Chapter 22 The Ordeal of REconstruction 1865-1877

What happened to Davis after the Civil War?

He was imprisoned for 2 years. But he adn his fellow "conspirators" were finally released, partly because no Virginia jury would likely convict them. All rebel leaders were eventually pardoned by President Johnson as a Christmas gift in 1868. But Congress didn't remove all remaining civil penalties until thirty years later and only restored Davis's citizenship posthumously more than a century later.

What was the post-war South like?

The post-war South looked grim. Not only had an era ended, but a whole way of life had collapsed, both economically and socially. The romanticized Old South, mostly imaginary anyway, was gone forever. Beautiful cities like Charleston and Richmond were now full of rubble and weeds.

What was the economy of the south like after the war?

Economic activity had stopped. Banks and businesses had closed, ruined by extreme inflation. Factories were quiet and dismantled. The transportation system had completely broken down. Agriculture—the economic lifeblood of the South—was severely damaged. Once-white cotton fields now grew only weeds. The slave-labor system had collapsed, seed was scarce, and livestock had been taken by plundering Yankees.

What happeend to the wealthy plantation owners after the war?

The wealthy plantation owners were humbled by the war—at least temporarily. Reduced to proud poverty, they faced burned and gutted mansions, lost investments, and almost worthless land. Their investments of more than $2 billion in slaves, their main form of wealth, had disappeared with emancipation.

How did Soutehrners view the war?

hese former Confederates still thought secession was correct and that the "lost cause" was a just war.

What was the problem concerning freedom for blacks in the South?

There was confusion in the still-troubled South about what "freedom" meant for blacks. Emancipation happened slowly and unevenly in different parts of the conquered Confederacy. As Union armies moved in and out of various places, many blacks found themselves freed and then re-enslaved.

How did plantaiton owners resist emancipation?

plantation owners resisted emancipation more legally, stubbornly claiming that slavery was lawful until state legislatures or the Supreme Court decided otherwise.

How did blacks react to emancipation?

. Though some blacks initially responded to news of their emancipation with suspicion and uncertainty, they soon celebrated their newfound freedom.

How did emancipation socially affect black people?

Tens of thousands of freed blacks took to the roads, some to test their freedom, others to search for long-lost spouses, parents, and children. Emancipation thus strengthened the black family, and many newly freed men and women made their "slave marriages" official for personal and practical reasons, including the desire to make their children legal heirs.

Where did blacks move to from 1878 to 1880?

From 1878 to 1880, some twenty-five thousand blacks from Louisiana, Texas, and Mississippi moved in a mass exodus to Kansas in search of opportunity. The westward flow of these "Exodusters" stopped only when steamboat captains refused to transport more black migrants across the Mississippi River.

Who are exodusters?

Exodusters were African Americans who migrated from the Southern United States to Kansas in the late 19th century, seeking a better life and fleeing the oppressive conditions of the post-Reconstruction South. This movement was part of a larger trend driven by the promise of land ownership and opportunity, aligning with the broader idea of Manifest Destiny that suggested Americans were destined to expand across the continent.

What became the center of the black community?

The church became the center of black community life after emancipation. As slaves, blacks had worshipped alongside whites, but now they formed their own churches led by their own ministers. These churches formed the foundation of black community life, and they soon created other helpful, fraternal, and support organizations. All these groups helped blacks protect their newly won freedom.

What did emancipation mean in terms of education?

Emancipation also meant education for many blacks. Learning to read and write had generally been denied to them under slavery. Freedmen quickly established societies for self-improvement, which raised funds to buy land, build schools, and hire teachers. Southern blacks soon found, however, that the demand exceeded the supply of qualified black teachers. They accepted help from Northern white women sent by the American Missionary Association, who volunteered as teachers. They also turned to the federal government for assistance.

What were most freedmen like?

those who had freed the slaves faced the harsh reality that the freedmen were mostly unskilled, uneducated, without property or money, and with little knowledge of how to survive as free people.

How did abolitionists deal with the lack of skills that slaves had?

