Rebuilding the Nation The year is 1865, and at last the Civil War is over. The South’s primary labor system, slavery, has been abolished. About 4.5 million.

Rebuilding the Nation

The year is 1865, and at last the Civil War is over. The South’s primary labor system, slavery, has been abolished. About 4.5 million African Americans now have their freedom but lack money, property, education and opportunity. Southern states are beginning the process of readmission to the Union, but the effects of war continue to be felt throughout the South.

DEADLY WAR BRINGS CHANGES The Civil War was the

deadliest war in American history

Over 620,000 died -nearly as many as all other U.S. wars combined

The role of the federal government increased

Economically the gap between North and South widened

U.S. CIVIL WAR 1861-1865

RECONSTRUCTION ERA… The Civil War had ended. Slavery

and secession were no more…Now what?

Reconstruction is refer to the period after the Civil War, the process of bringing the southern states that seceded to be re-admitted back to the Union.

How does the Union integrate the South back into American society?

How do 4 million newly freed African slaves integrate themselves into society?

1865-1877

LINCOLN’S PLAN Lincoln was very forgiving to the

South. He made it clear that he favored a lenient Reconstruction policy

His Ten Percent Plan called for a pardon of all Confederates who would swear allegiance to Union (oath) and acknowledge the emancipation of the slaves.

When 10% of the voting population of a state took the oath, a state would be readmitted into the Union.

Since Abraham Lincoln believed that the South had never legally withdrawn from the Union, restoration was to be relatively simple. Lincoln’s plan was lenient and he believed that the South shouldn't be treated harshly.

LINCOLN’S PLAN Lincoln believed that it was

the individuals, not the states, who had rebelled and that the Constitution gave the President the power to pardon individuals. Lincoln wished to make the South’s return to the Union as quick and easy as possible.

RADICAL REPUBLICANS The plan angered a minority of Republicans in

Congress known as the Radical Republicans. Radical Republicans argue that the South should be punished for starting the Civil War and that the government must protect former slaves. They wanted freed slaves to have economic opportunities and political equality. But moderate Republicans still controlled Congress.

Ban Confederate officials from taking office

• States must ratify the 14th amendment

• New elections have to be held in each state with African-American men allowed to vote

Wade-Davis Bill (1864)

The bill called for Congress, not the president, to be in charge of Reconstruction.

It also declared that a state could be readmitted to the Union when a majority not just 10% of its voters swore allegiance to the Constitution.

It required the protection of rights for African Americans.

Lincoln vetoed the bill

SenatorBenjaminWade(R-OH)

CongressmanHenry

W. Davis(R-MD)

FREEMEN’S BUREAU Congress also passed the

Freemen’s Bureau Act (1865) which provided much needed aid to African Americans and poor whites.

Helped freedmen with food, clothing, and medicine.

Searched for lost family members, made marriages legal, and dealt with civil rights issues.

Opened schools for children and adults. Ex: Morehouse College & Howard Univ (top in the nation)

Registered freedmen for votingEDUCATION WAS AN IMPORTANT

PART OF THE BUREAU

LINCOLN IS ASSASSINATED On April 14, 1865 Lincoln

was shot in the head while attending a play in Washington, D.C.

He was the first president ever assassinated

His killer, John Wilkes Booth escaped, but was shot and killed later

More than 7,000,000 Americans turned out to mourn -1/3rd of populationThe play was a British comedy

called, My American Cousin

Lincoln’s assassination was the worse thing to happen to the South because he planned to be lenient with his

reconstruction policies.

Assassination of Abraham Lincoln April 14, 1865

THE Battle over Reconstruction

The politics of Reconstruction was complicated by the fact that Lincoln, his VP and successor Andrew Johnson, and the Congress all had different ideas of how Reconstruction should be handled ANDREW JOHNSON

JOHNSON’S PLAN After Lincoln’s death, his VP & successor

Andrew Johnson (Democrat) announced his own plan

He excluded high ranking Confederates (Pardoned many rebel leaders) and wealthy planters from the oath.

The Confederate states must withdraw its secession, swear allegiance to the Union.

Annul Confederate war debts Ratify the 13th amendment Did not support full legal rights for freedmen Believed the President to run Reconstruction

THE 13TH AMENDMENT Lincoln believed a

Constitutional Amendment was needed to ensure freedom for slaves

The 13th Amendment abolished slavery and was ratified (made official) in Dec of 1865

The Black Codes Southern states begin to enact Black

Codes that severely restricted African Americans lives and rights.

To preserve traditional southern society despite the abolition of slavery.

Examples: Illegal for freedmen to hold public office. Illegal to travel freely, to serve on a

juries. Freedmen without jobs can be fined or

jailed. Voting Tax and Literacy test before able

to vote.

CONGRESSIONAL RECONSTRUCTION Shocked at the Black Codes

and the election of Confederate leaders, Radical Republicans refuse to seat Southerners in Congress.

