Lincoln And Douglas Debates In The United States

As a result of the Compromise of 1850, California was admitted as a free state, the territory disputed between Texas and New Mexico was surrendered to New Mexico, the slave trade was abolished in the District of Columbia, the Mexican Cession was open to popular sovereignty, and a stronger Fugitive Slave Law was enacted. In a speech to the Senate on March 7, 1850, Senator Daniel Webster stated his opinion that the North is wrong for not obeying the Fugitive Slave Law and that succession is amiss [Document D].The tone of Webster’s speech is objective as he attempts to see both sides- the North and the South. Webster is unbiased because as a Northern man, he agrees with the South. The peace was only temporary. The Fugitive Slave Law upset Northerners and the Underground Railroad became more active, peaking between 1850 and 1860. Massachusetts went so far as to making it a penal offense for a state official to enforce the act. The act also brought the issue of slavery into the limelight before the entire nation. In fact, by 1858, there was no avoiding the subject of slavery. During the Lincoln-Douglass Debates in a speech at Alton, Illinois on October 15, 1858, Abraham Lincoln stated that slavery was no longer just a political issue [Document G]. Slavery was splitting the nation and during the Second Great Awakening, even churches split over the issue. Lincoln’s speech is

These issues put the nation in a frenzy and were included in the Lincoln-Douglas debates of 1858 in Illoniois. This senatoral campain between Abraham Lincoln, a Republican, and the more experienced Douglas, a Democrat, consisted of seven debates held in public during festivals. Lincoln argued with Douglas about slavery–which the latter didn’t consider a moral issue–and popular soveriengty, an idea Douglas had openly supported. When Lincoln had corned Douglas on the topic at a debate in Freeport, the

The Lincoln-Douglas debates involved several issues dividing the nation, slavery versus free labor, popular sovereignty, and the legal and political status of black Americans.

Abraham Lincoln was known for his speaking abilities. He wrote well, and he could compel even the smallest audience. This skill set him aside from others, and along with his want for change in the world, he was almost always the best man for the job. He threw his heart into everything that he did, and this debate was nothing different. Because he felt that all men were equal, I feel that he took his personal views on the subject and interjected them into speeches that he did during his campaign to become president. He believed

Both Lincoln and Douglas believed that slavery was unjust and needed to be abolished. However, their reasons behind abolition of slavery were different. Douglas was a former slave so he believed in more than just the freedom of slavery, he also believed in racial equality. Lincoln however grew up in a religious background well aware of the wrongs of slavery. He may not believe in racial equality but he does believe that slavery is morally wrong. Even with their different reasons for hating slavery, “by 1858 Abraham Lincoln and Fredrick Douglas were saying the same thing, preaching the same anti-slavery politics. Liberty or Slavery must

They all took place before the Senate election in 1858. The issues discussed during these debates were completely about slavery. Douglas was supportive of the half-free and half-slave states while Lincoln was not supportive of the divided states. This is where the two clashed and

During the 1800s, the United States experienced vast physical, political, and social growth. From the Louisiana Purchase to the Gilded Age and everything in between, these years effectively set the national stage for the coming century which would face its own immense challenges. Opposition to this 19th century growth was widespread and is often discussed as it pertains to slavery, specifically its legality. This question became increasingly consequential as new territories sought admittance into the Union. Some wanted the nation to admit the states as free states while others wanted the new states to be slave states. As the significance of this conversation grew, it became a deciding factor for many elections, both local and national. Two

The Seven Lincoln-Douglas debates were a series of political debates for a Senate seat of Illinois between Abraham Lincoln, Illinois lawyer and the Republican candidate, and Stephen A. Douglas, senator from Illinois since 1847, for the Democratic Party. Lincoln and Douglas held one debate in each in seven congressional districts in Illinois. The first debate was held on August 21, 1858. Ottawa, north-central Illinois, The debates centered on the issue of slavery. Douglas accused Lincoln with trying to “abolitionize” the Whig and Democratic Parties and he also charged Lincoln as a radical abolitionist while Lincoln accused Douglas most importantly trying to nationalize slavery actively conspiring with the south. Veracity, Accusation and Conspiracy in Lincoln 's Campaign for the Senate by Fred J. Kauffeld, Edgewood College, illustrates Lincoln accusation of Douglas being an active conspirator or a tool for Southern leadership is doubtful while Stephen A. Douglas and the South by Robert W. Johannsen, University of Illinois investigates the root history, desires and political association of Douglas with southern states of United states.

