Omar Bennett
The topic of fugitive slaves was a highly contentious issue in the United States during the 18th and 19th centuries. The U.S. Constitution included a Fugitive Slave Clause, which stated that a Person held to Service or Labour who fled to another state must be returned to their master. This clause, also known as the Slave Clause or Fugitives From Labour Clause, did not explicitly mention the word slave, but it formed the basis for the Fugitive Slave Act of 1793, which gave slave owners and their agents the right to capture and reclaim runaway slaves. The Act was highly controversial, particularly in Northern states, where many considered it legalized kidnapping and resisted its enforcement. The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 further inflamed tensions, requiring federal involvement in the capture and return of escaped slaves. These laws persisted until the beginning of the Civil War, and the Thirteenth Amendment's abolition of slavery in 1865 rendered the Fugitive Slave Clause largely irrelevant.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Basis | Article IV, Section 2, Clause 2 of the U.S. Constitution, the extradition clause |
| Purpose | Gave slaveholders the right to capture enslaved persons who ran away |
| Implementation | U.S. Marshals in the north were required to return escaped slaves to their masters in the South |
| Resistance | Northern abolitionists turned on the Marshals in slave rescue cases |
| Free states | Many Northern states did not allow slavery |
| Slave states | Slavery was a way of life in the American South |
| Compromise | The Fugitive Slave Clause was a compromise between free and slave states |
| Thirteenth Amendment | The Fugitive Slave Clause was rendered unenforceable by the Thirteenth Amendment, which abolished slavery |
| Fugitive Slave Acts | The Fugitive Slave Acts of 1793 and 1850 were passed by Congress to enforce the Fugitive Slave Clause |
| Fugitive Slave Act of 1793 | Gave owners of enslaved people and their "agents" the right to search for escapees within the borders of free states |
| Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 | Required the return of runaways, even if they were in a free state |
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What You'll Learn
The Fugitive Slave Clause
The exact wording of the clause is:
> No Person held to Service or Labour in one State, under the Laws thereof, escaping into another, shall, in Consequence of any Law or Regulation therein, be discharged from such Service or Labour, but shall be delivered up on Claim of the Party to whom such Service or Labour may be due.
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Fugitive Slave Act of 1793
The Fugitive Slave Act of 1793 was passed by Congress to enforce the Fugitive Slave Clause (Article IV, Section 2, Clause 3) of the US Constitution, which gave slaveholders the right to recover escaped slaves. The Act provided a legal mechanism for this, allowing slaveholders and their agents to capture and reclaim runaway slaves from other states and jurisdictions. It also allowed slaveholders to search for escapees within free states and required these states to deliver the fugitives. This was designed to balance the interests of free and slave states.
The Fugitive Slave Act of 1793 was passed in response to a dispute between Pennsylvania and Virginia. In Pennsylvania, an enslaved man named John Davis had become legally free due to his owner's failure to register him as required by the Gradual Emancipation Act. When Davis was later captured and returned to Virginia, the state of Pennsylvania charged the captors with kidnapping. Virginia's governor refused to hand them over, leading to Congress passing the Fugitive Slave Act of 1793 to clarify the process by which slaveholders could reclaim their "property".
The Act was met with strong opposition in the Northern states, with many arguing that it was akin to legalized kidnapping. Some Northern states refused to enforce the law and passed "Personal Liberty Laws" to protect accused runaways and free blacks. The Act also resulted in the illegal capture and enslavement of free blacks, who were at risk of being kidnapped and sold into slavery, even if they had papers proving their freedom.
The Fugitive Slave Act of 1793 was in effect until it was repealed by Congress on June 28, 1864, during the American Civil War. It was strengthened in 1850 as part of the Compromise of 1850, which required all states and residents to enforce the capture and return of fugitive slaves.
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Fugitive Slave Act of 1850
The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 was a federal law that allowed for the capture and return of runaway enslaved people within the United States. It was enacted by Congress in response to the weakening of the original Fugitive Slave Act of 1793, which had authorized local governments to seize and return escapees to their owners and imposed penalties on anyone who aided in their flight. The Act of 1850 added more provisions regarding runaways and imposed harsher punishments for interfering in their capture. It also denied enslaved people the right to a jury trial.
The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 was drafted by Democratic Senator James M. Mason of Virginia and passed as part of Henry Clay's famed Compromise of 1850, a group of bills that helped quiet early calls for Southern secession. The law compelled citizens to assist in the capture of runaways and placed control of individual cases in the hands of federal commissioners. These agents were paid more for returning a suspected runaway than for freeing them, leading many to argue that the law was biased in favor of Southern slaveholders.