To deal with this problem throughout the conquered South, Congress created the Freedmen's Bureau on March 3, 1865. On paper at least, the bureau was meant to be a basic welfare agency. It was supposed to provide food, clothing, medical care, and education to both freedmen and white refugees. The bureau was headed by a sympathetic friend of blacks, Union general Oliver O. Howard, who later founded and served as president of Howard University in Washington, D.C.

Where was the Freedmen’s Bureau most successful at?

The bureau had its greatest successes in education. It taught an estimated 200,000 blacks how to read.

WHy did former slaves want to learn so much?

Many former slaves had a strong desire for learning, partly because they wanted to close the gap between themselves and whites and partly because they longed to read the Word of God.

In which areas was the Freedmen’s Bureau weak at?

in other areas, the bureau's achievements were small—or even harmful. Although the bureau was authorized to settle former slaves on forty-acre plots taken from the Confederates, little land actually made it into blacks' hands. Instead local administrators often worked with plantation owners to drive blacks from towns and pressure them into signing labor contracts to work for their former masters.

How did the white south react to the Freedmen’s Bureau?

, the white South resented the bureau as a meddling federal agency that threatened to upset white racial control. President Andrew Johnson, who shared the white supremacist views of most white Southerners, repeatedly tried to end it, and it died in 1872.

HOw did Andrew Johnson become president?

Lincoln died

What was Johnson’s life like?

Born to poor parents in North Carolina and orphaned early, Johnson never attended school but was apprenticed to a tailor at age ten. Ambitious to get ahead, he taught himself to read, and later his wife taught him to write and do simple math. Johnson became active in politics early in Tennessee, where he had moved when seventeen years old. He stood out as a passionate champion of poor whites against the plantation aristocrats, although he himself eventually owned a few slaves.

Which group of people did Johnson attract?

Elected to Congress, he attracted much favorable attention in the North (but not the South) when he refused to secede with his own state.

What pushed John into becoming vice preisdent?

Political necessity next pushed Johnson into the vice presidency. Lincoln's Union party in 1864 needed to attract support from the War Democrats and other pro-Southern elements, and Johnson, a Democrat, seemed to be the ideal man.

WHat were John'son’s political views like?

Steadfastly devoted to duty and to the people, he was a stubborn defender of states' rights and the Constitution.

What set Johnson up for failure as president?

He was a Southerner who did not understand the North, a Tennessean who had earned the distrust of the South, a Democrat who had never been accepted by the Republicans, a president who had never been elected to the office, he was not at home in a Republican White House.

What was the political war over Reconstruction like before the Civil War had even ended?

Abraham Lincoln believed that the Southern states had never legally left the Union. Their formal restoration to the Union would therefore be relatively simple. Accordingly, Lincoln in 1863 announced his "10 percent" Reconstruction plan. It stated that a state could be reintegrated into the Union when 10 percent of its voters in the presidential election of 1860 had taken an oath of loyalty to the United States and pledged to accept emancipation. The next step would be formal creation of a state government. Lincoln would then recognize the purified government.

How did Congress react to Lincoln’s “10 percent” Reconstruction plan?

Lincoln's proclamation caused a sharp reaction in Congress, where Republicans feared the restoration of the planter aristocracy to power and the possible re-enslavement of blacks. Republicans therefore pushed through Congress in 1864 the Wade-Davis Bill. The bill required that 50 percent of a state's voters take the loyalty oath and demanded stronger protections for emancipation than Lincoln's as the price of readmission to the Union.

How did Lincoln react to the Wade-Davis Bill?

Lincoln "pocket-vetoed" this bill by refusing to sign it after Congress had adjourned. Republicans were outraged. They refused to seat delegates from Louisiana after that state had reorganized its government according to Lincoln's 10 percent plan in 1864.

HOw did the controversy surrounding the Wade-DAvis Blll reveal differences between the president and Congress?

Unlike Lincoln, many in Congress insisted that the seceded states had indeed left the Union—had "committed suicide" as republican states—and had therefore lost all their rights. They could be readmitted only as "conquered provinces" on such conditions as Congress should decide.

