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Even more spectacular was his eight-year struggle against the Southern-inspired "gag resolutions," which sought to deny the presentation and the discussion of antislavery petitions in Congress. Repeatedly threatened by irate Southerners with disbarment from Congress, he courageously kept up the struggle and finally won the right of free petition in 1844. In a dramatic statement on the floor of the House, he protested, during a vote on the gag rule, "I hold the resolution to be a direct violation of the Constitution of the United States, the rules of this House, and the rights of my constituents." Adams was known for his sharp, insightful speeches, as well as his savage attacks of his opponents.  He was referred to as "the old man" just as often as "old man eloquent."  His battle against the gag rule finally bore fruit as it was eventually repealed.

Even more spectacular was his eight-year struggle against the Southern-inspired "gag resolutions," which sought to deny the presentation and the discussion of antislavery petitions in Congress. Repeatedly threatened by irate Southerners with disbarment from Congress, he courageously kept up the struggle and finally won the right of free petition in 1844. In a dramatic statement on the floor of the House, he protested, during a vote on the gag rule, "I hold the resolution to be a direct violation of the Constitution of the United States, the rules of this House, and the rights of my constituents." Adams was known for his sharp, insightful speeches, as well as his savage attacks of his opponents.  He was referred to as "the old man" just as often as "old man eloquent."  His battle against the gag rule finally bore fruit as it was eventually repealed.

====Missouri Compromise=====

====Missouri Compromise====

The Missouri Compromise of 1820 provoked a series of intense debates between Adams and [[John C. Calhoun]] that would eventually transform them from admiring friends into bitter enemies. Both men recognized the necessity of reconciling republican government and the traditional values of the American Revolution with the issues of slavery and race. Adams vilified the practice of slavery and preached total abolition, while Calhoun countered that the right to slavery not only should be protected from interference from the federal government but was fundamental to republican government. The national debate led both men to consider dissolution of the Union as a way of resolving the slavery issue. Their immovable stances signaled the similar uncompromising positions adopted by the North and the South in the decades to follow.<ref> Chandra Miller, "'Title Page to a Great Tragic Volume': the Impact of the Missouri Crisis on Slavery, Race, and Republicanism in the Thought of John C. Calhoun and John Quincy Adams." ''Missouri Historical Review'' 2000 94(4): 365-388, not online</ref>  

The Missouri Compromise of 1820 provoked a series of intense debates between Adams and [[John C. Calhoun]] that would eventually transform them from admiring friends into bitter enemies. Both men recognized the necessity of reconciling republican government and the traditional values of the American Revolution with the issues of slavery and race. Adams vilified the practice of slavery and preached total abolition, while Calhoun countered that the right to slavery not only should be protected from interference from the federal government but was fundamental to republican government. The national debate led both men to consider dissolution of the Union as a way of resolving the slavery issue. Their immovable stances signaled the similar uncompromising positions adopted by the North and the South in the decades to follow.<ref> Chandra Miller, "'Title Page to a Great Tragic Volume': the Impact of the Missouri Crisis on Slavery, Race, and Republicanism in the Thought of John C. Calhoun and John Quincy Adams." ''Missouri Historical Review'' 2000 94(4): 365-388, not online</ref>

====Amistad====

====Amistad====