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Reconstruction
1863 - 1877
• What are some of the problems faced by the United States after the Civil War?
• How would you solve some of these problems?
Lincoln’s Reconstruction PlanPlan formed in 1863; leniency to the South
and quick re-entry into the Union
1. General pardon to most rebels; leaders exempt from amnesty
2. Loyalty oath by 10% of the rebels
Lee’s Loyalty Oath
Lincoln’s Reconstruction Plan
3. Passage of 13th Amendment, abolishing slavery
** Lincoln initially doesn’t address the issue of civil rights for freedman
13th Amendment13th Amendment Ratified in December, 1865.
Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States or any place subject to their jurisdiction.
Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
Lincoln’s Reconstruction Plan
Opposed by “Radical Republicans”; mostly Northern ex-abolitionists
Led in House by Thaddeus Stevens (R – PA)
Led in Senate by Charles Sumner
Goal: to punish and reconstruct the South politically and socially
Wade-Davis Bill (1864)Wade-Davis Bill (1864) “State Suicide” Theory [MA Senator
Charles Sumner]
Majority must take oath of loyalty
“Iron-Clad” Oath for officeholders
PresidentPresidentLincolnLincoln
PresidentPresidentLincolnLincoln
Wade-DavisWade-DavisBillBill
Wade-DavisWade-DavisBillBill
PocketVeto
PocketVeto
Lincoln’s AssassinationApril 15th, 1865: Lincoln assassinated at
Ford’s Theatre by John Wilkes Booth
Impact upon the South and Reconstruction
Lincoln’s Assassination
Death of Lincoln allows Andrew Johnson to assume presidency
Hanging of the four conspirators
Death of John Wilkes Booth
Andrew JohnsonBackground:
raised in poverty
became a tailor; learned to read at age 17
Senator from Tennessee; only one not to secede
added as VP on Union Party (former War Democrat)
racist; hated blacks and rich Southern whites
Growing Northern Alarm!
Growing Northern Alarm! Many Southern state
constitutions fell short of minimum requirements.
Johnson granted 13,500 special pardons.
Revival of southern defiance.
New Southern State Governments
Re-election of ex-Confederates; i.e. Alexander Stephens, former VP of the Confederacy
Ex-Confederate officers chosen as governors and Congressmen
Passes the “Black Codes”; designed to maintain Southern society as before
The Black CodesReturn of the freedmen to a
near slave status;
Forced labor
Unemployment illegal
No voting/jury duty/testifying in court against whites
Segregation of the races
The Black CodesSupported by Johnson; Radicals outraged
vow to overturn Codes
Condition of the FreedmenExtreme poverty; beginning of sharecropping
Persecution by white supremacy groups
Nathan Bedford Forrest
SharecroppingSharecropping
Slavery is Dead?Slavery is Dead?
The Freedmen’s Bureau
Designed to assist newly freed slaves; resented in the South as “meddling” with race relations
Provided:
food
shelter
education
employment
Freedmen’s Bureau (1865)
Freedmen’s Bureau (1865)
Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands.
Many former northern abolitionists risked their lives to help southern freedmen.
Called “carpetbaggers” by white southern Democrats.
Freedmen’s Bureau SchoolFreedmen’s Bureau School
Congress Breaks with the President
Congress Breaks with the President
Congress bars SouthernCongressional delegates.
February, 1866 Presidentvetoed the FreedmenBureau bill.
March, 1866 Johnsonvetoed the 1866 Civil Rights Act.
Congress passed both bills over Johnson’s vetoes 1st in U. S. history!!
The 1866 Bi-ElectionThe 1866 Bi-Election
Johnson’s “Swing around the Circle”
A referendum on Radical Reconstruction.
Johnson made an ill-conceived propaganda tour around the country to push his plan.
Republicanswon a 3-1majority in both houses and gained control of every northern state.
The Military Reconstruction Act of 1867
South divided into five military districts, under martial law
passage of 14th & 15th Amendments required; guarantee of freedmen’s rights
Philip Sheridan
Reconstruction Acts of 1867Reconstruction Acts of 1867 Command of the Army Act
* The President must issue all Reconstruction orders through the commander of the military.
Tenure of Office Act
* The President could not remove any officials [esp. Cabinet members] without the Senate’s consent, if the position originally required Senate approval.
Designed to protect radicalmembers of Lincoln’s government.
A question of the constitutionality of this law. Edwin Stanton
14th Amendment14th Amendment Ratified in July, 1868.
Section. 1. All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
Southern states would be punished for denying the right to vote to black citizens!
15th Amendment15th Amendment Ratified in 1870.
The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.
The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
Women’s rights groups were furious that they were not granted the vote!
Black & White Political Participation
Black & White Political Participation
Blacks in Southern PoliticsBlacks in Southern Politics Core voters were black veterans.
Blacks were politically unprepared.
Blacks could register and vote in states since 1867.
The 15th Amendment guaranteedfederal voting.
Black Senate & House Delegates
Black Senate & House Delegates
Colored Rule
in the South?
Colored Rule
in the South?
President Johnson’s Impeachment
President Johnson’s Impeachment
Johnson removed Stanton in February, 1868.
Johnson replaced generals in the field who were more sympathetic to Radical Reconstruction.
The House impeached him on February 24 before even drawing up the charges by a vote of 126 – 47!
The Senate TrialThe Senate Trial
11 week trial.
Johnson acquitted 35 to 19 (one short of required 2/3s vote).
The End of ReconstructionAcceptance of the South
of provisions of Act
Creation of “Redeemer Governments”
Waning enthusiasm in the North for Reconstruction, more interested in economic growth, corruption in politics, and western expansion
Political corruption in the Grant Administration
1876 Presidential Tickets1876 Presidential Tickets
1876 Presidential Election
1876 Presidential Election
Crisis Over the 1876 ElectionRepublicans dispute the returns of three Southern States: Louisiana, S. Carolina, and Florida
The Political Crisis of 1877The Political Crisis of 1877
“Corrupt Bargain”Part II?
Compromise of 1877Negotiated between two parties three
days before the inauguration:
Republicans receive electoral votes of disputed States; Hayes wins!
Promise to remove remaining federal troops from the South
No interference in Southern Black Codes; blacks abandoned
A Political Crisis: The “Compromise” of 1877A Political Crisis: The “Compromise” of 1877
Impact of ReconstructionRenewed racial hostility:
passages of new Black Codes, the “Jim Crow” laws; strict segregation of the races
Democratic dominance in the South
Few reforms in Southern governments
