Reconstruction
1865 - 1877
The Legacy of the Civil War
“The Civil War made America acknowledge the
importance of equality in diversity”
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Abolished slavery by making it illegal
13th, 14th, 15th Amendments
Strengthened national power
Impoverished the South by freeing their source of labor
Political divisions become geographic
The Legacy of the Civil War
• Northerners: It was a fight to save the Union
• Southerners: It was a fight to protect their
rights from the Federal government
• African-Americans: It was a fight for freedom
The Legacy of the War
• One President dead
• One “President” imprisoned
• Over 600,000 dead w. more wounded
– 13 million = Civil War fought in 2013
– 1 in 4 males in the south dead/wounded
• Four million slaves freed
• Social system & economy of the south flipped
How can you reconcile this?
The Five Questions of Reconstruction
1. Who would direct the process of
Reconstruction? The President, the south,
Congress?
2. Should CSA leaders be tried for treason?
3. How would the south be rebuilt? Who would
pay for it?
4. How would the south be reunited with the
union?
5. What would be done with newly freed slaves?
Were they to be made equal?
Remember…
• The 13th Amendment had passed before
Lincoln was assassinated
• 40 Acres & a Mule was in effect by Special
Field Orders No. 15
• Lincoln (R) and Johnson (D) formed the Union
Party
• The Civil War had ended… or had it?
Lincoln’s Reconstruction Plan
“The 10% Plan”
• Very lenient terms of pardon for Confederates
– Had to swear allegiance to the Union. Once 10%
of those on the 1860 voting list of a specific state
had swore allegiance that state would be allowed
back in.
– Believed that individuals had left the Union, not
states.
– Only high CSA officials & those convicted of war
crimes wouldn’t be pardoned.
Radical Republicans
• Minority within Congress that were outraged
by Lincoln’s plan believing it to be too soft.
• Early abolitionists who had desired equal
rights for African-Americans including suffrage
& full citizenship.
• Proposed the Wade-Davis Bill in response to
the 10% Plan.
– Gave Congress power over Reconstruction, made
50% swear allegiance.
Thaddeus Stevens – Radical Republican
Member of the House of
Representatives from
Pennsylvania.
Witty & Sarcastic, noted
as one of the most prominent
members ever in Congress.
Johnson’s Reconstruction Plan
“Presidential Reconstruction”
Democrat leading a
Republican office with a
Republican Congress.
Problem?
Johnson’s Reconstruction Plan
“Presidential Reconstruction”
• Raised in the south, self-educated & poor, he
promised to deliver “harsh punishment” to
the South.
• Would allow remaining southern states
(AL,GA,FL,MS,SC,NC,TX) back if they:
– Handled war debts
– Swore allegiance
– Passed 13th Amendment
Johnson’s Reconstruction Plan
• DID NOT:
– Address land, voting, protection of freed slaves
– Had pardoned 7,000 southerners by 1866.
– Returned all property to former Confederates who
pledged loyalty.
• Overruled 40 Acres & a Mule.
– All ex-CSA began to work toward their former
political positions
Andrew Johnson’s Own Words
“This is a country for white men & by God,
as long as I am President, it shall be a
government for white men.”
- April, 1866 – Letter to Gov. of Missouri
after vetoing the Civil Rights Bill
How The South Responded
• Relieved.
– Johnson supported abolition, but not equality.
• States quickly abided by his plan.
– States re-elected officials, most ex-CSA
Johnson deemed Reconstruction nearly complete.
Congressional Reconstruction
Begins (Dec. 1865)
Freedmen’s Bureau
• Created by Pres. Lincoln
• Assisted freedmen in
gaining land, jobs, an
education, helped to
reunite families.
• Helped in protecting
freedmen from disgruntled
southerners.
Civil Rights Act
• “This bill neither confers
nor abridges the rights of
any one, but simply declares
that in civil rights there shall
be an equality among all
classes of citizens, and that
all alike shall be subject to
the same punishments.”
President Johnson VETOED BOTH.
Lost all Republican support by doing so.
Moderate + Radical Republicans team up.
