Give Me Liberty - Reconstruction
14th Amendment
"All persons born or naturalized in the United States... are citizens of the United States" and therefore have equal protection. The Congress also has the right to enforce this. The 14th Amendment was arguably the most transforming piece of legislation during the reconstruction.
Tenure of Office
(1867) this was passed over Johnson's veto and was most likely unconstitutional. Saying the president couldn't remove any member from the cabinet after they achieved tenure. The House impeached johnson but after a 3 month trial the vote was one short and it didn't go through so he wasn't kicked out. But he became the first president to be impeached.
Ku Klux Klan
- Founded in 1866, the organization extended into almost every southern state by 1870 and became a vehicle for white southern resistance to the Republican Party's Reconstruction-era policies aimed at establishing political and economic equality for blacks. Its members waged an underground campaign of intimidation and violence directed at white and black Republican leaders.
13th Amendment
1865, President Abraham Lincoln approved the Joint Resolution of Congress submitting the proposed amendment to the state legislatures. bans slavery
Northern fatigue of reconstruction
1873- Economic depression which distracted them from problems in the south. Liberal attack on reconstruction promoted resurgent racism.
15th Amendment
1886-1870 ratified. Last of the Reconstruction Acts. Says you can't take away a person's right to vote based on race or their status as a slave. Blacks celebrated this and the immediate beneficiaries were that Northern black men were added to this process and allowed to vote.
Impeachment
A charge of official misconduct against the president; it is the political equivalent of an indictment in criminal law. The Constitution grants the House of Representatives the power to impeach the president by a majority vote for "Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors." Once charges of impeachment are approved in the House, the president must stand trial before the Senate.
Which of the following was NOT a major cause of the decline of Reconstruction?
A deepening of mutual respect between black and white southerners, making Reconstruction seem no longer necessary.
Carpetbaggers
A derogatory term applied to Northerners who migrated south during the Reconstruction to take advantage of opportunities to advance their own fortunes by buying up land from desperate Southerners and by manipulating new black voters to obtain lucrative government contracts after the civil war
Carpetbaggers
A derogatory term applied to white Northerners who migrated south during the Reconstruction to take advantage of opportunities to advance their own fortunes by buying up land from desperate Southerners and by manipulating new black voters to obtain lucrative government contracts. Most carpetbaggers, however, were not corrupt adventurers. Rather, they were Union soldiers, FB officers, and others who wanted to improve their position while also helping freedmen.
Scalawags
A derogatory term for white Republican Southerners who had or were working with the North. Southerners considered them race-traitors. Most were non-slaveholding white farmers from the southern upcountry. They helped Republicans prevent "rebels" from returning to power. They were important because the small white Republican vote, combined with the black vote, allowed Republicans to compete in the South.
Radical Republicans
A minority group in congress led by Thaddeus Stevens and Charles Sumner that believed the South should be harshly punished and thought that Lincoln was sometimes too compassionate towards the South. Their main goals of breaking the power of wealthy planters and ensuring that freedmen could vote. This group struggled from 1866-1870 to extend equal rights to all Americans.
What was "The Great Constitutional Revolution"?
A phrase to describe the lasting, significant impact of Reconstruction on the federal system, and the language of freedom. Reconstruction amendments transformed the Constitution from a document primarily concerned with federal-state relations and the rights of property, into a vehicle through which members of vulnerable minorities could stake a claim to freedom and seek protection against misconduct by all levels of government.
Upon Lincoln's assassination, ___________ became President.
Andrew Johnson
Who among the following was not a leader of the Radical Republicans?
Andrew Johnson
The Enforcement Acts of 1870 and 1871:
Defined crimes that deprived citizens of their civil and political rights as federal offenses; and under these laws President Grant sent federal marshals to arrest hundreds of accused Klansmen.
What led to Radical Reconstruction?
