Chapter 15

4 Questions Remain

1. How would the South be rebuilt? 2. How would liberated blacks fare? 3. How would South be reintegrated into the Union? 4. Who would direct the process of Reconstruction?

Significant Dates

1865 -- Lincoln dies, Andrew Johnson becomes president; last battles of the Civil War in Cameron County, Texas; President Johnson announces plans for Presidential Reconstruction; "Juneteenth" Emancipation announced in Texas; 13th Amendment ratified; KKK formed in Tennessee 1866 -- Civil Rights Act passed over Johnson's veto 1867 -- First Congressional Reconstruction Act passed 1868 -- Houses pass articles of impeachment against President Andrew Johnson; Andrew Johnson is acquitted by one vote in the Senate; 14th Amendment ratified 1869 -- Ulysses S. Grant inaugurated as 18th President of the US 1870 -- 15th Amendment ratified; First Enforcement Act passed by Congress; US Department of Justice created to enforce Reconstruction laws 1871 -- KKK Act passed by Congress 1872 -- US Army troops seize Louisiana statehouse, return Republican legislature 1873 -- Coffax, Louisiana Massacre; Supreme Court decision in the Slaughterhouse Cases limits the reach of the 14th Amendment 1874 -- Grant orders 5k troops to New Orleans to return Republican governor 1875 -- Civil Rights Act of 1875 1876 -- US v. Cruikshank 1877 -- Rutherford B. Hayes inaugurated as president; slow ending of Reconstruction

The System of Sharecropping

A system of farming; white landowners would let former slaves & poor white farmers farm their land The 2 would share profits Problem with this system: land, animals, equipment, & seed provided by landlord Landlord advanced credit to the farmer for these products From the share of the profits, the money owed for these products was deducted from their pay Continued the system of slavery in a sense

Reconstruction

Although making initial progress, it failed to provide lasting improvements for black people

Presidential Reconstruction: Lincoln's Ideas

Believed the South hadn't legally left the Union; therefore, putting the North & South back together would be simple "10%" plan -- said a state could come back to the Union when 10% of its voters in 1860 swore an allegiance oath to the US & pledged to support emancipation

Blacks in Office

Between 1868 & 1876, 14 black congressmen & 2 black senators were elected Short-lived success

1st Actions of New Southern Governments

Black Codes: Aimed to ensure a stable & subservient labor force; sought to restore pre-Civil War race relations (blacks couldn't serve on juries or testify in court) Thousands of blacks were forced into sharecropping

The Anaconda Plan -- Union War Strategy

Blockade the coasts, cut off supplies from reaching the South Divide the Confederacy in 2 by taking control of the Mississippi River Capture the capital: Richmond, Virginia

Blacks Battle Bondage

By war's end. 180k blacks served in the Union army Served in segregated units; many put to death when captured

Britain

Confederate diplomacy toward GB was unsuccessful because the Confederacy overestimated Britain's dependence on Southern cotton; also, British had abolished slavery, so entering the war on the south's side would have represented a support of slavery

Radicals Target Johnson

Congress passed the Tenure of Office Act in 1867 over Johnson's veto, which required the president to secure Senate approval before removing members of his cabinet Johnson dismissed Secretary of War Edwin Stanton from his cabinet, which gave the radicals the pretext to impeach Johnson Johnson wasn't impeached by one vote Precedent was established that guarded against the impeachment of presidents solely on political grounds

Rise of the KKK

Created to resist "radical" rule Became a refuge for bandits, cutthroats, & scoundrels Its intention was to "keep blacks in their place" Congress passed the Force Acts to limit the activities of the KKK

Life for Free Blacks

Demanded whites call them Mr. or Ms. Abandoned coarse cotton clothes Sought spouse, children, & parents Church became focal part of their life Sought education

Conclusion

During the 12 years after the Civil War, Americans grappled with what the future held for newly freed slaves & how best to return to the Union those states that had been in rebellion during the Civil War; the so-called Radical Republicans in Congress sought ways to protect the educational, political, & economic rights of the freedmen (as former slaves, male & female, were called); Andrew Johnson, who became president upon Lincoln's death in April 1865, seemed indifferent to African-American rights & soon alienated congressional radicals by restoring power to former rebels intent on limiting the freedoms of former slaves Congressional Republicans had their own plans for consolidating the Union victory; eventually, the House of Representatives impeached Johnson for obstructing its plans to reconstruct the South; although he was acquitted of "high crimes & misdemeanors" by the Senate, which allowed him to stay in office, Johnson's political career was over; but Congress passed a number of laws, including the 1866 Civil Rights Act & the 14th & 15th Amendments to the Constitution, designed to protect black rights as citizens & voters; across the South, African-Americans & whites committed to Reconstruction were elected to local & national office in larger numbers & began to reshape their states; in 1868, Ulysses S. Grant, the Republican nominee, was elected president; Grant was committed to the Reconstruction of the South in ways that would protect black rights, especially black voting rights After the war, African-Americans pursued full citizenship rights, education, & economic independence; terrorized by white supremacists & lacking money & credit, most African-Americans never achieved either true equality or independence; at the same time, white veterans of the Confederate army were organizing to deny those rights, not only legally through the Democratic Party, but also illegally through the KKK & other similar organizations; as time passed, & as public support for federal intervention in the affairs of the South eroded, the promise of Reconstruction's early days evaporated; by 1877, a new president (Rutherford B. Hayes) began to bring Reconstruction to an end, assuring white rule in the South & the disenfranchisement & "Jim Crow segregation" of African-Americans for generations to come

