Tariff of Abominations

If you look at the events that created the north-south divide and ultimately led to the American civil war, one of the prominent ones is the "tariff of abominations", a name given to the bill passed by the U.S. Congress levying high taxes on the imported goods from other countries, by the southerners. What was its impact on the American people and politics? Let's find out by going back in American history.

Events Leading to the Tariff
In the early nineteenth century, New England saw a tremendous growth in the industry. Lots of factories came up in this region of the United States that produced finished goods. However, the growth of industry in New England, faced stiff competition from the goods imported from other countries, particularly Britain. So, in order to protect the industry, which was still in its nascent stage, the U.S. Government decided to take certain protectionist measures. On 19th May, 1828, the then president of the United States, John Quincy Adams, signed a bill, which put very high taxes on the goods imported from other countries. This bill was passed to ensure that American people bought only those goods which were manufactured in America.

Although, from the outside, protecting the industry, was given the main reason behind the bill, however, the reality greatly differed. It was actually a ploy used by Andrew Jackson, a future presidential candidate to ensure that president Adams does not get re-elected in the presidential elections of 1828.

Opposition
This bill was greatly opposed by the southerners and it was called so for two reasons. Firstly, now they could no longer get the goods at cheaper rates as the imports had become very costly. Secondly, due to this protectionist measure, the British industry reduced its import of raw materials from the United States. Since the southern people depended on the sale of cotton to British industries for income, due to decreased imports, their financial condition started deteriorating.

It was not just the southerners who did not appreciate the passing of the bill. Certain New England industries too were opposed to it as the bill included a clause wherein the taxes on raw materials on which the New England industries depended, had been increased considerably.

After-effects
After the presidential elections, the southern states hoped that the tariffs would be reduced to a great extent, however this did not happen. It was then that John C. Calhoun, who was from South Carolina and was then the vice-president, declared that since the tariff of 1828 was against the interests of the southerners and favored one sector of the economy over other, it was unconstitutional and hence should be declared null. When the U.S. Congress failed to take any measures to rectify the law, in the year 1832, South Carolina officially declared this law null and void and threatened to secede from the federal government. To crush this rebel by a south state, Andrew Jackson, the then president, proposed to use the army for collection of tariff. All these events raised the state's rights and federal government issue once again in the United States.

The Final Compromise
It was in the year 1833 that the final compromise regarding the tariff was reached. Henry Clay of Kentucky proposed to the southerners that duties on some goods would be reduced and that the tariff would be levied in accordance with the financial conditions of the region. This compromise was readily accepted by the southerners and the nullification ordinance was repealed.

In the end, it can be said that due to the compromise proposed by Clay, the nullification crisis ended amicably, which would have otherwise changed the American history forever!