lead to Lincoln’s election?

The Northern Democratic Party was a leg of the Democratic Party during the 1860 presidential election, when the party split in two factions because of disagreements over slavery.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_Democratic_Party

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The withdrawal of 11 slave states (states in which slaveholding was legal) from the Union during 1860–61 following the election of Abraham Lincoln as president.

Could secession have been a long-term solution?

Once the Confederate states seceded and troops fired on Fort Sumter, the only solution possible was complete Southern surrender. And as the war continued, and slavery became an explicit justification for the conflict, emancipation became central to a resolution.

https://www.history.com/news/could-compromise-have-prevented-the-civil-war

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On April 12, 1861, forces from the Confederate States of America attacked the United States military garrison at Fort Sumter, South Carolina. Less than two days later, the fort surrendered. No one was killed. The battle, however, started the Civil War, the bloodiest conflict in American history.

What actions did Lincoln take to prevent an outbreak of violence at Fort Sumter?

As Commander in Chief, President Abraham Lincoln responded to the Confederate attack on Fort Sumter by calling for 75,000 militia volunteers. Their first duty was to repossess federal property seized from the Union by the seven seceded states.

https://www.visitthecapitol.gov/exhibitions/artifact/proclamation-president-united-states-april-15-1861