What two factions were emerging due to the problem of Reconstruction?

The majority moderate group tended to agree with Lincoln that the seceded states should be restored to the Union as simply and quickly as reasonable—though on Congress's terms, not the president's. The minority radical group believed that the South should pay more painfully for its sins. Before the South should be restored, the radicals wanted its social structure uprooted, the proud planters punished, and the newly emancipated blacks protected by federal power.

Which faction of Republicans was Johnson part of?

Spiteful "Andy" Johnson, who the minority radical group’s hatred for the planter aristocrats, would presumably also share their desire to reconstruct the South with an iron rod.

What did Johnson decide to choose on the matter of Reconstruction?

He agreed with Lincoln that the seceded states had never legally been outside the Union. Thus, he quickly recognized several of Lincoln's 10 percent governments. On May 29, 1865, he issued his own Reconstruction proclamation. It took away voting rights from certain leading Confederates, including those with taxable property worth more than $20,000. However, they might petition him for personal pardons. It called for special state conventions, which were required to cancel the ordinances of secession, reject all Confederate debts, and ratify the slave-freeing Thirteenth Amendment. Johnson declared that states that met these conditions would be quickly readmitted to the Union.

HOw did the recently rebellious states organize their governments in the second half of 1865?

Strengthened by the political revival of the planter elite, the recently rebellious states moved rapidly in the second half of 1865 to organize governments.

How did Republicans react to the new governments organized by the ex-rebel states?

as the pattern of the new governments became clear, Republicans of all types grew furious. Among the first acts of the new Southern governments approved by Johnson was the passage of the harsh Black Codes. These laws were designed to regulate the affairs of the freed blacks, much as the slave laws had done before the Civil War. Mississippi passed the first such law in November 1865, and other Southern states soon followed. The Black Codes varied in harshness from state to state (Mississippi's was the most severe and Georgia's the most lenient), but they had much in common.

What was the goal of the Black Codes?

The Black Codes aimed, first of all, to ensure a stable and obedient labor force. The ruined Cotton Kingdom could not rise from its weeds until the fields were once again worked with hoe and plow—and many whites wanted to make sure that they kept the tight control they had exercised over black field workers in the days of slavery. Severe penalties were therefore imposed by the codes on blacks who "jumped" their labor contracts, which usually committed them to work for the same employer for one year, and generally at very low wages. Violators could be made to forfeit back wages or could be forcibly brought back to work by a paid "Negro-catcher." In Mississippi the captured freedmen could be fined and then hired out to pay their fines—an arrangement that closely resembled slavery itself.

What did the Black Codes seek to do?

The codes also sought to restore as nearly as possible the pre-emancipation system of race relations. Freedom was legally recognized, as were some other privileges, such as the right to marry. But all the codes forbade a black to serve on a jury; some even prevented blacks from renting or leasing land. A black could be punished for "idleness" by being sentenced to work on a chain gang. Nowhere were blacks allowed to vote.

What was sharecropping like?

Lacking capital, and with little to offer but their labor, thousands of impoverished former slaves slipped into the status of sharecropper farmers, as did many landless whites. Unfortunate sharecroppers gradually sank into a state of virtual bondage and remained there for generations. Formerly slaves to masters, countless blacks as well as poorer whites in effect became slaves to the soil and to their creditors.

How did the dethroned planter aristocracy of the south view sharecropping?

Yet the dethroned planter aristocracy resented even this pitiful concession to freedom. Sharecropping was the "wrong policy," said one planter. "It makes the laborer too independent; he becomes a partner, and has a right to be consulted."

How did Republicans react to how the congressional delegations from the newly reconstoituted Southern reconstituted South presentened themselves in the Capitol on Dec. 1865?

