“An Overview of American History,” United States Information Agency. usa.usembassy.de/etexts/history/ch6.htm#compromise. The Compromise of 1850, adopted in September of that year, was a failed attempt to defuse a tense political situation between free and slave states that had arisen after the Mexican-American War (1846-1848). Following the defeat of Mexico, this nation ceded a vast territory to the United States (see map). Soon, a debate broke out between free states and slave-owning states over whether slavery would be allowed on newly acquired land. When the full compromise was not passed, Douglas divided the omnibus bill into separate bills that allowed members of Congress to vote or abstain on any issue. The untimely death of President Zachary Taylor and the rise of pro-compromise Vice President Millard Fillmore to the White House contributed to the passage of all bills. Calhoun died in 1850 and Clay and Webster two years later, making their role in the Compromise of 1850 one of their last acts as statesmen. This resource guide compiles links to digital documents related to the 1850 Compromise available on the Library of Congress website.
The guide also includes links to external websites and a selected printed bibliography. If it is determined by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America meeting in Congress that the following proposals shall be submitted to the State of Texas and are hereby submitted to such proposals as shall, if approved by that State by an Act of the General Assembly, bind and bind the United States: and for the said State of Texas: provided that the said consent of the said General Assembly be given not later than the first day of December one thousand eight hundred and fifty: FIRST. The State of Texas shall accept that its boundary shall begin north at the point at which the meridian of one hundred degrees west of Greenwich is intersected by the latitude of thirty-six degrees thirty minutes north latitude, and from that point runs due west to the meridian of one hundred and three degrees west of Greenwich; thence its boundary extends due south to the thirty-second degree north latitude; thence to the said latitude of thirty-two degrees north latitude to the Rio Bravo del Norte and thence with the channel of the said river to the Gulf of Mexico. SECOND. The State of Texas assigns to the United States all its claims to territory outside such boundaries and limits as it is prepared to establish by the first article of this Convention. THIRD. The State of Texas waives any claim against the United States for liability for the debts of Texas and for compensation or compensation for the surrender of its ships, forts, arsenals, customs offices, customs revenues, weapons and munitions of war and public buildings and their locations that became the property of the United States at the time of annexation. FOURTH. The United States, taking into account this fixing of boundaries, the allocation of –, territorial claims and the attribution of claims to the State of Texas, will pay the sum of ten million dollars in a share that carries five per cent. Interest repayable after fourteen years, payable semi-annually to the U.S. Department of the Treasury. FIFTH.
Immediately after the President of the United States has received an authentic copy of the Act of the General Assembly of Texas accepting such proposals, he shall arrange for the shares to be issued to the State of Texas, as provided in Article IV of this Convention, provided also that not more than five million such shares shall be issued until the creditors of the State hold securities of the claim. and other specifically pledged Texas stock certificates shall first file with the U.S. Department of the Treasury discharges of all claims against the United States for or related to such debt instruments or certificates in the form prescribed by the Secretary of the Treasury and approved by the President of the United States, provided that nothing herein is contained herein. Shall be interpreted so as to prejudice or qualify anything contained in the third article of the second section of the “Joint Resolution Annexing Texas to the United States” adopted on the first of March one thousand eight hundred and forty-five; either in terms of the number of states that can then be formed from the state of Texas, or otherwise. In the first two weeks of March, Senators Calhoun, Webster, Seward and Douglas delivered four of the most memorable speeches in Senate history. On March 4, Calhoun, too weakened by tuberculosis, sat down to speak while a colleague read his speech in which he rejected Clay`s compromise, sacrificing the balance of the sections so important to protect Southern interests. “How to save the Union?” Calhoun asked in his speech. He called for a constitutional amendment that would preserve “balance,” but did not specify how. The immediate result of the Compromise of 1850 was to avoid the imminent dissolution of the United States. The secession of the South and the founding of the Confederacy were postponed for a decade.
The concept of popular sovereignty would soon lead to a proxy civil war in the Kansas Territory. There was also a strong backlash in the north against the fugitive slave law. Under this law, runaway slaves could not testify in court and could not be tried by a jury. The law prompted more and more citizens to be determined to prevent slavery from spreading westward. This large bill was then divided into five small bills. This allowed members of Congress to vote on each individually or abstain. These five bills are collectively known as the Compromise of 1850. 2) Leave the possibility of legalizing slavery to the territories of New Mexico and Utah; Quote: Resolution moved by Senator Henry Clay concerning the settlement of all matters of controversy between states arising from the institution of slavery (the resolution later became known as the Compromise of 1850), January 29, 1850; Resolutions, motions and simple orders of the Senate of the 31st Congress, c. 03/1849-ca.
03/1851; Record Group 46; United States Senate Papers, 1789-1990; National Archives. In one of the most famous congressional debates in American history, the Senate debated Clay`s solution for seven months. He initially voted against his legislative package, but Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois came forward with replacement bills that passed both houses. With the Compromise of 1850, Congress had faced the immediate crisis caused by the recent territorial expansion. The country breathed a sigh of relief. Over the next three years, the compromise seemed to resolve almost all differences. However, the new fugitive slave law was an immediate source of tension. This deeply offended many Northerners who refused to participate in the capture of slaves. Some have actively and violently obstructed their implementation. The Underground Railroad has become more efficient and daring than ever. Paragraph 7.
This map shows the states and territories of the United States as they were from 1850 to March 1853. (Photo credit: Change from “United States 1849-1850” to “Golbez”/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0) The need for a decision was reinforced by the Calhoun-inspired Nashville Convention, a meeting of delegates from nine Southern states who had been convened to plan resistance, including possible secession if Congress banned slavery in the new territories. It met from June 3 to 12 and adopted a wait-and-see position on procedures in Washington, where in June alone, 16 U.S. senators proposed 28 amendments to the omnibus bill. In the House of Representatives, 58 members delivered one-hour speeches from May 8 to June 11. The outlook for the bus deteriorated when President Taylor fell ill after eating at a warm celebration on July 4 and died five days later of severe gastroenteritis.