Congressional Reconstruction Begins
• Nation was “taped” back together:
– The south still had problems left unanswered.
– Moderate Repubs + Radicals = Bills being made.
– Freedmen’s Bureau gets bolstered (Feb 1966)
– Civil Rights Act gets formed to combat Black
Codes
Black Codes
• Enacted by southern states after the Civil War
to:
– Limit civil liberties & rights of African-Americans
– Feared equality of blacks
– Feared that freedmen would not work unless
forced
Congressional Reconstruction
• With majority in Congress, Republicans were able
to steer Reconstruction.
• Came to the conclusion that:
– By seceding, the south had given up both civil &
political rights under the Constitution.
– Therefore, previous Reconstruction plans were
voided.
• 14th Amendment formed, states wouldn’t be
allowed re-entry until accepted by the state.
– Tennessee immediately ratifies and rejoins the union.
Race riots begin in the south.
Congressional Election of 1866
• Republicans needed to maintain majority in
Congress.
• Pres. Johnson needed to convince the public
to follow his quick unification.
• Republicans cited “waving the bloody shirt” to
fuel northern aggression to support them.
• Republicans maintained a 2/3rds majority
ensuring they could overturn all of Johnson’s
vetoes.
Congressional Reconstruction
• Military Reconstruction Act of 1867
– Divided the south into five territories
– New govt officials needed to be elected
– This act punished the south & ensured AfricanAmerican rights.
• What would happen once states were
readmitted?
– Fears over a regression in the south.
15th Amendment Passed
• Gave all men the right to vote regardless of
race, color, etc…
– Sorry, ladies…
• Prohibited racial discrimination
– (“Separate, but equal” still was OK somehow…)
• To combat this, the south enacted poll taxes,
literacy laws, intimidation tactics, lynching,
etc…
The Three Amendments Review
• 13th Amendment (1865)
– Abolished Slavery.
• 14th Amendment (1868)
– Provided citizenship rights for those born in
America, protected them by law, and prohibited
the deprivation of personal rights by law.
• 15th Amendment (1970)
– Provided suffrage regardless of color.
Impeachment of Andrew Johnson
• Congress passed the Tenure of Office Act
(1867)
• Johnson fired Sec. of War Edwin M. Stanton
violating this act.
Votes Needed to Impeach: 36
Votes Needed to Acquit: 19
Republican Votes Available: 45
Verdict
Guilty: 35
Not Guilty: 19
Election of 1868
Ulysses S. Grant (R)
Civil War Hero
Horatio Seymour (D)
Gov. of New York
The south is noted as being largely Democratic.
Why do you believe most southern states voted in favor of Grant?
REVIEW!
"If knowledge is power...."
REVIEW!
What were the five
legacies, we discussed, of
the Civil War?
REVIEW!
Why did Northerners fight
in the Civil War?
Why did Southerners
fight?
Why did AfricanAmericans fight?
REVIEW!
What was 40 Acres & A
Mule?
Who passed this?
REVIEW!
What was the “Union
Party”? Who was it
formed by and why?
REVIEW!
What was the name of
Lincoln’s Reconstruction
plan?
Describe it.
REVIEW!
What was the Wade-Davis
Bill?
Who proposed it?
REVIEW!
What were Radical
Republicans?
Why were they considered
Radical?
Name the prominent
Radical Republican that
we discussed in class.
REVIEW!
Who was Andrew
Johnson?
Describe his time in office.
REVIEW!
Describe Andrew
Johnson’s Plan.
What was the name of it?
What did it do/not do?
REVIEW!
What were two reasons
why Congressional
Reconstruction began?
REVIEW!
Describe each:
– Civil Rights Act
– Freedmen’s Bureau
– Black Codes
REVIEW!
Why was the
Congressional Election of
1866 so vital?
REVIEW!
Describe:
13th Amendment
14th Amendment
15th Amendment
REVIEW!
Why was Andrew Johnson
impeached?
What does impeachment
mean?
What was the result of his
impeachment?
REVIEW!
Who were the two
candidates in the Election
of 1868?
What was the result?