The Following paper is an academic research paper meant to explore the passage of the 13th amendment in the House of Representatives between 1864-1865. By making heavy use of Congressional records to read speeches and debates given at the time as well as by exploring existing scholarship on the subject, a clear picture of the political situation and movements of the time can be understood. Proper historical analysis of the political trends of the time reveal the reality of the political situation and the passage of the 13th amendment. It was not through backroom bribery and trickery nor through strident crusades of abolitionists that the amendment was passed as is often portrayed in the media and academics, rather was through the moderation of skilled politicking, coalition building, and compromise that one of the most radical political acts in American history came to be.