Simone Lawson
The issue of slavery was deeply embedded in the fabric of the United States at the time of the framing and ratification of the Constitution. While the word slavery was consciously omitted from the Constitution, the document included several clauses that protected the institution of slavery and prevented Congress from banning the slave trade for 20 years. The Three-Fifths Clause, the Fugitive Slave Clause, and the Importation Clause have been interpreted as pro-slavery provisions, while others argue that the Constitution's principles of liberty and equality implicitly opposed slavery. The controversy over slavery in the Constitution led to a bloody Civil War, ultimately resulting in the ratification of the 13th Amendment, which abolished slavery in the United States.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| The word "slave" does not appear in the Constitution | The framers consciously avoided the word, recognising that it would sully the document |
| The Constitution dealt directly with American slavery | In at least five of its provisions, it protected the institution |
| The Three-Fifths Clause | Article I, Section 2 – slaves were considered less than fully human and gave greater power to the southern states |
| The Importation Clause | Article I, Section 9 – prohibited Congress from banning the slave trade for 20 years |
| Fugitive Slave Clause | Article IV, Section 2 – required states to return fugitive slaves |
| The Constitution gave the federal government the power to put down domestic rebellions, including slave insurrections | Fear of slave uprisings worried white people in slave-holding states |
| The Constitution seemed to protect slavery in the states | Prohibited Congress from banning the slave trade for 20 years and required that fugitive slaves be returned to their masters |
| The 13th Amendment | Passed by Congress on 31 January 1865 and ratified on 6 December 1865, it abolished slavery in the United States |
| The Civil War | A bloody war fought to free the slaves and win ratification of the 13th Amendment |
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What You'll Learn
The Three-Fifths Clause
The Three-Fifths Compromise counted three-fifths of each state's slave population toward that state's total population for the purpose of apportioning the House of Representatives. This effectively gave the Southern states more power in the House relative to the Northern states. The Three-Fifths Compromise is part of Article 1, Section 2, Clause 3 of the United States Constitution, which states:
> Representatives and direct Taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective Numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole Number of free Persons, including those bound to Service for a Term of Years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three-fifths of all other Persons.
The Three-Fifths Compromise has been a subject of controversy, with some arguing that it gave greater power to the Southern states and was a pro-slavery measure. However, others, including Frederick Douglass, believed that it encouraged freedom by giving "'an increase of' 'two-fifths' of political power to free over slave States". Section 2 of the Fourteenth Amendment (1868) later superseded Article 1, Section 2, Clause 3 and explicitly repealed the Three-Fifths Compromise.
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Fugitive Slave Clause
The Fugitive Slave Clause, also known as the Slave Clause or the Fugitives From Labour Clause, was a highly significant aspect of the US Constitution, and a key component of the nation's pro-slavery legislation. The Clause, outlined in Article IV, Section 2, Clause 3, required that any "Person held to Service or Labour" who escaped to another state must be returned to their master. The text of the Clause is as follows:
> 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.
It is notable that, as with other references to slavery in the Constitution, the words "slave" and "slavery" are not used in this clause. Instead, the text refers to "service or labour".
The Fugitive Slave Clause was unanimously approved by the Convention, despite objections from James Wilson and Roger Sherman, who argued that it would force states to seize fugitive slaves at public expense. The Clause was also important to the South Carolina delegates, who felt that Northern states were violating it. Indeed, the Constitution of the Confederate States mentioned slavery by name and included a more rigid form of the Fugitive Slave Clause.
The Clause was effectively nullified by the Thirteenth Amendment, which abolished slavery in 1865. However, it is important to note that the Amendment did include an exception for slavery as a punishment for criminal acts.
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The Civil War
The issue of slavery was central to the American Civil War. The Constitution, in sidestepping the issue of slavery, laid the groundwork for future conflict. The Three-Fifths Compromise, which counted three-fifths of a state's slave population for representation, gave southern states with large slave populations greater representation in the House of Representatives and the Electoral College. This led to political tensions as the nation expanded westward, with northern and southern states disagreeing over whether new territories would be admitted as "slave" or "free" states.
As early as 1787, the delegates at the Constitutional Convention debated the role of slavery in the new nation. While some founders, such as Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, criticised slavery as a violation of natural rights, others defended it as necessary for the economy. Many of the framers of the Constitution harboured moral qualms about slavery, and some, including Benjamin Franklin and Alexander Hamilton, became members of anti-slavery societies. However, they also recognised that concessions on slavery were necessary to secure the support of southern delegates for a strong central government. As a result, the Constitution included protections for slavery, such as prohibiting Congress from outlawing the Atlantic slave trade for 20 years and requiring the return of runaway slaves to their owners.
