Which agreement settled the issue of slave and free territories in the western territories in 1820?

Which agreement settled the issue of slave and free territories in the western territories in 1820?

• A. The Missouri Compromise
• B. The Kansas-Nebraska Act
• C. The Northwest Ordinance
• D. The Monroe Doctrine

Answer: (A)

Resolving the balance between free and slave states in new western territories is the focus here. The Missouri Compromise of 1820 settled this by admitting Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state, maintaining the congressional balance between free and slave states. It also established a geographic line across the rest of the Louisiana Purchase—the 36°30′ parallel—north of which slavery would be outlawed in the future, and south of which it could be permitted (with Missouri being the notable exception at that time). This arrangement provided a temporary resolution to the sectional tensions over where slavery would be allowed as the nation expanded westward. Other options point to different moments or issues. The Kansas-Nebraska Act came later and introduced popular sovereignty to decide the slavery question in those territories. The Northwest Ordinance predates 1820 and set rules for settlement in a different region while prohibiting slavery there. The Monroe Doctrine deals with European interference in the Western Hemisphere and is not about the slavery question in U.S. western territories.

Resolving the balance between free and slave states in new western territories is the focus here. The Missouri Compromise of 1820 settled this by admitting Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state, maintaining the congressional balance between free and slave states. It also established a geographic line across the rest of the Louisiana Purchase—the 36°30′ parallel—north of which slavery would be outlawed in the future, and south of which it could be permitted (with Missouri being the notable exception at that time). This arrangement provided a temporary resolution to the sectional tensions over where slavery would be allowed as the nation expanded westward.

Other options point to different moments or issues. The Kansas-Nebraska Act came later and introduced popular sovereignty to decide the slavery question in those territories. The Northwest Ordinance predates 1820 and set rules for settlement in a different region while prohibiting slavery there. The Monroe Doctrine deals with European interference in the Western Hemisphere and is not about the slavery question in U.S. western territories.