Lesson 3 - The Constitution and Slavery

Why was slavery an issue for US delegates?

Most delegates were aware that the institution of slavery violated every principle which they had fought for and ran contrary to the ideals their new government was claiming to stand for in the world. Most of the states in the north were less dependent than those in the south and were, thus, in the process of passing their own laws to abolish it.

Why does the US Constitution not use the word ‘slavery’ / ‘slave’?

Luther Martin, a delegate from Maryland described how the Convention ‘anxiously sought to avoid the admission of expressions which might be odious to the ears of Americans’.

Which protections were given to slavery?

• The trans-Atlantic African slave trade would be safe from interference for the next 20 years.

• Runaway slaves had to be returned to their owners.

• Slaves were to be counted as 3/5 of a person when it came to calculating the population to allocate representatives for the House of Representatives.

• The Constitution gave the government no power to interfere.

• The omission of a Bill of Rights from the original Constitution.

There was a divide in the US over slavery. What were its consequences?

This contradiction / divide would almost tear the Union apart in the 1860s and would necessitate what many see as the re-birth of the US.

Why did the Constitution oppose slavery?

The inspirational words of the preamble and the 5th Amendment’s ‘life, liberty and property’ guarantee appeared to be against slavery.

Who was John Adams?

John Adams was one of the ‘Founding Fathers’. He described slavery as a ‘foul contagion in the human character’ and as ‘an evil of colossal magnitude’. He also said that the American Revolution would never be complete until all slaves were free. He was one of two of the first 12 US Presidents never to own slaves. The other was John Quincy Adams.

Who was Thomas Paine?

Thomas Paine was one of the ‘Founding Fathers’. He described slavery as an ‘execrable commerce’ and an ‘outrage against humanity and justice’. He campaigned for its abolition on both sides of the Atlantic.

Who was Gouverneur Morris?

Gouverneur Morris was one of the ‘Founding Fathers’. He wrote the preamble of the Constitution and gave an impassioned speech against slavery at the Constitutional Convention, calling slavery ‘the curse of heaven’.

Who was Alexander Hamilton?

Alexander Hamilton was one of the ‘Founding Fathers’. Although abolishing slavery was never his main focus, he never owned a slave. He was a founding member of the New York Manumission Society, which was dedicated to the gradual emancipation of New York’s slaves.