bleeding kansas Flashcards
(6 cards)
opposing companies
Northerners
Set up the MASSACHUSSETTS EMIGRANT AID COMPANY to encourage Northerners to settle in Kansas. Limited success, however.
Southerners
Set up the PLATTE COUNTY DEFENSIVE ASSOCIATION to ensure that Kansas did become a slave state. It seemed likely in the early days because many of its first settlers came from the slave state, Missouri.
the border ruffians
In October 1854, Andrew Reeder, a pro slavery democrat was appointed the first governor of Kansas territory, and his first move was to call for an election to delegate Congress. The “border ruffians” were people from Missouri who voted for the “pro-slavery” candidate and then moved back to Missouri. They perverted the democratic process in Kansas. In Kansas you could vote no matter how long you had been a resident for.
This was a tactical error from the “border-ruffians” as the pro-slavery candidate probably would have won any way, however, the fact that they violated the democratic process made this victory unlikely.
The topeka territorial government
The Topeka Territorial Government
They drew up a free-state constitution and called elections for a new legislature and governor, which were boycotted by the pro-slavers within Kansas.
However, there was deep divisions between Free-soilers who held abolitionist views and supported the Republicans position, and “moderates” who opposed slavery because they didn’t want black people migrating to Kansas, they were openly racist.
the lecompton territorial government
The Lecompton Territorial Government
Made it a capital offence to give aid to a fugitive slave.
Anyone who held the opinion that slavery was not legal could be imprisoned
Office-holding was restricted to avowed pro-slavery men.
All voters had to take an oath to uphold these laws.
bleeding kansas
Kansas was refered to as “bleeding Kansas” because neither pro-slavers or free-soilers recognised the laws of each other which caused tension. Free state supporters were armed by Northerners and pro-slavers were armed by the South, causing violence.
For example, John Browns Raid. John Brown was an abolitionist who wanted to attack slavery. In May 1856 he dragged pro-slavery settlers from a cabin and murdered them in cold blood. Northern Newspapers claimed that Brown acted in self-defense, and he became a Northern hero while he became infamous in the South.
Impact on Republicans
The events in Kansas helped the Republican party as in May 1856, the free state center Lawrence failed, which meant that abolitionist views took over. This gained attraction for the Republican party as they were against slavery and the expansion of it.