Demands by former slaves for the right to vote. Radicals' commitment to the idea of equality. Widespread disgust with Johnson's policies. The desire to fortify the Republican Party in the South. Determination to keep ex-Confederates out of office
Scalawags
Derogatory term for pro-Union, and republican Southerners whom Southern Democrats accused of plundering the resources of the South in collusion with Republican governments after the Civil War.
The Reconstruction Act of March 1867:
Divided the South into five military districts and called for created of new state governments, with black men given the right to vote.
One of the main purposes of the Freedmen's Bureau was to:
Ensure a fair and viable system of labor relations between former slaves and former slaveholders.
Freedmen's Bureau
First Federally Established Social Service Agency. Directed by O.O Howard. Established by Congress in 1865, was an attempt to assist freed slaves and poor whites. Agents were supposed to establish schools help the poor and settle dispute between whites and blacks along with helping to ensure that former slaves were treated equally in courts. Lasted 5 years, was very successful.
Where did the 14th Amendment come up short?
It didn't give blacks the ability to vote. But, if the right to vote was denied by a state, then that state lost representation in Congress, i.e. if blacks can't vote, then they can't be counted. This was a BIG problem for the South.
Which of the following was not a major effect of Reconstruction (at its height) on southern society?
It inspired a mass exodus of southern blacks to lands that had never known slavery.
Where did the 15th amendment come up short?
It opened the door to suffrage restrictions not explicitly based on race: literacy tests, property qualifications, and poll taxes. It also didn't give women the right to vote.
Why did sharecropping arise?
It was a compromise between blacks' desire for land, and planters' demand for labor discipline.
Congressional Election of 1866
Johnson swing around the circle makes him look drunk letting republicans get 2/3rd of the house and senate.A faction of the Republican party that championed civil rights for blacks. This faction was in control of the congressional Reconstruction. This group struggled from 1866-1870 to extend equal rights to all Americans.
14th Amendment
June 1886, Congress approver Civil rights as __ which allowed citizenship and equal protection to any one born in the U.S. Not including the franchise on freed men (blacks), guaranteed the federal debt while repudiating all confederate debts, reduced proportionally the representation of state in congress and electoral College if there are no black ballots, and disqualified formed federal and state confederates.
What was Lincoln's Plan?
Known as 10% Plan Offered pardons to any Confederate who swore allegiance to the Union and Constitution. When the number of people in a state who took the oath equaled 10% of the number of voters who participated in the 1860 election, the state would be readmitted to the Union after organizing a new government which abolished slavery. He was shot, so the plan never went into effect.
Redeemers
Largely former slave owners, whigs and democrats who were the bitterest opponents of the Republican program in the South. Staged a major counterrevolution to "redeem" the south by taking back southern state governments. Their foundation rested on the idea of racism and white supremacy. Redeemer governments waged and agressive assault on African Americans.
The Black Codes were
Laws that sought to regulate the lives of former slaves.
Fisk University
Located in Tennessee, Black College founded by the Freedmen's Bureau
Hampton Institute
Located in Virginia, Black College founded by the Freedmens Bureau.
Howard University
Located in Washington DC, Black College Founded by the Freedmens Bureau
Define "free labor," as meant in the section on the free labor system.
Non-slave labor in a market economy.
In president Andrew Johnson's view, African-Americans ought to play what part in Reconstruction?
None
What factors led to the end of Reconstruction?
Northern fatigue with Reconstruction Enhanced racism and terrorism (KKK) General aversion to rising taxes to pay for Reconstructionist policies, e.g. public schools Liberal Republican shift in the South Democratic control of House The election of 1872, which put the topic of a new policy toward the South on the agenda 1873 depression weakened souther Republicans further
Creation of Liberal Republicans
Organized in Cincinnati in May 1872, to oppose the reelection of President Ulysses S. Grant and his Radical Republican supporters. Grant promoted reconstruction while the liberal republicans wanted reform.