The Act of 1850 also increased the penalty for interfering with the rendition process to a fine of $1,000 (equivalent to $37,800 in 2024) and six months in jail. Law enforcement officials were required to arrest people suspected of escaping enslavement on as little as a claimant's sworn testimony of ownership. Enslavers only needed to supply an affidavit to a Federal marshal to capture a fugitive from slavery. Since a suspected enslaved person was not eligible for a trial, the law resulted in the kidnapping and conscription of free Blacks into slavery.
The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 was highly controversial and inspired stiff and sometimes violent resistance from antislavery groups in the North. States like Vermont and Wisconsin passed new measures intended to bypass and nullify the law, and abolitionists redoubled their efforts to assist runaways. The Underground Railroad reached its peak in the 1850s, with many enslaved people fleeing to Canada to escape U.S. jurisdiction. Despite the Act's provisions, only around 330 enslaved people had been successfully returned to their Southern masters by 1860.
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Compromise of 1850
The Compromise of 1850 was a series of five acts passed in September 1850 that dealt with the issue of slavery and territorial expansion. The Compromise of 1850 was proposed by Senator Henry Clay of Kentucky, who aimed to "adjust amicably all existing questions of controversy... arising out of the institution of slavery". The Compromise of 1850 included the amended Fugitive Slave Act, which was one of the most controversial elements of the Compromise.
The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 was drafted by Democratic Senator James M. Mason of Virginia. It added several new regulations to the existing Fugitive Slave Clause in the Constitution, which gave slaveholders the right to capture enslaved persons who ran away. The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 required federal and local law enforcement in all states to enforce the legislation and arrest suspected fugitive slaves. Officials who did not arrest someone allegedly escaping from slavery were fined $1,000 (equivalent to $37,800 in 2024). The Act also made it so that suspected enslaved people were not eligible for a trial, and they could not defend themselves against accusations. This resulted in the kidnapping and conscription of free Black people into slavery.
The Compromise of 1850 also included four other acts. California was admitted as a "free state", a territorial government was provided for Utah and New Mexico, a boundary was established between Texas and the United States, and the slave trade in Washington, D.C., was abolished.
The Compromise of 1850 was an attempt to avert a crisis between the North and the South. However, the strengthened Fugitive Slave Act threatened sectional peace and contributed to the growing polarization of the country over the issue of slavery.
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Abolition of slavery
The institution of slavery led to several constitutional compromises, including the Fugitive Slave Clause. This clause, also known as the Slave Clause or Fugitives From Labour Clause, is Article IV, Section 2, Clause 3 of the U.S. Constitution. It states that a "Person held to Service or Labour" (usually a slave) who escapes to another state must be returned to their master in the state from which they fled. Importantly, the words "slave" and "slavery" are not mentioned in this clause.
The Fugitive Slave Clause was a compromise between free states and slave states. By the late 18th century, many northern states had abolished slavery, while it remained a way of life in the American South. The clause gave slaveholders the constitutional right to recover their "property" from another state. This right was enforced through the Fugitive Slave Acts of 1793 and 1850, which provided more detailed instructions on implementing the clause.
The Fugitive Slave Acts were highly controversial, particularly in the North, where many considered them to be legalized kidnapping. Northern states often refused to enforce the laws and instead passed "Personal Liberty Laws" to protect accused runaways and free Black people. The Acts also resulted in the illegal capture and enslavement of many free Black people.
The Fugitive Slave Clause and the Fugitive Slave Acts were officially rendered unenforceable by the Thirteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which abolished slavery "except as a punishment for crime". This amendment marked the end of slavery in the United States and ensured that fugitive slaves could no longer be legally returned to their former masters.
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Frequently asked questions
The Fugitive Slave Clause, also known as the Slave Clause or the Fugitives From Labour Clause, was Article IV, Section 2, Clause 3 of the U.S. Constitution. It required that a "Person held to Service or Labour" (usually a slave) who fled to another state be returned to their master in the state from which they escaped. The clause did not mention the word "slave".
The Fugitive Slave Act of 1793 was an edict passed by Congress in response to pressure from Southern lawmakers. It gave slaveholders the right to capture their enslaved persons who ran away and included a detailed description of how the Fugitive Slave Clause was to be enforced. The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, passed as part of the Compromise of 1850, required that fugitive slaves be returned to their owners, even if they were in a free state.
The Fugitive Slave Clause and Fugitive Slave Acts were part of the Constitution and gave slaveholders the right to recover their property (enslaved persons) from different states. The Constitution required free states to return fugitive slaves to their masters in slave states.
