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Compromise of 1850 & Fugitive Slave Act                         (January 29, 1850)

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Compromise of 1850 & Fugitive Slave Act                         (January 29, 1850)

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The Compromise of 1850 was a series of five bills that attempted to settle the dispute over slavery in the U.S. This package of laws was intended to defuse the political confrontation between free and slave states in regard to the status of territories acquired from the Mexican-American War. One of the main points was that Congress strengthened the Fugitive Slave Act -- highly unpopular in the North, which necessitated slaves to be returned to their owner, regardless if they were in a free state, and held individuals responsible for harboring fugitive slaves (once again, even if in non-slave states). Indeed, this compelled countless abolitionists to increase their efforts against slavery. All in all, the Compromise of 1850 functioned as essentially a temporary "band-aid" on the controversial issue of slavery by primarily addressing the status of the newly gained territory from the Mexican-American War.

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Election of Abraham Lincoln (November 6, 1860)

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Election of Abraham Lincoln (November 6, 1860)

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Abraham Lincoln upheld a political platform in which he opposed the expansion of slavery. His disapproval of slavery and opinion that this practice served as a violation of human rights compelled Southerners to feel revulsion towards this candidate, given that they essentially depended on slavery to run as the engine in acquiring profit from agriculture. Henceforth, the 1860 election results caused a chain reaction of 7 Southern states to secede from the Union -- before Lincoln could even take office -- in fear of Lincoln's policies. The 1860 Election clearly depicted the division within the United States, and Lincoln's election victory fundamentally set the stage for the Civil War, pushing the nation into war.

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Emancipation Proclamation (January 1, 1863)

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Emancipation Proclamation (January 1, 1863)

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Two years into the Civil War, President Lincoln released an executive order that liberated slaves in Union-held territory in the seceded states. This was one of the most significant events of this time period given that one of the underlying causes to this war was the debate over slavery. This document confirmed that the Civil War for the Union must become a war for freedom. The Emancipation Proclamation colossally increased the moral force of the Union's soldiers and citizens as it politically and militarily strengthened the Northern states by linking them through a shared value system. Indeed, besides changing the course of the war to incorporate the liberation of slaves in addition to preserving the Union, this presidential order also paved the way to total abolition of slavery in the U.S.

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Battle of Gettysburg        (July 1-3, 1863)

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Battle of Gettysburg        (July 1-3, 1863)

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General Robert E. Lee had planned to invade the North and pressurize towards an instantaneous end to the war. However, this three day battle in Gettysburg was a prodigious victory for the Union, and served as the turning point of the war. This conflict delivered a heavy blow on the Confederacy with the impact inflicted by the battle's losses and military deficits. After the Battle of Gettysburg, the Confederate military force never engaged in offensive to the North again, which served as one of the biggest factors to the Southern loss in the Civil War.

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Confederate General Robert E. Lee finally surrendered to the Union General Ulysses S. Grant in Appomattox Court House in Virginia on April 9 of 1865. This effectively concluded the most bloodiest war in American history that took the lives of approximately 620,000 Americans. Abraham Lincoln was very lenient and generous on the terms of returning the rebels into the Union as he did not desire for discord within the nation, but rather for a quick reunification. Unfortunately, not long after this particular surrender that President Lincoln was assassinated by a Southern sympathizer -- John Wilkes Booth. On the other hand, the Surrender at Appomattox signified that the Union was preserved and the nation was closer to abolishing slavery. And, just 8 months later in the same year, the Thirteenth Amendment was ratified in December 1865, abolishing slavery in the United States. This constitutional amendment was a victory for the abolitionist movement and an immense milestone in the development of the civil rights movement in the nineteenth century.