Civil Rights Bill (1866) - gives more concrete meaning to the 13th Amendment
Passed over Johnson's veto, all persons born in the U.S. were now citizens without regard to race. It outlawed things like the Black Codes. It improved the idea of free labor by now allowing any state to deprive citizens of the right to make contracts, bring lawsuits, or enjoy equal protection of one's property. It was the first attempt to give concrete meaning to the 13th amendment....to define in law the essence of freedom.
Wade-Davis Bill
Passed through Congress in 1864, this bill was far stricter than Lincoln's 10% Plan and required 50 percent of the voters of a state to take the loyalty oath and permitted only non-Confederates to vote for a new state constitution. It was backed by the Radical Republicans, who thought Lincoln's plan would allow the southern aristocrats to assume power again and deny equality to blacks in the South.
"The destruction of slavery led feminists to search for way to make the promise of free labor real for women." Define "feminists" in this context.
Persons who held a view advocating social, political, and other rights for women equal to those of men.
What was the issue with sharecropping?
Planters liked it because it guaranteed them a stable labor force. Slaves preferred it to gang labor because it was unsupervised by whites. But as years went on sharecropping became more oppressive, and economic opportunities for blacks were severely limited by a world market that saw farm prices decline.
During Reconstruction, the black church functioned as a vital setting for:
Political mobilization, worship, and schooling. (All of the above)
The 15th Amendment to the United States Constitution:
Prohibited federal and state governments from denying any citizen the vote because of race.
Which of the following was NOT a central thrust of the Reconstruction amendments to the Constitution?
Redistribution of the former slave owners' land among the freed slaves.
Election of 1872
Republican Ulysses S. Grant vs liberal republican Horace Greeley.
In the summer of 1865, President Andrew Johnson ordered nearly all land in federal hands to be:
Returned to its former owners.
Which was NOT true of Liberal Republicans in the post-Civil War era?
They believed the growth of federal power needed to be expanded.
Reconstruction Act of 1867
This Act was passed by Radical Republicans which was vetoed by President Johnson, and overriden by Congress. This Act ordered southern states to hold new elections for deleagates to creat new state constitutions, established harsher requirements for Confederate states; divided Southern states into military districts; required states to vote to ratify 14th amendment (freedmen right to vote).
How many plans were there for Reconstruction?
Three: Lincoln's Plan, Johnson's Plan, and the Radical Republican Plan
Which was NOT a principal task of the Freedmen's Bureau (1865-1870)?
To support black churches and businesses.
The redeemers
Victorious democrats who "redeemed" the white south from corruption, misgovernment and northern/black control. Used violence to prove their points.
Black Americans who refused to sign labor contracts to work for whites during Reconstruction:
Were often convicted of vagrancy and fined; sometimes they were then auctioned off to work for the person who paid the fine.
Plessy v Ferguson
a 1896 Supreme Court decision which legalized state ordered segregation so long as the facilities for blacks and whites were equal. Plessy was black who sat in white section of a train.
Following the Civil War, white and black farmers in the South:
Saw the price of cotton fall steadily.
10% Plan and Proclamation Amnesty
Set up by Lincoln in 1863, this plan shaped his picture for political Reconstruction that was very moderate: 1) Presidential pardons would be given to southerners (except highly ranked Confederates) who took an oath of allegiance to the Union and accepted the emancipation of slaves 2) When 10% of the voters had taken the oath, the state government could be reestablished and recognized Lincoln meant to shorten the war and add weight to his Emancipation Proclamation. The proclamation was criticized for being too lenient by the Radical Republicans.
What was Sharecropping?
Sharecropping is a system of agriculture in which a landowner allows a tenant to use the land in return for a share of the crops produced on their portion of land.
The phrase, "forty acres and a mule," derived from:
Sherman's Field Order 15.
Black Codes
Southern states passed these to control the freed slaves. They were oppressive laws aimed at keeping the Black population in submission and to regulate their affairs. Blacks were forbidden to serve on a jury, vote, or rent or lease land. The harshness of the laws varied from state to state. They had to sign annual labor contracts and were severely punished if they were violated. The conditions of the blacks made many abolitionists wonder if the price of the Civil War was really worth it.