In 1866, Congress overrode President Johnson’s veto and passed the Civil Rights Act, passed the 14th Amendment and the Reconstruction Act - 1867

Congress overrode Johnson’s veto of Freedmen’s Bureau

CIVIL RIGHTS ACT One of the important

acts passed by Congress was the Civil Rights Act -1866

This law gave African Americans citizenship and forbade states from passing laws discriminating against former slaves (Black Codes)

FROM HARPER’S MAGAZINE 1866 – BLACKS CELEBRATE

14TH AMENDMENT In 1866, Congress

passed the 14th Amendment which provided legal backing to the Civil Rights Act

It guaranteed citizenship rights

This nullified the Dred Scott decision

It was ratified on July of 1868

RECONSTRUCTION ACT OF 1867 Congressional Republicans

again joined forces to pass the Reconstruction Act

This act voided the state governments formed in the South under the Presidential plans and instead divided the south into 5 military districts

The states were required to grant black men the right to vote and to ratify the 14th Amendment in order to reenter the Union. This image depicts an artisan, a

businessman and a soldier standing in line to cast their first ballot.

“First Vote”

Congress’ Plan for Reconstruction:

The Radical Republicans Reconstruction Act 1867

Established military rule over Confederate States and Divides the Confederate States into 5 military districts

Rad. Republicans wanted strict requirements and punishment for the South

Radical Republicans Plan for Reconstruction

•The southern states were put under military rule under the command of an army general. •African-Americans were allowed to vote. •Southern states had to ratify the 14th Amendment (approve), which made African Americans citizens of each state as well as the nation.

JOHNSON IMPEACHED Radical Republicans felt

Johnson was blocking Reconstruction efforts

Thus, they looked for grounds to impeach him

They found grounds when he fired a cabinet member in violation of the “Tenure of Office Act”. The President needs Senate consent to remove cabinet members.

He was impeached (House), but not convicted and served out his term. Saved from removal by one vote in the Senate.

GALLERY TICKET FOR JOHNSON IMPEACHMENT

HEARING

1868 ELECTION Civil War hero U.S.

Grant ran as a Republican against Democratic nominee Horatio Seymour

Grant won by a margin of 300,000 in the popular vote

500,000 African Americans voted – 90% for Grant

Grant was one of the most popular men in America after the Civil War, as a full-fledged war hero.

Grant will be re-elected; scandals and corruption of his presidency allows Southern Democrats to regain strength in Congress.

15th AMENDMENT Soon after Grant’s

election, Congress passed the 15th Amendment

This amendment guaranteed voting rights

The 15th Amendment was ratified in 1870

Some women suffrage advocates were disappointed by the 15th Amendment, since it didn’t give women suffrage.

RECONSTRUCTING SOCIETY The South went

through significant changes after the war

The economy was in ruins and they lost hundreds of thousands of young men

Republicans now dominated politically, but often with conflicting goals *MANY SOUTHERN CITIES

SUFFERED EXTENSIVE DAMAGE

Reconstruction Governments:SOUTHERN REPUBLICANS

3 groups made up the bulk of Southern Republicans

1) Scalawags: Southern whites who supported Reconstruction

2) Carpetbaggers: These were Northerners who came South in search of opportunity after the war and some came to help the freedmen

3) African Americans: Former slaves- 90% of whom were Republican

CARPETBAGGERS

SCALAWAGS

AFRICAN AMERICANS

HIRAM REVELS – FIRST BLACK SENATOR

Thousands of formerly enslaved people took part in governing the South. They were delegates to state conventions, local officials, and state and federal legislators. Scholars have identified more than 1,500 African American officeholders during the Reconstruction period (1865–1876). All were Republicans. Florida had one of the highest number of African Americans elected or appointed to office.

Did You Know? As a result of Reconstruction, most Southern whites became firm supporters of the Democratic Party. For more than 40 years after Reconstruction, no Republican presidential candidate received a majority of votes in any state in the “Solid South.”

AFRICAN AMERICANS

African Americans took an active role in the political process in the South

They voted in record numbers and many ran for office

Hiram Rhodes Revels was the first black Senator

HIRAM REVELS – FIRST BLACK SENATOR

ECONOMIC SLAVERY: SHARECROPPING

Determine to keep plantation farming alive without slavery

Without land of their own, Southern African Americans could not grow their own crops

Thus, many became sharecroppers– uses the land and tools of the landlord in exchange for part of crop.

ARKANSAS SHARECROPPERS

ECONOMIC SLAVERY: TENANT FARMING

Most freedmen became sharecroppers, but others became tenant farmers.

They rented land from the landowners but provided their own tools and provisions.

Very few freedmen ever became landowners themselves.

ECONOMIC SLAVERY

If a sharecropper or tenant farmer owed money at all to the landlord for cash loans or the use of tools, he or she could not leave until the debt was paid.

In effect, tying the freedmen down in a system of debt peonage. *kept them in poverty

It developed into a new form of oppression of the freedman. Many sharecroppers were also poor white farmers.

The New South Some Southerners saw the end of slavery as a good

thing for the South. They thought the South could develop a more diversified economy by growing many types of crops.

They called it the “New South”. After the war, new farming methods increased. The cultivation of new crops were added and the building of railroads, cotton mills and steel furnaces were built and more people moved into Southern cities. positive change in the economy

Although the South did not rival the North, it was much greater than in pre-Civil War times.

Sample Question

The action described in the list directly resulted in

a. The assassination of President Lincoln

b. The impeachment of President Johnson

c. Landslide election of President Buchanan

d. Congressional opposition to President Grant

• The full pardon of former Confederate citizens•Resistance to the passage of the fourteenth Amendment•The removal of a cabinet member without the approval of Congress