TOPIC 5.

7- ELECTION OF 1860 AND SECESSION, 1860-1861

Learning Objective:
Explain the effects of Lincoln’s election.

Thematic Focus:
Debates fostered by social and political groups about the role of government in American social, political, and
economic life shape government policy, institutions, political parties, and the rights of citizens.

I. Debates over slavery came to dominate political discussion in the 1850s, culminating in the bitter election of 1860 and the
secession of Southern states.

A. Abraham Lincoln’s victory on the Republicans’ free-soil platform in the presidential Election of 1860 was accomplished
without any Southern electoral votes. After a series of contested debates about secession, most slave states voted to secede
from the Union, precipitating the Civil War.
i. Election of 1860
a. There were four major candidates for the presidency in the 1860 election. Republican Abraham Lincoln
accepted slavery where it existed but opposed the further extension of slavery into the territories. The
Democratic Party split between Steven Douglas in the North who advocated popular sovereignty, and John
C. Breckinridge in the South who favored the extension of slavery into the territories and the annexation of
Cuba. John Bell ran as the candidate for the Constitutional Union Party, which drew support from North
Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. Bell sidestepped the issues and called simply for the Constitution, the
Union, and the enforcement of the laws.
b. Lincoln won the electoral vote but did not receive a majority of the popular vote.
c. Lincoln accepted slavery where it existed but opposed the further extension of slavery into the territories.
He said he had no intention of disturbing slavery where it already existed, but many Southerners felt
otherwise. Led by South Carolina, seven Southern states seceded from the Union shortly after the election.
d. In his inaugural address he urged Southerners to reconsider their actions but warned that the Union was
perpetual, that states could not secede, and that he would therefore hold the federal forts and installations in
the South.
ii. Secession of the Deep South
a. South Carolina and six other states of the Deep South declared themselves out of the union by February
1861. U.S. Senator and former Secretary of State Jefferson Davis was elected President of the
Confederacy.
b. The Crittenden Compromise was the final proposal to save the Union that was considered while the first
states were seceding. It called for a constitutional amendment forever prohibiting federal meddling with
slavery in the states where it existed. It also called for extending the Missouri Compromise line to the
Pacific Ocean, protecting slavery in all the territories south of the line. President Lincoln encouraged
Republicans to oppose the plan and it did not pass.
iii. Attack on Fort Sumter
a. Lincoln, in his desire to keep federal forts under Union control, resupplied Fort Sumter in South Carolina
under the command of Major Robert Anderson. Lincoln informed the governor of South Carolina of his
intentions and promised he would not send arms, ammunition, or reinforcements unless Southerners
initiated hostilities.
b. On orders from President Jefferson Davis, Confederate General P.G.T. Beauregard demanded that
Anderson surrender the fort. Anderson said he would only surrender if he was not resupplied.
Confederates then decided to open fire on the fort and Anderson surrendered.
c. The next day, Lincoln declared the existence of an insurrection and called for the remaining Union states to
provide 75,000 volunteers to put it down.
d. In response to Lincoln’s call for troops, the remaining states (most notably Virginia) of the Confederacy
seceded.
e. The four remaining border states wavered to varying degrees but stayed with the Union. Delaware had few
slaves and did not seriously consider secession. Kentucky declared neutrality but this was not recognized
by the Confederacy, so this pushed them to side with the Union. Maryland’s pro-secession forces were
crushed by Lincoln’s imposition of martial law. Missouri had federal troops dispatched quickly to preserve
its status.