Civil Rights of 1866
The Congress overrode Johnson's veto for this and the Freemen's Bureau Act. This act pronounced that all African Americans were U.S citizens and tried to prohibit southern black codes. However, fearing that this act would be repealed as soon as the Democrats took control of Congress, the Republicans sought a more permanent solution with the a constitutional amendment.
What was the Congressional Plan (aka Radical Republican Plan)?
The Congressional Plan, or Radical Republican Plan, was meant to aid newly freed slaves (known as freedmen) and to punish the South. It first passed several laws helping newly freed slaves, such as The Civil Rights Act (whose provisions would later be found in the 14th Amendment). It also extended the life of the Freedmen's Bureau. It then passed a series of laws known as The Reconstruction Acts. These laws were vetoed by Johnson, but the vetoes were easily overridden and these laws were put into effect.
Andrew Johnson
The Democratic vice-president during Lincoln's second term who became the president in 1865 after Lincoln's death. Although he hated Southern aristocrats, his Reconstruction plans were much like Lincoln's. In addition to Lincoln's terms it denied voting rights to former leaders and office holders of the Confederacy and Confederates with more than $20,000 in property. However, Johnson would grant individual pardons, so many former Confederate leaders returned to office by 1865.
Election 1868
The Democrats nominated Horatio Seymour after a series of failed ballots and pledged to pursue a softer Reconstruction. Republicans favored Radical Reconstruction, punishing the South for its role in the war and nominated war hero Ulysses S. Grant. Grant took no part in the campaign and made no promises. A line in his letter of acceptance of the nomination became the Republican campaign theme—"Let us have peace". Northern votes= 300,000 Black votes = 500,000.
Which were central elements in the lives of post-emancipation blacks in the twenty years following the end of the Civil War?
The family, the church, the school.
Charles Sumner
The leading Radical Republican in the Senate from Massachusetts. His two main goals were breaking the power of wealthy planters and ensuring that freedmen could vote He also insults Andrew Bultler on antislavery speech, and south carolina congressman, Preston Brooks canes him.
Thaddeus Stevens
The most famous Radical Republican representing Pennsylvania in the House of Representatives who hoped the revolutionize southern society through an extended period of military rule where blacks could exercise their civil rights, would be educated in public schools, and receive lands confiscated from former plantation owners.
What was being reconstructed (constructed again) in Reconstruction?
The nation.
Congressional Reconstruction
The second "round" of Reconstruction that began after the congressional elections of 1866 when the dominant Republicans in Congress unified and took a more radical stance (fearing that the Democrats would gain power). During this period of reconstruction, the southern states were occupied by the Union army and many steps to guarantee the rights of blacks were taken. The Radical Republicans also had Johnson impeached in 1867.
Sharecropping:
Allowed a black family to rent part of a plantation, with the crop divided between worker and owner at the end of the year.
sharecropping
A system used on southern farms after the Civil War in which farmers worked land owned by someone else in return for a small portion of the crops.
Enforcement Acts
Acts passed in 1870 that helped protect the rights of freed blacks from violence and abuse, particularly from the KKK. Gave the president the right to use military power to protect people from the KKK and other terrorist organizations.
Black Codes
After Confederates regained office in southern state legislatures, many formed ____________ which limited African Americans' freedoms. They included: 1) Prohibiting blacks from buying or renting land 2) Forcing blacks to sign work contracts, placing them in semi-bondage 3) Prohibiting blacks from testifying against whites in court When Congress took control of the Reconstruction, they passed amendments in attempt to outlaw these laws.
Share Cropping
After the civil war, the southern states adopted this system as a compromise between former slaves who wanted land of their own and former slave owners who needed labor.The land owners provided land, tools, and seed to a farming family who in turned provided the labor. The resulting crop was divided between them with farmers recieving a "share" of one third to one half of the crop
In which of the following nations was the institution of slavery replaced by indentured servitude?