In the decades leading up to the Civil War, political tensions continued to rise as abolitionists and proponents of slavery debated the fate of new territories. In 1848, Senator John Calhoun argued that the natural rights language in the Declaration of Independence was "dangerous" and "erroneous," and that slavery was a ""positive good" for both the inferior slave and society. This view was shared by several important 19th-century politicians, who contradicted the founders' belief that slavery was morally wrong.
During the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, declaring that all persons held as slaves in rebelling states "shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free." However, the Emancipation Proclamation did not end slavery nationwide, as it only applied to areas of the Confederacy in rebellion and not to the "loyal" border states that remained in the Union. It was followed by the 13th Amendment, passed at the end of the Civil War, which abolished slavery in the United States. The 13th Amendment, along with the 14th and 15th Amendments, greatly expanded the civil rights of Americans and provided a final constitutional solution to the issue of slavery.
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The 13th Amendment
The issue of slavery was deeply embedded in the fabric of American governance, and the US Constitution is thought by some to have implicitly protected slavery. The Constitution prohibited federal interference with the international slave trade for at least 20 years and required states to return fugitive slaves.
The Thirteenth Amendment, passed by Congress on 31 January 1865 and ratified on 6 December 1865, abolished slavery in the United States. It states:
> "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction."
The Thirteenth Amendment, along with the 14th and 15th Amendments, is one of the trio of Civil War amendments that greatly expanded the civil rights of Americans. The Amendment was passed following President Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, which declared:
> “all persons held as slaves within any State, or designated part of a State, the people whereof shall then be in rebellion against the United States, shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free.”
However, the Emancipation Proclamation did not end slavery across the nation, as it only applied to areas of the Confederacy in a state of rebellion. The Thirteenth Amendment was a final constitutional solution to the issue of slavery, which had been a contentious topic during the drafting and ratification of the Constitution.
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Abolitionist and anti-slavery voices
The issue of slavery in the United States Constitution has been a highly controversial topic, with disputes arising over whether the Constitution was pro-slavery or anti-slavery. The Constitution did not contain the words "slave" or "slavery", but it dealt directly with American slavery in at least five of its provisions and indirectly protected the institution. The delegates at the Constitutional Convention refused to include the term "slavery" in the Constitution, but they did compromise on the issue, providing protections for slaveholders.
The abolitionist and anti-slavery movement was an integral part of the American story from the very beginning. This movement comprised an interracial coalition of African Americans and white Americans, men and women, united in the fight for emancipation. Several key figures emerged as outspoken advocates for abolition and played a significant role in pushing to end slavery in America.
One such figure was Alexander Hamilton, who was born in a slave colony in the British West Indies. Hamilton became a vocal member of anti-slavery societies, advocating for the end of slavery. Benjamin Franklin, a former slaveholder, also freed the people he had once held in bondage and joined the anti-slavery cause. Gouverneur Morris, a delegate from Pennsylvania, strongly condemned slavery, particularly criticising southern delegates who showed little interest in ending the practice in their home states.
Another notable figure in the abolitionist movement was Frederick Douglass, who, in his 1860 speech "The Constitution of the United States: Is it Pro-Slavery or Anti-Slavery?", examined the historical context of the Constitution's clauses. Douglass argued that certain provisions were not pro-slavery or did not pertain to slavery at all. He contended that the Three-Fifths Clause, which gave extra representation to slave-holding states, actually encouraged freedom by giving "an increase of 'two-fifths' of political power to free over slave states".
Luther Martin of Maryland, a slaveholder himself, also spoke out against slavery. He considered the slave trade to be inconsistent with America's revolutionary principles and dishonourable to the nation's character. Martin argued that the federal government should regulate the slave trade, as the entire nation would bear the consequences of slave revolts.
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Frequently asked questions
The 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, passed in 1865, abolished slavery in the United States.
The Three-Fifths Clause was a provision in Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution that counted three-fifths of a state's slave population when apportioning representation. This gave southern states extra representation in the House of Representatives and extra votes in the Electoral College.
While the Constitution did not contain the words "slave" or "slavery", it dealt directly with American slavery in at least five of its provisions and indirectly protected the institution. It prohibited Congress from banning the slave trade for 20 years and required states to return fugitive slaves.
The Civil War was fought, in part, to free the slaves and end slavery in the U.S. Following the war, the 13th Amendment was ratified, officially abolishing slavery.
