THE AGONY OF RECONSTRUCTION America: Past and Present Chapter 16

The President Versus Congress n The North split on reconstructing the South n White House seeks speedy Reconstruction with minimum changes in the South n Congress seeks slower Reconstruction, demands protection for freedmen

Wartime Reconstruction n Lincoln announces lenient policy in 1863 n Congress resents Lincoln’s effort to control n Congressmen seek to condition readmission to Union on black suffrage n Congress mistrusts white Southerners

Andrew Johnson at the Helm n Republicans initially support Southern Democrat Johnson as enemy of planter class n Johnson, Republicans split on Reconstruction n Johnson instructs Southern conventions to – declare secession illegal – repudiate Confederate debt – ratify the Thirteenth Amendment

Johnson, the Conventions, and Congress n Southern conventions reluctantly carry out Johnson’s orders n Conventions pass “Black Codes” n Johnson approves conventions’ actions n Congress condemns conventions

Congress Takes the Initiative n Congress insists on black suffrage n Mixed motives – Republicans expect to get black vote – Ideological commitment to equal rights – Fear that South would fall under great planter control without black suffrage

Johnson Breaks with Republicans n Johnson vetoes two bills – Extension of Freedmen’s Bureau – Civil rights bill to overturn Black Codes n Republicans pass Fourteenth Amendment n Johnson’s National Union party runs against Republican congressmen in elections n Elections of 1866 strengthen Republicans

Congressional Reconstruction Plan Enacted n South under military rule until black suffrage fully secured n Split over duration of federal protection – Radicals recognize need for long period – Most wish military occupation to be short n Assumption: black suffrage sufficient to empower freedmen to protect themselves

The Impeachment Crisis n Johnson moves to obstruct Reconstruction n February, Congress impeaches n Senate refuses to convict Johnson n Radical Republicans seen as subversive of Constitution, lose public support

Reconstruction in the South n Three contending interests in South – Southern whites seek to keep newly-freed blacks inferior – Northern whites seek to make money or to "civilize" the region – Blacks seek equality n Decline of federal interest in Reconstruction permits triumph of reaction and racism

Social and Economic Adjustments: Labor n Ex-slaves wish to work their own land n Federal government sometimes grants land n Land reverts to white owners under Johnson n Slaveowners try to impose contract labor n Blacks insist on sharecropping n Sharecropping soon becomes peonage

Social and Economic Adjustments: Segregation n South increasingly segregated after War n Some African-Americans' prefer their own churches, schools n Most segregation imposed to keep African- Americans in an inferior social position

Political Reconstruction in the South n Southern Republican party organized – Businesspeople want government aid – White farmers want protection from creditors – Blacks form majority of party, want social and political equality n Republican coalition unstable n Republicans break up when whites leave

Southern Republican Rule n Republicans improve public education, welfare, and transportation n Republican state legislatures corrupt – Whites control most Radical state governments – African-Americans given blame for corruption

The Age of Grant n Enormous problems n Grant’s weak principles contribute to failure

Rise of the Money Question n Grant elected 1868, 1872 as war hero n Panic of 1873 raises “the money question” – Debtors seek inflationary monetary policy by continuing circulation of "greenbacks" – Creditors, intellectuals support hard money n government commits to hard money n Greenback party formed, makes gains in congressional races

Retreat from Reconstruction n th Amendment passed n 1870s--Congress tries to suppress Ku Klux Klan, other Southern terrorist groups n By 1876 Republicans control only South Carolina, Louisiana, and Florida n Northern support for military action wanes

Spoilsmen Versus Reformers n Rumors of corruption during Grant's first term discredit Republicans n Grant wins reelection over Liberal Republican, Democrat Horace Greeley n Grant’s second term rocked by scandal

Reunion and the New South n North and South reconcile after 1877 n Terms of reconciliation – African-Americans stripped of political gains – Big business interests favored over small farmer

The Compromise of 1877 n Election of 1876 disputed n Special Congressional commission gives disputed vote to Rutherford B. Hayes n Southern Democrats accept on two conditions – Guarantee of federal aid to the South – Removal of all remaining federal troops n Hayes’ agreement ends Reconstruction

The New South n Southern "Redeemers" favor commerce, manufacturing over agriculture n Gain power by doctrine of white supremacy n Redeemers seek to make South a modern, industrial society

Redeemer Regimes n Welcome Northern investment, control of the Southern economy n Neglect problems of small farmers n Begin process of legal segregation n Work to deny voting rights to blacks

The Cost of Sectional Reunion n Redeemer Democrats systematically exclude black voters n Lynching—187 blacks lynched yearly n U.S. Supreme Court decisions gut Reconstruction Amendments n “Reunion” accomplished as North tacitly acquiesces in Southern discrimination