USA HISTORY

JACKSONIAN DEMOCRACY 1825 1850

PRESIDENT ANDREW JACKSON

Question [CLICK ON ANY CHOICE TO KNOW THE RIGHT ANSWER]
Why did South Carolina threaten to secede from the union the first time?
A
Slavery
B
Land costs
C
Tariffs
D
Missouri entering the union
Explanation: 

Detailed explanation-1: -The tariff was so unpopular in the South that it generated threats of secession. John C. Calhoun, Andrew Jackson’s vice president and a native of South Carolina, proposed the theory of nullification, which declared the tariff unconstitutional and therefore unenforceable.

Detailed explanation-2: -South Carolina’s declaration argued that the non-slaveholding states had “denounced as sinful the institution of slavery” and had “encouraged and assisted thousands of our slaves to leave their homes; and those who remain, have been incited by emissaries, books and pictures to servile insurrection.”

Detailed explanation-3: -In 1828, Congress passed a high protective tariff that infuriated the southern states because they felt it only benefited the industrialized north. For example, a high tariff on imports increased the cost of British textiles. This tariff benefited American producers of cloth-mostly in the north.

Detailed explanation-4: -In 1832, South Carolina threatened to secede from the Union over the issue of tariffs, an event known as the Nullification Crisis. In 1828, the South was particularly hurt by tariffs passed that increased the cost of living in the region, prompting new negotiations during Jackson’s first term as president.

There is 1 question to complete.