— Ch. 1 · Convention And Drafting Process —
South Carolina Declaration of Secession.
~4 min read · Ch. 1 of 6
The secession convention of South Carolina convened in December 1860 following the election of Abraham Lincoln. A committee of seven members drafted the official declaration on behalf of the state. Christopher G. Memminger served as the primary author and led this specific group. Other committee members included F. H. Wardlaw, R. W. Barnwell, J. P. Richardson, B. H. Rutledge, J. E. Jenkins, and P. E. Duncan. The convention had previously agreed to draft a separate statement summarizing their justification for leaving the Union. They issued an Ordinance of Secession on December 20, which was brief and legalistic. This ordinance accomplished the actual withdrawal but contained no explanation of reasoning. The committee produced the Declaration of Immediate Causes on the 24th of December 1860. The document was adopted by the convention later that same day. The state legislature called the convention in the month following Lincoln's election victory.
Legal Compact Theory Arguments
South Carolina asserted that its right to secede was implicit within the Constitution itself. The declaration stated that this right was explicitly reaffirmed by the state in 1852. It argued that the agreement between South Carolina and the United States operated under the law of compact. This theory created obligations binding both parties to the contract. If either party failed to uphold these obligations, the agreement would be revoked. The text claimed the federal government had failed to uphold its duties toward the state. It also cited other states' refusal to enforce specific constitutional clauses protecting slavery. The argument relied heavily on the idea that the Constitution was a contract rather than a permanent union. Northern states were accused of violating terms they had originally agreed to sign. This breach of contract justified South Carolina's decision to withdraw from the federation. The document emphasized that sovereignty resided with the individual states before delegation occurred.