Question

What role did compromise play in delaying the Civil War?

Answer 1

The Wilmont Proposal stated that the new territories acquired from Mexico in the Treaty of Guadeloupe Hidalgo could not enter the Union as slave states. This was a deliberate attempt by the Federal Government to limit the spread of slavery to new territories. However, as enacted by the Compromise of 1850, with the exception of California, which was still forbidden from entering as a slave state, these new territories were allowed to decide for themselves whether they would be free states or slave-holding states. This act also demanded these newly acquired territories to establish or refute the Fugitive-Slave Act, which in itself was a compromise meant to delay the outbreak of war. There was little question that these new territories would side with the North for economic reasons, but by allowing these new territories to "decide for themselves", the Union was able to appease Southern states.