To the shock and disgust of the Republicans, many former Confederate leaders were there to claim their seats. The appearance of these ex-rebels was a natural but costly mistake. Voters of the South, seeking able representatives, had turned instinctively to their experienced statesmen. But most of the Southern leaders were tainted by active association with the "lost cause." Among them were four former Confederate generals, five colonels, and various members of the Richmond cabinet and Congress. Worst of all, there was the small but clever Alexander Stephens, ex–vice president of the Confederacy, still under indictment for treason.

How did Republicans in Congress react to the presence of the “whitewashed rebels”?

The presence of these "whitewashed rebels" infuriated the Republicans in Congress. The war had been fought to restore the Union, but not on these kinds of terms. The Republicans were in no hurry to embrace their former enemies—virtually all of them Democrats—in the chambers of the Capitol. While the South had been "out" from 1861 to 1865, the Republicans in Congress had enjoyed a relatively free hand. They had passed much legislation that favored the North, such as the Morrill Tariff, the Pacific Railroad Act, and the Homestead Act. Now many Republicans hesitated to give up this political advantage.

What did Republicans do on the first day of the congressional session on December 4, 1865?

On the first day of the congressional session, December 4, 1865, they slammed the door in the face of the newly elected Southern delegations. Looking to the future, the Republicans were alarmed to realize that a restored South would be stronger than ever in national politics. Before the war a black slave had counted as three-fifths of a person in determining congressional representation. Now the slave was five-fifths of a person.

Why did Republicans have good reason to fear that they eventually might be pushed aside?

Southerners might join hands with Democrats in the North and win control of Congress or maybe even the White House. If this happened, they could keep the Black Codes, virtually re-enslaving blacks. They could dismantle the economic program of the Republican party by lowering tariffs, rerouting the transcontinental railroad, repealing the free-farm Homestead Act, and possibly even denying the national debt.

What did President Johnson announce on December 6, 1865, that disturbed congressional Republicans, and what were the effects?

President Johnson thus deeply disturbed the congressional Republicans when he announced on December 6, 1865, that the recently rebellious states had satisfied his conditions and that in his view the Union was now restored. A clash between president and Congress was now inevitable, as it erupted into the open in Feb. 1866.

What happened in February 1866?

the president vetoed a bill (later repassed) extending the life of the controversial Freedmen's Bureau. Aroused, the Republicans swiftly struck back. In March 1866 they passed the Civil Rights Bill, which gave blacks the privilege of American citizenship and struck at the Black Codes.

HOw did Johnson react to the Civil Rights Bill and what were its effects?

President Johnson firmly vetoed this forward-looking measure on constitutional grounds, but in April congressmen steamrollered it over his veto—something they repeatedly did thereafter. The helpless president, nicknamed "Sir Veto" and "Andy Veto," had his presidential powers clipped, as Congress increasingly took the dominant role in running the government. One critic called Johnson "the dead dog of the White House."

What did the Republicans fear the Southerners might do and what did they do to prevent it from happening?

They feared that the Southerners might one day win control of Congress and repeal the hated civil rights law. So the lawmakers decided to embed the principles of the Civil Rights Bill into the Constitution as the Fourteenth Amendment.

What was the Fourteenth Amendment?

The proposed amendment, approved by Congress and sent to the states in June 1866 and ratified in 1868, was among the most sweeping amendments ever passed, and proved to be a major pillar of constitutional law ever after. It (1) granted civil rights, including citizenship but excluding the right to vote, to the freedmen; (2) reduced proportionately the representation of a state in Congress and in the Electoral College if it denied blacks the ballot; (3) disqualified from federal and state office former Confederates who as federal officeholders had once sworn "to support the Constitution of the United States"; and (4) guaranteed the federal debt, while rejecting all Confederate debts.

What did all Republicans agree on regarding the Fourteenth Amendment?

all Republicans were agreed that no state should be welcomed back into the Union fold without first ratifying the Fourteenth Amendment.

Waht did Pres. Johnson tell the Southern states to do regarding the Fourtheenth Amendment?

President Johnson advised the Southern states to reject it, and all of the "sinful eleven," except Tennessee, defiantly spurned the amendment.

What was at the root of controversey in 1866 between Johnson and Congress?

