This was the first major compromise between those states favoring slavery and those opposing slavery. Under the terms of the agreement, Missouri was to be admitted as a slave state, while Maine was admitted as a free state. The rest of the territory acquired from France north of the latitudeWhen Missouri requested admittance into the Union as a slave state, the issue of slavery appeared in the national agenda for the first time.
Prior to Missouri's request, the states in the Union were evenly divided between free and slave states. This insured a even balance in the Senate. Missouri's admittance into the Union would have upset the balance, prompting a heated debate in the Congress.
Representative James Tallmadge of New York introduced legislation that could have brought about the gradual emancipation of slaves in Missouri. The House of Representatives, in which northern Representatives had a majority, approved the bill, after debating the morality of slavery for the first time. The Senate, however, failed to accept the bill.
In 1820, when Congress reconvened, the Speaker of the House, Henry Clay of Kentucky, proposed a compromise; which became known as the "Missouri Compromise." The Missouri Compromise called for the admittance of Missouri to the Union as a slave state and, at the same time, admittance of Maine as a free state, thus maintaining the immediate balance. In addition, the compromise stated that all new states north of the 36ű30' latitude would be admitted as free states, while all new states south of that line would be admitted as slave states.
36ű 30' would be free states, while south of that point would be slave states. |
