Missouri+Crisis+and+Missouri+Compromise



The Missouri Compromise was an agreement passed in 1820 between the pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions in Congress. It involved the regulation of slavery in the western territories. The compromise prohibited slavery in the former Louisiana Territory north of the parallel 36o30′ north, with the exception of Missouri.

The country was already equally divided between slave and free states. Admitting Missouri as a slave state meant a tip in the balance in the Senate, in favor of slave states. To keep the balance, Maine was admitted as a free state, while Missouri was admitted as a slave state.