The American Civil War, RECONSTRUCTION
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- Created by: Bambi101
- Created on: 18-03-18 21:29
What was the 14th Amendment?
- Confederate debt declared null and void.
- Emancipation made every slave five-fifths of a person.
- Promoted voting rights of black men.
- A counter to the Black Codes.
- Introduced by Repbunlicans in Congress (Trumball and Bingham).
- Doesn't come from the president.
- Passed Jan 1866.
- Needs 2/3rds majority in Congress and 3/4 states to ratify it.
- REACTION- Wendell argued 'a fatal and total surrender'. Could have been more radical.
- 3 states gave it 0 votes.
- Tennessee was the only one to ratify it.
- Johnson argued that it undermined states rights- 'I stand on the constitution', Swing around the circle campaign.
- Females were not mentioned- Susan Anthony and Elizabeth Cady.
- It was only passed because states had no other choice.
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What was the situation for the Blacks in the South
- Reconstruction allowed former slaves to explore freedom.
- 1864 federal courts accepted black testimony and the 13th Amendment won ratification.
- Conneticut, Minnesota and Wisconsin rejected black suffrage 1865.
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What was Johnson's Reconstruction plan?
- Many expected his policies to be harsh.
- May 1865 Johnson's advisors split on the question of voting rights for freedmen in the South.
- Every Southern voter required to swear an oath of loyalty to gain amnesty.
- Johnson believed in white supremacy, wanted Southern support so declared Reconstruction complete.
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What was the Congressional Reconstruction plan?
- Union maintained the idea that the Southern states had committed legal sucicide.
- Johnson and Democrats refused to cooperate with conservative or moderate Republicans.
- 1865 Republican Congressmen still reluctant to break with president.
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What was Congress struggles for a compromise?
- Republicans thoguht a compromise had been reached with working with Johnson.
- Johnson needed to agree in an extension of the life of the Freedmen's Bureau.
- Bill force the Southern courts to practice equality, Johnson destroyed this compromise, vetoing both bills.
- All hope of working with the president was dead.
- 14th Amendment was Congress' alternative to Johnson's program of Reconstruction.
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What was the South's reaction to the 14th Amendmen
- Johnson did his best to block the Amedment.
- Tennessee was the only state not to reject it.
- Johnson organised National Union Convention- audience rejected his views.
- 1866 election, massive victory for Confederates.
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What was the Reconstruction Act of 1867?
- Called for return to military authority in South.
- 5 new military districts were establsihed. Guaranteed freedmen the right to vote.
- Each Southern state was required to ratify 14th Amendment and constitution had to be submitted to Congress for approval.
- Limited Johnson's power over army.
- Passed Tenure of Office Act- senate power to interfere with changes in presidents cabinet.
- Johnson retaliated- tried to remove secretary of war, Stanton.
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Why were there impeachment trials?
- Twice before impeachment had been considered.
- Johnson's trial lasted more than 3 months led by Stevens and Butler.
- Prosecution fell one short of the 2/3rd majority.
- Johnson politically weakened.
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What was the 15th Amendment?
- Didn't gurantee the right to vote.
- Left states free to restrict suffrage on other grounds.
- Four uncooperative southern states proved necessary to impose even this language on parts of North.
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What were the Reconstruction politics in the South
- Resistance of white southerners, unwilling to accept black freedom.
- Planter's had control over black children- apprenticeship.
- White's boycotted the polls.
- New southern Republican party came to power- 265/1,000 blacks.
- conventions broadened women's rights in property holding and divorce.
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What triumphs did the Republican Governments have?
- Ranks of state legislators in 1868 included black southerners.
- Blacks believed in principle of universal suffrage and Christian goal of reconciliation.
- Within a few years, Republicans reduced to embarrassment of making futile appeals to whites ignroing claims of strongest supporters- blacks.
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What happened with industrialisation?
- Confeds saw how beneficial industry was to the North during the war.
- Loans/subsidies and expemtions from taxation periods up to 10 years lured new industries into region.
- 1860-80 number of manufactoring establishments in South nearly doubled.
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What other Republican policies were there?
- African-American voters never went beyond equality before the law.
- Black leaders did not push for revolutionary economic or social change.
- 1870s, segregation becoming more common.