The Monitor & the Merrimack

First "ironclad" sea battle Spelled the doom of wooden war ships

General George B. McClellan

Helped form the Army of the Potomac (Northern forces); instilled morale However, he was overcautious in attacking the enemy After muddling a few battles at the cost of thousands of lives, Lincoln removes him from command "Tardy George" by George Henry Boker made fun of him

Emancipation Proclamation

Issued January 1, 1863 Declared the slaves in states rebelling against the Union free Slaves in the border states weren't affected It was now clear the war would determine slavery's fate African-Americans were granted legal freedom later by the 13th Amendment, which officially abolished slavery

Congressional Elections of 1866

Johnson tried to win back the favor of Congress & began his "swing 'round the circle" campaign in which he tried to gain more representatives in Congress that were sympathetic to his "soft on the South" policies His plans backfired -- Republicans earned a 2/3 veto-proof majority in the election

Battle of Gettysburg

Lee invaded the North in Pennsylvania Lincoln appointed a new general for Union forces (again) The outcome was in doubt until the end The failure of Pickett's Charge (the "high tide of the Confederacy") ensured a Union victory Turning point of the war

Battle of Antietam

Lee's battle plans were discovered by the Union The 12-hour fight was the bloodiest single day of the war (23k died) A "victory" (Lee's offensive was halted at a terrible price) that gave Lincoln the support to launch the Emancipation Proclamation

The "Ninety-Day War"

Lincoln thought the 75k troops he asked for would only have to serve 90 days The army was ill-prepared, but the press & public wanted action Lincoln chose to attack a small Confederate force at Bull Run (Manassas Junction)

Gettysburg Address

Lincoln's 2 minute address to dedicate the cemetery At the time, it was mocked by Democrats & the foreign press; today, it's one of the best known American historical documents

1864 Election

Lincoln's re-election wasn't absolute To help gain more support, his running mate was Andrew Johnson, a war Democrat from Tennessee (Mountain White) Democrats nominated General McClellan Sherman's seize of Atlanta & battle victories a few days prior to the election helped Lincoln win

Congressional Reaction to Lincoln's Plan

Most Republicans supported Lincoln Radical Republicans feared the planter aristocracy would regain power (Thaddeus Stevens) Republicans offered their own plan: the Wade-Davis Bill, which required 50% of a states' voters take the oath of allegiance & demanded stronger guarantees to support emancipation Lincoln pocket vetoed the bill

Political Dissension

Most dangerous to the Union were the Northern Democrats The party divided -- at the extreme were the Copperhead Democrats who attacked the draft, Lincoln, & emancipation Copperhead Clement Vallandigham was convicted for treason & banished to the South

Lincoln's Successor (Andrew Johnson)

Never attended school; his wife taught him to write Champion of poor whites in Tennessee, states' rights, & the Constitution Slaveholder who opposed secession "A Southerner who didn't understand the North, a Tenesseean who had earned the distrust of the South, a Democrat who had never been accepted by the Republicans"

An Assassination

On April 14, 1865, Lincoln's assassinated Andrew Johnson becomes new president

Ford's Theater

On Good Friday (April 14, 1865), Lincoln attended a play Half-crazed actor John Wilkes Booth slipped into Lincoln's box & shot him in the head

Death Toll

Over a million were killed in action, wounded, or died of disease Nullification & secession were laid to rest The war was the supreme test of democracy Slavery was destroyed, but prejudice & discrimination remained

Johnson's Reconstruction Plan

Radical Republican felt Johnson would be an ally in punishing the South because of his hatred toward the planter aristocracy However... Johnson agreed with Lincoln & implemented 10% plan He disenfranchised wealthy Southerners who were forced to petition him for personal pardons Once Johnson's favor was begged for, he issued pardons in abundance (Johnson felt victorious over Southern aristocrats, but they quickly became part of the new Southern governments -- Radical Republicans = mad) Barred any ex-confederate with taxable property worth more than $20k from political participation By the end of 1865, his plans allowed former Confederate officials to be elected to serve in Congress