The root of the controversy was Johnson's "10 percent" governments that had passed the most stringent Black Codes. Congress had tried to soften the worst features of the codes by extending the life of the embattled Freedmen's Bureau and passing the Civil Rights Bill. Both measures Johnson had vetoed. Now the issue was Southern acceptance of the principles in the Fourteenth Amendment. The Republicans would settle for nothing less. Indeed, they soon insisted on even more.

What did Johnson want out of the congressional electiosn of 1866?

Johnson was naturally eager to escape from the grip of Congress by securing a majority favorable to his soft-on-the-South policy.

What did Johnson do to increase the chances of a majority in Congress that was in favor of his poliicies?

Invited to dedicate a Chicago monument to Stephen A. Douglas, he undertook to speak at various cities along the way in support of his views. Johnson's famous "swing 'round the circle," beginning in the late summer of 1866, was a tragicomedy of errors. The president delivered a series of "give 'em hell" speeches, in which he accused the radicals in Congress of having planned large-scale anti-black riots and murder in the South. As he spoke, hecklers shouted insults at him. Reverting to his stump-speaking days in Tennessee, he shouted angry replies.

Were Johnson’s speeches effective?

As a vote-getter, Johnson was highly effective—for the opposition. His inept speechmaking strengthened the cry "Stand by Congress" against the "Tailor of the Potomac." When the votes were counted, the Republicans had secured more than a two-thirds majority in both houses of Congress.

What powers did the Republicans basically have after the congressional electoins of 1866?

The Republicans now had a veto-proof Congress and virtually unlimited control of Reconstruction policy.

WHat did moderate and radical Republicans still disagree on?

moderates and radicals still disagreed over the best course to follow in the South

Who led the radical Republicans in the Senate and the HOuse?

Charles Sumner, long since recovered from his prewar caning on the Senate floor, who tirelessly worked not only for black freedom but for racial equality. In the House the most powerful radical was Thaddeus Stevens, crusty and vindictive congressman from Pennsylvania. Seventy-four years old in 1866, he was a strange figure, with a protruding lower lip, a heavy black wig covering his bald head, and a deformed foot. A loyal friend of blacks, he had defended runaway slaves in court without fee. Stevens was a leading figure on the Joint (House-Senate) Committee on Reconstruction.

How did the radical Republicans plan to slow down the restoration of the Southern states and how did the moderates react?

Still opposed to rapid restoration of the Southern states, the radicals wanted to keep them out as long as possible and apply federal power to bring about a drastic social and economic transformation in the South. But moderate Republicans, more committed to the long-established principles of states' rights and self-government, backed away from the full implications of the radical program. They preferred policies that prevented the states from limiting citizens' rights, rather than policies that directly involved the federal government in individual lives.

Which side was the majority faction in Congress?

the moderates

What was one thing that both moderates and radicals agree on?

one thing both groups had come to agree on by 1867 was the necessity to give black voters the vote, even if it took federal troops to do it

What did the Reconstruction ACt of Marc 2, 1867 do?

Supplemented by later measures, this drastic legislation divided the South into five military districts, each commanded by a Union general and policed by blue-clad soldiers, about twenty thousand in all. The act also temporarily took away voting rights from tens of thousands of former Confederates.

What were the conditions that Congress had for the readmission of the seceded states (Reconstruction Act)?

The wayward states were required to ratify the Fourteenth Amendment, giving the former slaves their rights as citizens. The bitterest pill of all to white Southerners was the requirement that they guarantee in their state constitutions full suffrage for their former adult male slaves. Yet the act, reflecting moderate sentiment, stopped short of giving the freedmen land or education at federal expense.

What was the main purpose of the Reconstruction Act for the moderats?

The main purpose of the moderates was to create an electorate in Southern states that would vote those states back into the Union on acceptable terms and thus free the federal government from direct responsibility for the protection of black rights. As later events would show, this approach proved woefully inadequate to the cause of justice for blacks.

What were the radical Republicans still worried about and what did they do because of this concern??

