Daniela Santiago

US History

Mr. Legg

29 October 2018

John Brown’s Holy War

A.) There were several events in John Brown’s early, personal life that could have influenced his

actions in the future. Brown’s father, Owen Brown, always believed that slavery was cruel and

sinful and shared that belief to his son. Also when Brown was 12 years old, he herded cattle from

Ohio to Michigan and stayed with a man who owned a young slave. The man was respectful to

John Brown but would beat his slave with an iron shovel right in front of Brown’s eyes,

traumatizing him for life. He was also raised Calvinist and thought that his destiny was to free

slaves and, as a Calvinist, one had to follow the strict rules of the right or wrong which Brown

would by fulfilling his fate. As he grew up, he became a shepherd and with that came a loving

soul and caring attitude which Brown typically used on other people. This love and fondness of

people is shown in his dedication to protect and free slaves in his adult life; he was so dedicated

to it that he led him to his death.

B.) Brown had good intentions, in fighting to end slavery, but he could have done so in a more

passive manner. His extreme actions started when the Border Ruffians, a group of 5,000

proslavery men from Missouri, invaded Kansas and killed/beat abolitionist from regular citizens

to the state’s senator. When Brown and his men heard the news from their settlement in

Pottawatomie Creek, they sharpened their swords and loaded their guns; they were going to kill

proslavery men. On May 24, 1856, they kicked five men out of their cabins and killed them;
cutting off arms, splitting heads open, and shooting heads. This was known as the Pottawatomie

Massacre. Later, Scottish reporter James Redpath interviewed Brown on the massacre and

whether he was the one who did it, and Brown said no. Three months after the murders, John

Brown and 30 other men got ready for a battle against 250 Border Ruffians in Osawatomie and,

though they fought hard, the town was burned to the ground. On October 16, 1859, Brown led 21

men into Harpers Ferry where they planned on raiding the town and taking the guns at the

arsenal. Their plan worked at first until a baggage master from a train approaching Harpers Ferry

warned the passengers and Brown’s men told him to halt. When he didn’t, the men shot him to

death; he was a free black man. The news about the shooting spread like a wildfire and instead of

slaves preparing to join the abolitionist, the proslavery men prepared for battle. Brown’s 21 men

were no match for the Border Ruffians, who were later joined by US Marines but they kept

fighting. Brown would be considered a “madman” for insisting his 21-30 men to fight against the

numerous Border Ruffians. He should have known that his team would fail over and over again

but he didn’t stop and killed his men along with other abolitionists. The term “martyr” is

appropriate for Brown because he did kill for his religious beliefs. Calvinism told him to free

slaves and by doing so, he murdered people in the worst way possible and denied that he did.

Even “terrorist” is appropriate because he intimidated proslavery citizens by killing their people

in order to prove that slavery was cruel and unjust. John Brown could have been much less

violent in how he wanted to end slavery.

C.) John Brown’s life and actions against slavery had a big impact on US history. He sparked

abolitionist ideas in the minds of many Northerners after getting interviewed by James Redpath

on the Pottawatomie murders. After Brown’s death, many thought they had just lost a leader of
their cause. Only a year and a half had passed after his burial when the Civil War started. In

1861, the beginning of the war, John Brown had been immortalized in song and Northern troops

marched into Harpers Ferry with his tune right behind them. If it weren’t for him and his fellow

abolitionists, a great deal of Northerners would have most likely not have been motivated to fight

the Southerners.