Harpers Ferry Raid: An event in 1859 where John Brown led a small group in a raid against a federal armory at Harpers Ferry, Virginia (today West Virginia), intending to start a slave liberation movement.
Bleeding Kansas: A series of violent civil confrontations between pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions that occurred in Kansas from 1854-1861, which presaged the Civil War. John Brown was involved in these conflicts.
Martyrdom: The suffering of death on account of adherence to a cause, especially one's religious faith or beliefs. After his execution following the failed Harpers Ferry raid, many viewed John Brown as a martyr for the abolitionist cause.