The danger loomed that once the unrepentant states were readmitted, they would amend their constitutions so as to take away the ballot from blacks. The only ironclad safeguard was to include black suffrage in the federal Constitution.

What pattern was emerging?

just as the Fourteenth Amendment had put the principles of the Civil Rights Bill in the Constitution, now Congress sought to provide constitutional protection for the suffrage provisions in the Reconstruction Act

What did the Fifteenth Amendment do?

passed by Congress in 1869 and ratified by the required number of states in 1870, it protected the suffrage of African Americans. (basically grants them the right to vote)

What was military Reconstructoin of the South like?

Military Reconstruction of the South not only took over certain functions of the president as commander in chief but set up a martial rule of questionable legality. The Supreme Court had already ruled, in the case Ex parte Milligan (1866), that military tribunals could not try civilians, even during wartime, in areas where the civil courts were open. Peacetime military rule seemed clearly contrary to the spirit of the Constitution. But the circumstances were extraordinary in the Republic's history, and for the time being the Supreme Court avoided offending the Republican Congress.

What is martial rule?

Martial law is the temporary replacement of civilian government by military rule, typically invoked during emergencies or crises when civilian authorities are deemed unable to maintain order, and civil liberties may be suspended. 

What were the South’s governments by 1870 to 1877 like?

By 1870 all of them had reorganized their governments and had been given full rights. The hated "bluebellies" remained until the new Republican regimes—usually called "radical" regimes—appeared to be firmly established. Yet when the federal troops finally left a state, its government swiftly passed back into the hands of white Redeemers, or "Home Rule" regimes, which were inevitably Democratic. Finally, in 1877, the last federal soldiers were removed from state politics, and the "solid" Democratic South formed.

How did abolitionists react to the passage of the three Reconstruction-era Amendments—the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth compared to the advocatesof women’s rights??

It delighted former abolitionists but deeply disappointed advocates of women's rights.

Why were women disappointed by the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments?

. Women had played a prominent part in the prewar abolitionist movement and had often pointed out that both women and blacks lacked basic civil rights, especially the crucial right to vote. The struggle for black freedom and the crusade for women's rights, therefore, were one and the same in the eyes of many women. with the war ended and the Thirteenth Amendment passed, feminist leaders believed that their time had come. They were shocked, however, when the wording of the Fourteenth Amendment, which defined equal national citizenship, for the first time inserted the word male into the Constitution in referring to a citizen's right to vote.

What happened to the women’s rights cause during the war?

feminist leaders such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony had temporarily set aside their own demands and worked wholeheartedly for the cause of black emancipation. The Woman's Loyal League had gathered nearly 400,000 signatures on petitions asking Congress to pass a constitutional amendment prohibiting slavery..

How did STanton and Anthony react to the 14th and 15th Amendments?

Both Stanton and Anthony campaigned actively against the Fourteenth Amendment despite the pleas of Frederick Douglass, who had long supported woman suffrage but believed that this was the time for blacks. When the Fifteenth Amendment proposed to prohibit denial of the vote on the basis of "race, color, or previous condition of servitude," Stanton and Anthony wanted the word sex added to the list. They lost this battle, too.

What types of freedom did blacks now have?

Blacks now had freedom, of a sort. Their friends in Congress had only gradually and somewhat belatedly secured the vote for them. Both Presidents Lincoln and Johnson had proposed to give the ballot gradually to selected blacks who qualified for it through education, property ownership, or military service. Moderate Republicans and even many radicals at first hesitated to bestow suffrage on the freedmen.

Why did the Fourteenth Amendment fall short?

The Fourteenth Amendment, in many ways the heart of the Republican program for Reconstruction, had fallen short of guaranteeing the right to vote. (It envisioned for blacks the same status as that of women—citizenship without voting rights.)

What did the white Southerners find hypicritical of the Republicans?

by 1867 hesitation had given way to a firm determination to enfranchise the former slaves wholesale and immediately, while thousands of white Southerners were being denied the vote. By stark contrast, most of the Northern states, before ratification of the Fifteenth Amendment in 1870, withheld the ballot from their tiny black minorities. White Southerners naturally concluded that the Republicans were hypocritical in insisting that blacks in the South be allowed to vote.

