What was the Lecompton Constitution?

What was the Lecompton Constitution?

• A. A plan to ban slavery in Kansas.
• B. A treaty establishing trade with Britain.
• C. A charter to create a new state with no slavery.
• D. A pro-slavery constitution for Kansas that protected the institution of slavery.

Answer: (D)

The main idea is that the Lecompton Constitution was a plan to organize Kansas as a state with slavery protected in its fundamental laws. It was drafted by pro-slavery leaders in Lecompton, Kansas, in 1857 with the goal of guaranteeing slavery in the new state, including protections for slaveholding and rights for slaveholders. This was part of the larger conflict over whether new territories would permit slavery, a central strain in the Bleeding Kansas period. The constitution was highly controversial because many anti-slavery Kansans opposed it, and the national government debated whether Kansas would enter the Union as a slave state. In short, it defined Kansas as a slave-holding state, which is why it fits the description of a pro-slavery constitution that protected the institution of slavery.

The main idea is that the Lecompton Constitution was a plan to organize Kansas as a state with slavery protected in its fundamental laws. It was drafted by pro-slavery leaders in Lecompton, Kansas, in 1857 with the goal of guaranteeing slavery in the new state, including protections for slaveholding and rights for slaveholders. This was part of the larger conflict over whether new territories would permit slavery, a central strain in the Bleeding Kansas period. The constitution was highly controversial because many anti-slavery Kansans opposed it, and the national government debated whether Kansas would enter the Union as a slave state. In short, it defined Kansas as a slave-holding state, which is why it fits the description of a pro-slavery constitution that protected the institution of slavery.