Henry Clay Compromises

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The development of America was a long, conflicted time. Many people, political parties were involved to build what America is today. Out of all the intelligent master minds who helped, there was one who was a huge advocate in making plans and compromises. Henry Clay, also known as “The Great Compromiser” or “The Great Pacificator”, was a huge influence in the development of the U.S. As an important statesmen, and with Clay’s valuable role in the government, he proposed many compromises. Including the Missouri Compromise, the Tariff Compromise of 1833, and the Compromise of 1850. These three main compromises changed and made an enormous impact on the development of the United States. In 1812, Henry Clay was the Speaker of the House. Apart of …show more content…
The topic of slavery was still a huge conflict, and during this time California became very popular, due to the Gold Rush. With California entering the Union, a new state, there were arguments on if California would enter as a free or slave state, although California wanted to be a free state. The result of this compromise was that California would be admitted as a free state, and the territories of New Mexico and Utah would be labeled under the principle of popular sovereignty, (Henry Clay, War of 1812). Along with that, new fugitive slave laws were passed, which mean that all citizens aid the capture of runaway slaves, and without doing so there are punishments. This compromise again opened the debate over slavery, but also created a new free state were slaves can run off to. Also, slave trade in Washington D.C was banned, this became a new beginning for a revolution on slavery. Just like the other compromises composed by Clay, the goal of them is two meet in the middle, giving the two sides, North and South, what they wanted, but in a balanced way. Clay proposed that the North ended up recieving California as a free state, end of slave trade in Washington D.C, and the loss of Texas’s boundary conflict with New Mexico, (Henry Clay, History.com). The South received, no restrictions within New Mexico or Utah, slaveholding