What did southern black men begin doing after gaining suffrage?

They began to organize politically. . Their main vehicle became the Union League, originally a pro-Union organization based in the North. Assisted by Northern blacks, freedmen turned the League into a network of political clubs that educated members in their civic duties and campaigned for Republican candidates. The league's mission soon expanded to include building black churches and schools, representing black grievances before local employers and government, and recruiting militias to protect black communities from white retaliation.

What policital roles did African American Women now have?

Though African American women did not obtain the right to vote, they too assumed new political roles. Black women faithfully attended the parades and rallies common in black communities during the early years of Reconstruction and helped arrange mass meetings in the newly built black churches. They even showed up at the constitutional conventions held throughout the South in 1867, monitoring the proceedings and participating in informal votes outside the convention halls.

Who fromed the backbone of the black political communitY?

black men elected as delegates to the state constitutional conventions held the greater political authority. They formed the backbone of the black political community. At the conventions, they sat down with whites to create new state constitutions, which most importantly provided for universal male suffrage.

What was black political participation like between 1868-1876 (during Reconstruction)?

fourteen black congressmen and two black senators, Hiram Revels and Blanche K. Bruce, both of Mississippi, served in Washington, D.C.fourteen black congressmen and two black senators, Hiram Revels and Blanche K. Bruce, both of Mississippi, served in Washington, D.C.

HOw did former masters of slaves react to their ex-slaves holding office?

The sight of former slaves holding office deeply offended their onetime masters, who lashed out with particular fury at the freedmen's white allies, labeling them scalawags and carpetbaggers.

Who are the scalawags?

The so-called scalawags were Southerners, often former Unionists and Whigs. The former Confederates accused them, often with wild exaggeration, of plundering the treasuries of the Southern states through their political influence in the radical governments.

Who are carpetbaggers?

. The carpetbaggers, on the other hand, were supposedly sleazy Northerners who had packed all their worldly goods into a carpetbag suitcase at war's end and had come south to seek personal power and profit. In fact, most were former Union soldiers and Northern businessmen and professionals who wanted to play a role in modernizing the "New South."

How well did the radical regimes of the South rule?

The radical legislatures passed much needed legislation and introduced many badly needed reforms. For the first time in Southern history, steps were taken toward establishing adequate public schools. Tax systems were streamlined; public works were launched; and property rights were guaranteed to women. Many welcome reforms were kept by the all-white "Redeemer" governments that later returned to power

What were the negatives to the “radical” governments?

corruption ran rampant in many "radical" governments. This was especially true in South Carolina and Louisiana, where unscrupulous promoters and other pocket-padders used politically inexperienced blacks as pawns

How did some Southern whites fight against “radical” rule?

Deeply bitter, some Southern whites resorted to savage measures against "radical" rule. Many whites resented the success and ability of black legislators as much as they resented alleged "corruption." A number of secret organizations appeared, the most notorious of which was the "Invisible Empire of the South," or Ku Klux Klan, founded in Tennessee in 1866.

WHat did the KKK do?

Men covered in sheets, with their horses' hooves muffled, would come to the home of an "upstart" black person and knock on the door. In scary voices, one thirsty rider would ask for water. Then, pretending to drink, he would pour it into a hidden rubber pouch under his mask, lick his lips, and claim this was the first water he had tasted since dying at the Battle of Shiloh. If fear didn't work, they used force.

What were the effects of the KKK?

Many former slaves and white "carpetbaggers" got the hint and avoided voting. Those who stubbornly continued their "upstart" ways were whipped, mutilated, or even killed. Through these horrible acts, blacks were "kept in their place"—meaning oppressed. The Klan became a hideout for many bandits and killers. Any criminal could put on a sheet.

How did Congress react t othe KKK?