The Lincoln/Douglas debates were a series of debates between the republican candidate Abraham Lincoln and the democrat candidate Stephen Douglas for the control of the Illinois legislature. The total number of debates at this time was seven, the main topic that surrounded these debates between Lincoln and Douglas was the issue of slavery and how it would be handled in the future. The debates were all settled in the state of Illinois in the seven different districts of Quincy, Charleston, Alton, Ottawa, Jonesboro, Galesburg, and Freeport. The debates lasted for 3 months, with the first debate being held on August 21st of 1858, and the last debate on October 15th of the same year.

Archaeologists have traditionally viewed the list of seven debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas through the 1858 Illinois state voting campaign as amongst the most important declarations in American imperial history. Those concerns they addressed were not only of crucial significance to the regional dispute over states’ rights and slavery but also covered deeper into issues that would proceed to change political dialogue. What is usually neglected is that these contests were a component of the comprehensive campaign, that they were intended to achieve some main policy objectives, and that they showed the features of mid-nineteenth-century political speech . Douglas, being part of Congress as from 1843 and a famous nationwide spokesperson for the Democratic body, was contesting for another election for a third season in the Senate, whereas Lincoln was vying for the same seat as a Republican1. Due to Douglas’s political development, the campaign captivated nationwide attention.

The president, Abraham Lincoln, disscusses how both parties were gulity in the first couple of paragraphs. He explains how both of them, the parties, deprecated war by stating that, "one of them would make war rather than let the nation survive, and the other would accept war rather than let it perish, and the war came. " The president's tone and atitude toward the audience are filled with diappointment and shame. Because, such a statement allows the audience to aknowledge their mistakes and realize that no party is better than the other.

Their parties preferences and notions of slavery are what led to the diverging positions of Stephen Douglas and Abraham Lincoln on the issue of southward expansion. May states, “Douglass and Lincoln arrived at their starkly different positions on Americans expansion southward after the United States and Mexico became embroiled in war, less than a half year after congress finalized Texas’s annexation” (38). Lincoln did not approve of America expansion or America’s idea of Manifest Destiny, whether that be Texas and down south or the West. Lincoln was more focused on improving internal problems within the United States than engaging in a foreign war with the British and the properties in the Caribbean and Oregon, the Mexicans and their claims to most of west coast, and the French or Spanish controlled territories in the south. Lincoln was said to

Throughout the time of Abraham Lincoln’s presidency, Lincoln made a vast number of speeches and wrote many letters. These letters and speeches focused on a variety of topics and issues that were prominent before, during, and after the time of the Civil War. During this time, slavery was one of, if not the top main issue in the United States. Lincoln was very outspoken on his views of slavery, what he wanted to happen, and what he did not want to happen with the institution. One of the main points that Lincoln makes throughout his series of speeches and letters is that slavery is in fact a moral issue. He describes slavery as a social, moral and political wrong, and places a large emphasis on the morality of slavery. Lincoln describes his beliefs and opinions with great detail of why he sees slavery as a moral issue.

The Lincoln Douglas debates all began due to the fact that Douglas had been travelling all over the state of Illinois making speeches in order to increase the likelihood of his chance to be reelected into the U.S. Senate. More often than not, less than a week later, sometimes the very same night, the annoying Republican candidate, Lincoln would follow suit and speak to the same group of

Abraham Lincoln was the 16Th President of America. He was the first republican that was elected as President. He ran for senate two times and lost both. When he was in office he was mostly occupied with the states that broke away from the Union,who was named the Confederate States of America. The first to break away was South Carolina followed by 6 other states before the inauguration of Abraham Lincoln. And then four more at the beginning of the Civil War,Battle of Fort Sumter.