British Guiana.
yeomen
Class that owned small farms
Freedman's Bureau
Created in March 1865, the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands provided food, shelter, and medical aid for blacks and poor whites. It first resettled blacks on confiscated Southern farmlands, but this was stopped when the Confederates got pardoned under Johnson. The Bureau opened many schools including black colleges and taught many blacks how to read.
O. O. Howard
Graduate of Bowdian and Civil War Veteran, was a director of the Freedmen Bureau
KKK
Group of people who wanted to control newly freed slaves through threats and violence; other targets included Catholics, Jews, immigrants and others thought to be un-American. Against Republican leaders. Wore white robes and hood, lynched and tortured 'un' Americans
What happened with Johnson's impeachment?
He was on the path to being removed from office, but his ultimate replacement was a problem for many. Johnson's attorneys promised that he would stop interfering with reconstruction if acquitted. He was one vote away from being convicted, but was ultimately acquitted.
15th Amendment
In 1869 the 15th Amendment was passed. This prohibited the federal and state governments from denying any citizen the right t vote because of race. It was ratified in 1870 even though it was bitterly opposed by the Democrats. It was pushed forward as an idea because Republicans only won the election of 1868 by 300,000 votes (out of 6MM)
Election of 1868
In the wake of Johnson's impeachment, Republican Ulysses S. Grant was selected as the Republican candidate for president vs democrat Horatio Seymour. Many of the new freed men voted for Grant, which helped him win.
Reconstruction Act
The Reconstruction Acts basically divided the South into 5 military districts with the military commander of the district given complete authority. Virginia, North and South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama and Florida, Mississippi and Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas. No state would be allowed back into the Union until it ratified the 14th Amendment and guaranteed the right to vote for African American men. And later, for some states, the 15th Amendment had to be ratified, too. The 14th Amendment punished Confederate supporters and gave citizenship to former slaves. It also said that no state could deny to anyone, including African Americans, the equal protection of the law and due process of law. The 15th amendment stated that the right to vote could not be denied on the basis of race. Eventually all states were readmitted under this plan.
Presidential Reconstruction
The Reconstruction plans of Lincoln and Johnson who believed it was the executive's power to rebuild the South. It was the first "round" of the Reconstruction, from 1863 to the spring of 1866.
Tenure of Office Act
The Tenure of Office Act was a United States federal law (in force from 1867 to 1887) that was intended to restrict the power of the President of the United States from removing certain office-holders (including his Cabinet) without the approval of the Senate despite Johnson trying to veto it. Johnson's violation of this Act led to his impeachment.
The House of Representatives approved articles of impeachment against President Andrew Johnson for violation of what law?
The Tenure of Office Act.
Radical Republicans in the Reconstruction era shared the view that:
The Union victory created a golden opportunity to institutionalize the principle of equal rights for all, regardless of race.
The Compromise of 1877
agreement that ended the disputed election of 1876 between Rutherford Hayes and Samuel Tilden; under its terms, the South accepted Hayes's election if federal troops withdrew from Louisiana and SC, fed. money went to built railroad from Texas to West Coast and improve rivers, harbors, and bridges and appoint conservative Southern cabinet In return, the North agreed to remove the last troops from the South, support southern railroads, and accept a southerner into the Cabinet. The agreement of 1877 is generally considered to mark the end of Reconstruction.
Force (Enforcement) Act
also known as the Civil Rights Act of 1870 or First Ku Klux Klan Act was an United States federal law written to empower the President with the legal authority to enforce the first section of the Fifteenth Amendment throughout the United States. The act prohibited discrimination by state officials in voter registration on the basis of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. It established penalties for interfering with a person's right to vote and gave federal courts the power to enforce the act. The act also authorized the President to employ the use of the army to uphold the act and the use of federal marshals to bring charges against offenders for election fraud, the bribery or intimidation of voters, and conspiracies to prevent citizens from exercising their constitutional rights.