Congress, outraged by this nighttime lawlessness, passed the strict Force Acts of 1870 and 1871. Federal troops managed to stop much of the "lash law," but by then the Invisible Empire had already done its work of intimidation. Many of the outlawed groups continued their tactics disguised as "dancing clubs," "missionary societies," and "rifle clubs."

What undermined attempts to give blacks political power?

White resistance undermined attempts to give blacks political power. The white South openly ignored the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments for many decades. Widespread prevention of black voting, becoming especially obvious around 1890, was achieved through intimidation, cheating, and trickery.

Why were Radicals preparing to remove President Johnson from office and how were they going to do it?

Annoyed by the obstruction of the "drunken tailor" in the White House, they falsely accused him of keeping there a group of "loose women." Not satisfied with limiting his authority, they decided to remove him completely through constitutional means.

What was the first step towards removing Johnson from office?

As a first step, Congress in 1867 passed the Tenure of Office Act—as usual, overriding Johnson's veto. Breaking with tradition, the new law required the president to get Senate approval before removing his appointees once they had been approved by the Senate. One goal was to keep the secretary of war, Edwin M. Stanton, a leftover from Lincoln's cabinet, in his position. While appearing loyal to Johnson, he was secretly acting as a spy for the radicals.

What gave the radicals an excuse to begin impeaching Johnson?

Johnson gave the radicals an excuse to begin impeachment when he suddenly fired Stanton in early 1868. The House of Representatives immediately voted 126 to 47 to impeach Johnson for "high crimes and misdemeanors," as required by the Constitution, charging him with various violations of the Tenure of Office Act. Two additional charges related to Johnson's verbal attacks on Congress, involving "disgrace, ridicule, hatred, contempt, and reproach."

What was President' Johnson’s lawyer’s defense?

His team of lawyers argued that the president, believing the Tenure of Office Act was unconstitutional, had fired Stanton simply to create a test case for the Supreme Court. (That slow-moving court finally ruled indirectly in Johnson's favor fifty-eight years later.)

What were HOuse prosecutors struggling with?

House prosecutors, including smooth-talking Benjamin F. Butler and bitter Thaddeus Stevens, had a harder time building a strong case for impeachment.

Were the radicals able to remove Johnson?

No, by only one vote, the radicals failed to get the two-thirds majority needed to remove Johnson. Seven independent-minded Republican senators, bravely putting country above party, voted "not guilty."

What influenced the outcome of Johnson’s impeachment?

Several factors influenced the outcome. Fears of creating a dangerous precedent played a role, as did principled opposition to misusing the constitutional system of checks and balances. Political considerations were also important. Since the vice presidency was empty under Johnson, his replacement would have been radical Republican Benjamin Wade, the president pro tempore of the Senate. Wade was disliked by many in the business community for his high-tariff, soft-money, pro-labor views and was distrusted by moderate Republicans. Meanwhile, Johnson indicated through his lawyer that he would stop blocking Republican policies if allowed to remain in office.

Was JOhnson acutally guilty of “high crimes and misdemeanors?”

No

Where was Johnson’s administration most successful at?

Johnson's administration, though weakened at home, achieved its most lasting success in foreign relations. The Russians by 1867 were ready to sell the vast and cold area now known as Alaska. They had already spread themselves too thin in North America, and they knew that in another likely war with Britain, they would probably lose their defenseless northern territory to the sea-dominant British. Alaska had also been excessively trapped for furs and was becoming an economic burden. The Russians were therefore eager to sell their "frozen asset" to the Americans.

Why did Russians want the US to buy Alaska?

They preferred the United States to any other buyer, mainly because they wanted to strengthen the American Republic as a barrier against their old enemy, Britain.

How was Alaska bought and was the American public’s reaction?

n 1867 Secretary of State William Seward, an eager expansionist, signed a treaty with Russia that transferred Alaska to the United States for the bargain price of $7.2 million. But Seward's enthusiasm for these frozen lands wasn't shared by his uninformed countrymen, who mocked "Seward's Folly," "Seward's Icebox," "Frigidia," and "Walrussia."