Simone Lawson
The United States Constitution, drafted in 1787, did not contain the words slavery or slave. However, it included several provisions that implicitly recognised slavery, such as the Three-Fifths Compromise, which allocated congressional representation based on a state's population of free persons and three-fifths of all other persons. This compromise gave Southern states with large enslaved populations extra representation in the House of Representatives and the Electoral College. The Fugitive Slave Clause also ensured that enslaved people who escaped to free states would remain enslaved. While some Founding Fathers had moral qualms about slavery, the economy of the Southern states depended on it, and the issue threatened to divide the nation. The 13th Amendment, passed in 1865, finally abolished slavery and involuntary servitude in the United States, except as punishment for a crime.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Slavery implicitly recognized in the original Constitution | The Three-Fifths Compromise (Article I, Section 2, Clause 3) allocated Congressional representation based on the whole number of free persons and "three-fifths of all other persons" |
| The word "slave" does not appear in the Constitution | The framers consciously avoided the word, recognizing that it would sully the document |
| The Slave Trade Clause | Article 1, Section 9, Clause 1, prohibited the federal government from limiting the importation of "persons" where state governments allowed it, until 1808 |
| Fugitive Slave Clause | Article IV, Section 2, Clause 2, stated that "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" |
| Abolitionist movement | Figures such as William Lloyd Garrison, Theodore Dwight Weld, and Angelina Grimké called for the immediate end of slavery nationwide |
| 13th Amendment | Passed in 1865, the 13th Amendment abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime |
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What You'll Learn
The Three-Fifths Compromise
Slaveholding states wanted their entire population to be counted to determine the number of Representatives they could elect and send to Congress. Free states, on the other hand, wanted to exclude the counting of slave populations in slave states, given that those slaves had no voting rights.
The compromise was proposed by delegate James Wilson and seconded by Charles Pinckney. It originated with an amendment proposed on April 18, 1783, to the Articles of Confederation, which suggested that taxes be based on the population of inhabitants of every age, sex, and quality, excluding untaxed Native Americans.
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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 clause in Article IV, Section 2, Clause 3 of the United States Constitution. The clause gave slave owners the right to seize and reclaim slaves who had escaped to another state and return them to the state from which they had escaped. The clause was adopted at the Constitutional Convention of 1787 and reads:
> "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."
The clause avoided the use of the words "slave" and "slavery", instead referring to "persons held to Service or Labour". This was typical of the Constitution, which never used the word "slave" despite the fact that slavery was a major component of the economy and society in the United States at the time.
The Fugitive Slave Clause was controversial and was a source of tension between the Northern and Southern states. The Northern states were accused of violating the clause, and it was a contributing factor to South Carolina's secession from the Union in 1860. An attempt to repeal the clause in 1864 during the Civil War failed, and it was eventually rendered moot by the Thirteenth Amendment, which abolished slavery "except as a punishment for crime".
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The Slave Trade Clause
During the 20-year period following the adoption of the Constitution, popular support for the abolition of the slave trade and slavery itself increased in the United States and internationally. Congress passed statutes in the 1790s regulating the trade in slaves by US ships on the high seas. The United Kingdom and other countries also passed legislation restricting the slave trade, increasing international pressure on the United States to curb the practice.
In 1800, an act of Congress made it illegal for Americans to engage in the slave trade between nations, and authorized US authorities to seize slave ships and confiscate their cargo. The "Act Prohibiting the Importation of Slaves" took effect in 1808, imposing heavy penalties on international traders. However, it did not end slavery or the domestic sale of slaves, and the interstate trade in slaves persisted within the United States.
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Abolitionist movement
The Abolitionist movement in the United States gained momentum in the decades leading up to the Civil War, with a number of key figures advocating for the immediate end of slavery across the nation. The movement was particularly strong in the North, where states had already taken steps towards abolition. Notable abolitionists included William Lloyd Garrison, Theodore Dwight Weld, and Angelina Grimké. Garrison, who burned a copy of the US Constitution in 1854, deeming it a "covenant with death and an agreement with Hell", was a particularly influential figure.
The movement was driven by the belief that slavery was morally abhorrent and ethically indefensible. Figures like Garrison, Weld, and Grimké called for an immediate end to the practice, exacerbating tensions between the North and South. The American Colonization Society, an alliance between abolitionists and slaveholders, advocated for the separation of races, with the latter fearing that the presence of freed blacks would encourage slave rebellions.
The Abolitionist movement faced significant opposition, particularly from Southern states where slavery was pivotal to the economy. South Carolina and Georgia delegates even threatened to secede from the union if restrictions were placed on the Transatlantic Slave Trade. Despite these threats, some Southern figures, like Alexander Hamilton and Benjamin Franklin, became outspoken advocates for abolition.
The issue of slavery was a contentious topic during the drafting of the Constitution in 1787, with around 25 of the 55 delegates owning slaves. The final document included several provisions related to slavery, such as the Three-Fifths Compromise and the Fugitive Slave Clause, which protected the institution without explicitly using the word "slavery".
It wasn't until the 13th Amendment was passed in 1865, following the Civil War, that slavery was officially abolished in the United States. The Amendment, which stated that "neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime [...] shall exist within the United States", marked a significant turning point in the nation's history and ensured that abolition was beyond legal challenge.
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The Thirteenth Amendment
The original US Constitution, drafted in 1787, did not explicitly use the words "slave" or "slavery". However, it included several provisions that implicitly recognised and protected slavery. One such provision was the Three-Fifths Compromise (Article I, Section 2, Clause 3), which provided that three-fifths of each state's enslaved population would be counted for representation purposes. This gave the Southern states, where slavery was a significant part of the economy, extra representation in the House of Representatives and extra votes in the Electoral College.
Another example is the Fugitive Slave Clause (Article IV, Section 2, Clause 2), which stated that escaped slaves must be returned to their owners, even if they had fled to a state where slavery was prohibited. Additionally, Article 1, Section 9, Clause 1, known as the Slave Trade Clause, prohibited the federal government from limiting the importation of "persons" into states that allowed slavery, for 20 years after the Constitution took effect.
In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, declaring that all persons held as slaves within any state in rebellion against the United States were free. However, this proclamation did not end slavery nationwide, as it only applied to areas of the Confederacy in rebellion and not to the border states or Union-controlled areas. Lincoln recognised that a constitutional amendment was necessary to guarantee the abolishment of slavery.
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Frequently asked questions
The US Constitution did not expressly support slavery, but it also did not abolish it. It included several provisions that implicitly recognised slavery and included protections for the practice. For example, the Three-Fifths Compromise allocated Congressional representation based on the number of free persons and "three-fifths of all other persons", who were slaves. The Fugitive Slave Clause also ensured that slaves who escaped to another state would remain slaves.
Slavery was a complex issue in the United States at the time of the drafting of the Constitution. It was a major component of the economy, particularly in the Southern states. While some delegates at the Constitutional Convention had moral qualms about slavery and wanted to abolish it, others threatened to leave the union if there were restrictions on the slave trade. As a result, a compromise was reached, and the Constitution did not directly address the abolition of slavery.
No, the original US Constitution did not abolish slavery. However, the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, passed in 1865 after the Civil War, abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime.
The US Constitution created a central government with the power to eventually abolish slavery, which it did through the 13th Amendment. However, the Constitution also included provisions that protected and perpetuated slavery, such as the Three-Fifths Compromise and the Fugitive Slave Clause. The Constitution's impact on slavery is still a subject of debate and controversy.