Military Reconstruction (1867-1877)

Radical Republicans passed the act in reaction to bloody race riots that erupted in several southern cities Divided the South into 5 military districts, each commanded by a Union General Requirements for readmission: Ratify 14th & 15th Amendments

The Congressional Reconstruction

Republicans became alarmed when Congress convened & the old Southern representatives reappeared Mad at the South & the president, Republicans took control 13th Amendment -- abolished slavery ("free") 14th Amendment -- made blacks citizens ("citizens") 15th Amendment -- gave male blacks the right to vote ("vote")

Scalawags & Carpetbaggers

Scalawags -- white Southerners who were black allies; former Confederates accused them of stealing from southern treasuries Carpetbaggers -- Northerners who went to the South after the war to seek personal power & profit

Sherman's March to the Sea

Sherman captured Atlanta in 1864 & then marched his army 250 miles to Savannah on the sea They cut a 60-mile swath of destruction through Georgia (burned buildings, tore up railroads, stole things, destroyed homes) Sherman believed in "total war"

Ulysses S. Grant

Shy, awkward, a failure before war, prone to drink Talent in life = war Nickname: "Unconditional Surrender" Grant Took command of Union forces attacking Vicksburg on the Mississippi River Victory at Vicksburg came one day after the Gettysburg victory; gave the Union control of the Mississippi River

Reconstruction Act of 1867

Southern states had to draft new constitutions, with the approval by Congress, that granted universal male suffrage Southern states had to ratify the 14th Amendment Southern states had to rewrite their constitutions, with support for public education a crucial part Southern black voters & whites who weren't disqualified by the 14th Amendment had to be allowed to elect delegates to state constitutional conventions

Battle of Bull Run

Spectators showed up with picnic baskets to watch First the battle went well for the Yankees, but then Confederate General Jackson's troops stood like a "stone wall" until reinforcements arrived, causing Union troops to disperse in a panic

The Freedmen's Bureau

Supported by abolitionists; intended to be a primitive welfare agency Achieved greatest successes in education, although it also provided food, clothing, & medical care Hated by Southerners & President Johnson, whose white supremacist views led him to keep trying to kill it

Civil Rights Cases of 1883

Supreme Court ruled that states, not individuals, were prohibited from discriminating under the 14th Amendment

Slaughterhouse Cases of 1873

The 14th amendment only protected the basic rights of national citizenship, not rights that fell to citizens by virtue of their state citizenship

Johnson

Wanted to exclude the planters from political leadership in the South, but then undermined his intention by granting so many pardons to this group Was a lifelong Democrat with no interest in building the strength of the Republican Party Vetoed all of the Congressional Reconstruction acts, only to have Congress override his vetoes Reversed his position on slavery during the war

Appomattox Courthouse

With Grant back in the East, the Union finally captured Richmond & cornered Lee The South was given generous terms of surrender

No Votes for Women

Women were prominent in the prewar abolition movement & Elizabeth Cady Stanton & Susan B. Anthony had suspended suffrage to fight for black emancipation Women were disappointed by the 13th, 14th, & 15th Amendments because they excluded women

Scalawags

a disparaging term for southern whites who supported the Southern Republican Party during Reconstruction

Radical Republicans

a shifting group of Republican congressmen, who favored abolishing slavery & advocated full rights for former slaves in the South

Redemption

a term used by opponents of Reconstruction for the era in which the federal government ended its involvement in Southern affairs & southern whites took control of state governments & ended black political rights

Freedmen's Bureau

agency established by Congress in March 1865 to provide social, educational, & economic services, as well as advice & protection, to former slaves

Union Leagues

in the South, a Republican Party organization led by African-Americans, which became an important organizing device after 1865

Sharecropping

labor system that evolved during & after Reconstruction whereby landowners furnished laborers with a house, farm animals, tools, & advanced credit, in exchange for a share of the laborers' crop

Black Codes

laws passed by states & municipalities denying many rights of citizenship to free blacks & to control black labor, mobility, & employment

Presidential Reconstruction

name given to the immediate post-Civil War era, 1865-1866, when President Andrew Johnson took the lead to return full rights to the former Confederate states

Congressional Reconstruction

name given to the period 1867-1870 when the Republican-dominated Congress controlled Reconstruction era policy; sometimes known as Radical Reconstruction

KKK

one of several vigilante groups that terrorized black people in the South during Reconstruction Era; founded by Confederate veterans in 1866

Jim Crow segregation

segregation laws that became widespread in the South during the 1890s; named for a minstrel show character portrayed satirically by white actors in blackface

Carpetbaggers

term used by white Southerners for Northern transplants who came to the South to help with Reconstruction

Hiram Revels was

the 1st African-American Senator