- New Orleans and Mobile few places were A-A fought for civil rights/intergration.
- 16 Blacks won seats in Congress before Reconstruction was over.
- 18 served in high office.
- White hostility to Congressional recontrsuction began to dominate.
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What were the failures of Reconstruction?
- Failure was social and Economic.
- Failed to alter South's social structure.
- Dependant on white landowners.
- Whenever the North lost interest Reconstruction would collapse.
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What is the social and economic meaning of freedom
- Black southerners entered into new life hopeful.
- Cruel slaveholders saw former property walk off en masse.
- Freedmen continued to seek fair employment throughout Reconstruction.
- 1/3rd changed employers at end of the crop year.
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What education was available for African-Americans
- Blacks of all ages hungered for education.
- Desire to escape slavery's ignorance, paid tuition- $1- 1.50 per month.
- 600,000 African American's in elementary school 1877.
- American Missionary Association founded 7 colleges 1866-69.
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What were Black Churches?
- Blacks could build own institutions as they saw fit.
- Secret Churches of slavery came into open.
- Started renting the land they worked.
- Northerners and officials of FB favoured contracts between owners and laborers.
- Failure of Confederate banks left South with shortage of credit facilities.
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What was the sharecropping system?
- Farmers kept part of their crop and gave rest to ladnowner while living on his property.
- Republican laws gave laborers first legal calim on the crop.
- Eased landowner's problems with cash and credit.
- Owners and merchants frequently underpaid or overcharged- manipulated records.
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Why were the South dependant on Cotton?
- Temporary loss of markets reduced per capita income.
- Cotton prices declined, 1820-1860 5% per year- 1866-95 1.3%.
- Landowners required sharecroppers to grow prime cash crop.
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Why was did Reconstruction fall?
- Antagonism between Unionists and rebels strong 1868.
- Grant ( Republican) defeated Seymour (NY Democrat)
- Democrats vigorously denounced Reconstruction.
- Grant not an enthusiastic advocate of Reconstruction.
- 1870-71, KKK forced Congress pass 2 Emancipation Acts and anti-Klan laws.
- Federal prosecutors used law selectively.
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Why did the Liberal Republicans Revolt?
- Disenchanted with Reconstruction.
- Horace Greely president.
- United- Distaste for federal intervention in South. Let market forces.
- Reflected growing dissastisfaction with Grant's administration.
- Grant defended some of the culprits.
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What was the Amnesty Act?
- 1872, pardoned msot of remaining rebels left.
- 500 barred from political officeholding.
- Civil Rights Act 1875 guaranteed black people equal accommodations in public.
- Democrats regained power in South quickly.
- Industrialisation and immigration surged.
- Debt fell $2.3billion 1866- $587 million 1893.
- 3 million new immigrants.
- Panic in 1873 ushered 5 years continuing economic contraction.
- 3 million out of work.
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What was Greenbacks and Sound Money?
- Greenbacks (Civil War money) in circulation could expand money supply and raise prices.
- 1872, Democratic farmers and debtors urged such a policy.
- Congress voted for increase in number of greenbacks 1874. Grant vetoed this law.
- Law limited inflationary impact of greenbacks and aided creditors.
- By altering Courts jurisdiction, Congress protected Reconstruction policy and avoided confrontation.
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What was the Supreme Court Devisions on Reconstruc
- Slaughter-House cases, court made restrictive reading of 14th Amendment more explicit.
- Campell argued 14th Amenment revolutionised the constitutional system by bringing individual rights under federal protection.
- 1876 court weakened Reconstruction-era by emasculating enforcement clause.
- Justices ruled 14th Amendment did not empower federal governments to act against whites who were oppressing blacks.
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What happened at the 1868 election?
- Grant- War hero and Seymour.
- Seymour called NY draft rioters 'my friends'.
- Grant only ever voted once for Buchanan.
- Grant won 26 states, 214 electoral college, 52.7% and 3 million votes.
- Seymour won 8 states, 80 electoral college, 47.3% and 2.7 million votes.
- Democrats slogan was 'This is a white man's country let white men rule'.
- Blight argued 'most white supremacist election in all of American History'.
- James Hinds, Republican for Arkansas. Votes for Grant and murdered in 1868.
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