The Missouri Compromise

This compromise came through a larger debate about slavery, however this particular compromise did not effectively deal with the root of the question and only prolonged the debate into what would become known as the American Civil war. This compromise, came about by the facilitator Henry Clay, and it was designed to stamp out the debate over slavery. The southern states were pro-slave, because their entire economy depend upon the cheap slave labour. Without the slave trade and the slaves themselves the southern economy would suffer harsh setbacks and economic loss. In 1820, Congress admitted Maine as the newest state in the north. The southern states feared the imbalance of slave to non-slave states. If the number of non-slave states became any larger than slave states the non-slaves states could then vote to abolish slavery. Fearing this scenario, the south pushed to make the Missouri territory a state.  In 1821, Congress admitted Missouri into the US as a slave state, despite abolitionist pleas. The balance of slave states to non-slave states was at an equilibrium of 12 each. The compromise that Henry Clay established is; Missouri is accepted as a slave state, but all states above the 36’ 30’ must be emitted as free states. The south gained the equilibrium that they desired and the slave state of Missouri. The north gained the satisfaction that there would only be free states in the north. However, even though this compromise left both parties satisfied, it dodged the bigger question of slavery altogether. It did not address the issue of the complete abolition of slavery. Just as Thomas Jefferson said, the slave debate will “burst on us a tornado”