Question

By the 1850s the Constitution, originally framed as an instrument of national unity, had become a source of sectional discord and tension and ultimately contributed to the failure of the union it had created. Using the documents and your knowledge of the period 1850-1861, assess the validity of this statement.

Answer 1

Most historians would agree that this is an entirely valid statement. The main argument was over states rights versus federal rights (concerning slavery), which the Constitution was very, and intentionally, unclear about.