American History: A Survey (Brinkley), 13th Edition

Chapter 13: THE IMPENDING CRISIS

Main themes of Chapter Thirteen:

• The influence of Manifest Destiny on Americans during the period, and how it shaped American policy in Texas, Oregon, California, and the Southwest



• The many events concerning the expansion of slavery into the western territories that deepened divisions between the North and the South and led to the Civil War



• The effect of the dispute over slavery in reshaping the American political-party system, bringing an end to the Whigs and birthing the Republicans

• The concept of Manifest Destiny and its influence on the nation through the 1840s and beyond



• The origin of the Republic of Texas and the controversy concerning its annexation by the United States



• The reasons why the United States declared war on Mexico, and how the Mexican War was fought to a successful conclusion



• The impact of the Wilmot Proviso on the sectional controversy



• The methods used to enact the Compromise of 1850, and its reception by the American people



• The role of the major political parties in the widening sectional split



• The part played by Stephen A. Douglas in the enactment of the Kansas-Nebraska Act, and the effect of this act on his career and on the attitudes of the people in all sections



• The impact of the Dred Scott decision on sectional attitudes and on the prestige of the Supreme Court



• The reasons for Abraham Lincoln's victory in 1860, and the effect of his election on the sectional crisis