1863- 1865
Lincoln's War Time Reconstruction |
ProclamationofAmnestyandReconstruction(1863)
Lincoln set up a process for political reconstruction of the state governments in the South so that Unionists were in charge rather than secessionists. |
• Full presidential pardons would be granted to most Confederates who (1) took an oath of allegiance to the Union and the U.S. Constitution, and (2) accepted the emancipation of slaves. |
• A state government could be reestablished and accepted as legitimate by the U.S. president as soon as at least 10 percent of the voters in that state took the loyalty oath. |
Andrew Johnson
After Abraham Lincoln's murder in 1865, his vice-president, Andrew Johnson, became president. He sought to reconstitute the Union quickly. His Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction in May 1865 provided sweeping “amnesty and pardon” to rebellious Southerners. He provided Southern states with a clear path back to readmission. |
April 1865- December 1865
Jonhson and the Reconstruction
• Johnson gave a full pardon to all White Southerners and allowed them to reclaim, previously, confiscated land |
• This land was originally confiscated since these White Southerners took up arms against the United States and was, under Lincoln’s Reconstruction, supposed to be parceled out to African Americans to began small farms |
• Johnson individually pardoned many high-ranking Confederate generals and politicians and allowed them to take positions of power |
• These politicians created Black Codes that limited African American freedom |
• At the same time the Ku Klux Klan, a terrorist group, was established which physically assaulted and intimidated African Americans. |
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Congressional Reconstruction 1865-1868
The second round of the Reconstruction dominated by Congress and featured policies that were harsher on Southern Whites and more protective of freed African Americans. |
Freedman's Bureau Act
President Johnson originally vetoed the continuation of the Freedmen’s Bureau on the grounds that it interfered with States’ Rights, gave preference to certain groups more than others, and cost the federal government too much money |
The bureau acted as a welfare agency, providing food, shelter, and medical aid for both Black and White Americans left destitute by the war |
Congress overrode the president’s veto, but the Bureau was chronically underfunded |
Civil Rights Act of 1866
Precursor to the 14th Amendment that established African Americans as citizens and defined what citizenship wa |
President Johnson vetoed this bill, but Congress overrode his veto – it was officially ratified in 1870 |
Reconstruction Bill 1867
Led to “Radical Reconstruction” because many thought that neither justice nor healing was properly secured after the Civil War |
This bill required states to ratify the 14th amendment before being readmitted to the Union |
Jonhson Impeached - February 1868
Johnson challenged the constitutionality of the new law by dismissing Stanton. The House responded by impeaching Johnson. He was charged with 11 “high crimes and misdemeanors,” thus becoming the first president to be impeached. |
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The election of Grant on March 4,1873
15th Amendment- February 3, 1870
• Last Reconstruction Amendment |
• Constitution prohibits the federal government and each state from denying a citizen the right to vote based on that citizen’s “race, color, or previous condition of servitude”
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Enforcement Acts- 1870 & 1871
• They were criminal codes which protected African-Americans’ right to vote, to hold office, to serve on juries, and receive equal protection of laws |
• Allowed the federal government to intervene if states were not upholding these rights |
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Panic of 1873
• Catalyst was the failure of Jay Cooke and Company, an investment banking firm, principle banker of the Northern Pacific Railroad and of wartime government loans -> allowed people to get bonds and loans for the first time |
• Failure : New York Stock Exchange closes for 10 days, factories default, foreclosures are widespread -> President Grant is blamed |
Democratic Party Rise
Depression was blamed on Grant and the Republican Party -> switch to Democratic |
Republican focused heavily on Reconstruction initiatives, while the Democrats did not |
Reconstruction officially ended in 1877. |
Civil Rights Act of 1875
Last federal civil rights law enacted until the 1950s |
Aim to “protect all citizens in their civil and legal rights” but had no means to enforce this legislation |
Removal of Federal Troops
Unwritten Compromise of 1877 – Hayes said he would remove troops from South, which allowed him to get enough votes to become president |
Troops were protecting Republican governments in South -> removal equals the governments becoming Democratic and ostracizing Black Republicans |
Voter suppression in the late 1870s
Reemerged when Democratic Governments gained control of the South |
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