The Trials of Reconstruction 1865-1877

Key Questions Who would direct the process of Reconstruction? The South itself, Congress, or the President? Should the Confederate leaders be tried for treason? How would the south, both physically and economically devastated, be rebuilt? And at whose expense? How would the South be readmitted and reintegrated into the Union? What should be done with over four million freed slaves? Were they to be given land, social equality, education, and voting rights?

President Lincoln’s Plan Ten Percent Plan Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction (1863) Full presidential pardons to southerners who: Took an oath of allegiance to the Union and the Constitution Accepted the emancipation of slaves State governments could be reestablished as soon as 10% of the population took the oath

Wade-Davis Bill Required 50% of the number of 1860 voters to take an “iron clad” oath of allegiance Required a state constitutional convention before the election of state officials Enacted specific safeguards of freedmen’s liberties Based on two ideas: “State Suicide” Theory [MA Senator Charles Sumner] “Conquered Provinces” Position [PA Congressman Thaddeus Stevens]

Thirteenth 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.

Freedmen’s Bureau Provided food, shelter, medical aid for the destitute Benefited both blacks (mostly freed slaves) and homeless whites Had the authority to resettle freed blacks on confiscated farmland Greatest success in education Established almost 3,000 schools for freed blacks as well as several colleges

Lincoln Assassination

President Andrew Johnson Chosen as running mate in 1864 to encourage pro-Union democrats to vote for the Union (Republican) party Was the only senator from a Confederate state who stayed loyal to the Union Anti-Aristocrat White Supremacist Agreed with Lincoln that states had never legally left the Union

Presidential Reconstruction

President Johnson’s Plan Plan is similar to Lincoln’s 10% Plan Provided for disfranchisement of certain groups All former leaders and officeholders of the Confederacy Confederates with more than $20,000 in taxable property Retains power to pardon “disloyal” southerners Frequently pardoned wealthy planters Many former Confederates in power by fall, 1865

Southern Governments – 1865 8 months after Johnson takes office, all 11 of the ex-Confederate states qualified to rejoin the Union They repudiated secession, negated debts of the Confederacy, ratified the 13th Amendment. But they didn’t give blacks voting rights and ex-Confederates elected to congress Alexander Stephens, VP of the CSA, elected senator from Georgia

Black Codes Prohibited blacks from renting land or borrowing money to buy land Placed freedmen into a form of servitude by forcing them as “vagrants” and “apprentices” to sign work contracts Worked in cotton fields under white supervision for deferred wages Prohibited blacks from testifying against whites in court

Congress Breaks with the President Congress bars Southern Congressional delegates Joint Committee on Reconstruction created February, 1866  President vetoed the Freedmen’s Bureau bill March, 1866  Johnson vetoed the Civil Rights Act of 1866 Congress passed both bills over Johnson’s vetoes  1st in U. S. history

Johnson the Martyr If my blood is to be shed because I vindicate the Union and the preservation of this government in its original purity and character, let it be shed; let an altar to the Union be erected, and then, if it is necessary, take me and lay me upon it, and the blood that now warms and animates my existence shall be poured out as a fit libation to the Union. (Andrew Johnson, February 1866)

Fourteenth Amendment Ratified in July, 1868 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.

The Election of 1866 A referendum on Radical Reconstruction Johnson made an ill-conceived propaganda tour around the country to push his plan Republicans won a 3-1majority in both houses and gained control of every northern state

Congressional Reconstruction

Reconstruction Acts of 1867 Military Reconstruction Act Restarted Reconstruction in the 10 Southern states that refused to ratify the 14th Amendment Divided the 10 “unreconstructed states” into 5 military districts Tenure of Office Act Prohibited the president form removing federal officials or military commanders without the Senate’s approval

Reconstruction Acts of 1867

President Johnson’s Impeachment Johnson dismisses Edwin Stanton, Secretary of War House charges Johnson with 11 “high crimes and misdemeanors” Impeaches, or indicts him Senate falls one vote short of removing him from office Needed 2/3 of Senate Democrats and more moderate Republicans don’t want to set precedent of removal for political reasons

President Johnson’s Impeachment

The Reconstructed South Former Confederates were barred from voting Gave power to three groups: Freedmen Scalawags – Southern Unionists/Republicans Carpetbaggers – Northerners who moved south after the Civil War Helped blacks gain political power Two black Senators and over a dozen Representatives sent to Congress Hiram Revels – First African American Senator

The Election of 1868 Fall 1868—Presidential election Democrats nominate Horatio Seymour Republicans nominate Ulysses S. Grant Very close election—would have lost without black votes

More Civil Rights Protections Fifteenth Amendment (1869) Prohibits states from denying a citizen’s right to vote on condition of race, color, or previous condition of servitude Civil Rights Act of 1875 Guarantees equal accommodations in public places, including hotels, railroads, and theaters Poorly enforced, and largely ignored

The End of Reconstruction Many resented the growing political power of blacks and the corruption of Republican governments KKK founded in Tennessee, 1866 Used fear and intimidation to dissuade voting Congress reacted with the Force Acts, 1870 Authorized the use of federal troops to control vigilante groups Many groups continued “under cover” Followed by the Amnesty Act, 1872 Removes voting restrictions on ex-Confederates, except the highest leaders

The Election of 1876 Republicans nominate Rutherford B. Hayes Democrats nominate Samuel J. Tilden Votes contested in LA, FL, SC Special electoral commission created to decide who gets disputed votes Votes 8-7 to give all electoral votes to Hayes Democrats threaten to filibuster the results, send election to the House

The Compromise of 1877

The New South End of federal military presence Democrats regain power in every Southern state Called “Redeemer” governments Based on the image of the “Lost Cause” Institute a social and legal system of segregation through the passage of Jim Crow Laws Upheld by the Supreme Court in a series of cases: Plessy v. Ferguson, 1896