Reconstruction (following spec points - probably better?)

Edexcel a level history, civil rights and race relations

Reasons for the 13th Amendment

• Before the Civil War Lincoln states that the USA had to resolve the issue of slavery if it was to survive as a united nation

• Lincoln took his re-election in 1864 as a mandate to end slavery forever

• an Amendment makes the abolition of slavery effectively permanent

Importance of the Thirteenth Amendment

• wiped out $2 billion in property, as slaves were owned by white slave-owners

• created four million freedmen in the USA

• Black witnesses were now allowed in federal court cases

• blacks could be postmen and ride on streetcars in the capital, Washington DC

The economic position of ex-slaves and the development of sharecropping: issues facing slaves post-emancipation

• freed slaves lacked education, illiterate

• did not own property or land

• many were simple field labourers without skills to earn a living

• Frederick Douglass declared that slavery would not be abolished until blacks could vote

The economic position of ex-slaves and the development of sharecropping: the initial responses to freedom

• considerable internal migration across the former slave-owning states

• many moved to towns in search of job opportunities, and the urban population of black Americans almost tripled after emancipation

• ex-slaves began organising their own black churches and schools

The economic position of ex-slaves and the development of sharecropping: What was Special Field Order No.15?

On 16 Jan 1865, Union general William T. Sherman issued special field order no.15, which confiscated as federal property a strip of coastal land extending about 30 miles inland from the Atlantic and stretching across Charleston, South Carolina, 245 miles south to Jacksonville, Florida. The order, made on General Sherman’s own authority, gave most of the roughly 400,000 acres to newly emancipated slaves in 40-acre sections.

The economic position of ex-slaves and the development of sharecropping: What was the impact of Special Field Order No.15?

large-scale land distribution did not take place in the former confederacy, even though in 1866 the US Congress passed a law which set aside 44 million acres in 5 southern states for ex-slaves. By 1877, at the end of Reconstruction, only a small fraction of ex-slaves had created their own farms.

The economic position of ex-slaves and the development of sharecropping: what obstacles stood in the way of ex-slaves becoming independent farmers

• lacked the experience and education to become their own ‘masters’

• lacked the money to buy the necessary equipment and tools to work land, and buy land

• southern white Americans were reluctant to sell land to ex-slaves

• with the loss of their property in slaves, plantation owners wanted to replace the slave system with cheap black labour, so many ex-slaves worked on plantations for low wages with a lifestyle not greatly dissimilar to that before emancipation

The economic position of ex-slaves and the development of sharecropping: How did ex-slaves and landowners benefit from sharecropping

• ex-slaves received a farm and a half a crop, better than the arrangement under slavery

• white landowners given power and influence over tenants

The economic position of ex-slaves and the development of sharecropping: why did sharecropping accelerate

• the move to sharecropping accelerated after the national economic depression of 1873 as sharecropping seemed to be a more economic use of land

• by 1880, 80% of land in the cotton-producing area of the USA was farmed by sharecroppers, both ex-slaves and poor whites (more white sharecroppers than black)

The economic position of ex-slaves and the development of sharecropping: What forced sharecroppers into a cycle of almost permanent debt

• in order to raise money to buy equipment and seed, sharecroppers had to use the local credit system where they borrowed money at very high interest rates.

• As sharecroppers possessed little or no property as capital against a loan, they were forced to offer part of their future crop if they failed to pay back their loans

• known as crop lien system

• as most were illiterate, they found it difficult to operate outside such a system

Social tensions: Important source of tension - Freedmen’s Bureau

• established in 1865 to help former slaves and poor whites in the south in the aftermath of CW

• provided food, housing and medical aid, established schools, offered legal assistance

• attempted to settle former slaves on Confed lands confiscated or abandoned during the war

• prevented from fully carrying out programmes due to a shortage of funds and personnel, along with the politics of race and Reconstruction

Social tensions: source of tension - white violence

• an ex-slave, Henry Adams, claimed that over 2,000 blacks were murdered in 1865 alone in east Texas

• An employee of the Bureau believed that white southerners opposed any change in the social arrangements that existed in the slavery period, when black people showed deference to their ‘social superiors’

• One North Carolina white landowner told a northern army officer that a black soldier had said good morning to him, claiming that blacks should never address whites unless spoken to first

Social tensions: ex-slaves attempted to leave plantations and set up their own farms

• blacks assaulted and murdered

• Nashville, Tennessee paper claimed in 1867, that former white slave masters continued to whip, maim and kill black Americans as if slavery still existed

The need for a political settlement: What did Lincoln do that helped southern states accept Reconstruction

December 1863, he issued a Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction under which any former Confederate state could form a state gov whenever 10% of those who voted in the 1860 elections took an oath of allegiance to the USA.

The need for a political settlement: Black Codes

• several state legislatures in the former confed passed Black Codes, discriminated against ex-slaves

• Mississippi, banned from owning land

• Blacks had to show passes when on the roads and forbidden from carrying arms or liquor

• vagrant former slaves who had left plantations to look for work and land were punished when caught and faced severe fines

• when couldn’t pay fines, sold into private service until they worked off fine - similar to slavery

President Johnson’s response to Reconstruction: How was he initially popular with radical Republicans?

• was staunchly anti-Confederate

• his statements that he wanted wanted to punish traitors - popular with rad reps

• believed treason was a crime

President Johnson’s response to Reconstruction: How did his relationship with Radical Republicans in the US Congress deteriorate?

• 29 May 1865, extended a general pardon to former Confederates who were willing to take the oath of allegiance to the USA

• Men who held high office in Confed/whose taxable property exceeded $20,000 were excluded unless they applied directly to Johnson

• left it up to former Confed states to decide who can vote, and none enfranchised blacks and some even chose former senior Confeds for high office

President Johnson’s response to Reconstruction: Issues with former confed states and Johnson did nothing

• newly elected governor of Mississippi had been a brigadier general in the Confederate army

• Georgia chose as a US Senator Alexander Stephens, who had been VP of the confederate states of America

• some state govs even questioned the legality of the 13th Amendment, and Mississippi rejected it entirely. Other state govs ratified it with the understanding that US Congress lacked the power to determine the future

President Johnson’s response to Reconstruction: Johnson’s vetoes

• Early in 1866, Johnson attacked his radical republican critics as traitors

• then vetoed two congressional proposals which aimed to help black Americans - the Freedmen Bureau’s bill and the civil rights bill

President Johnson’s response to Reconstruction: Radical republican response to Johnson’s vetoes

• Resentment of Congress was so great that supporters of the bills to ban the Black Codes and introduce radical Republican Reconstruction were able to get the 2/3 majority required to override a presidential veto and both proposals became law

• The Joint Committee also proposed the 14th amendment to the US Constitution to provide ex-slaves with equal protection of the law. Congress passed it, overriding Johnson’s attempt to veto it.

President Johnson’s response to Reconstruction: High point of Radical Republican opposition to Johnson

24 February 1868, when the House of representatives voted 126 to 47 votes to impeach President Johnson for ‘high crimes and misdemeanours in office’, and to replace him with Radical Republican, Benjamin Wade.

Johnson was the first president to be impeached, survived by one vote

President Johnson’s response to Reconstruction: overall verdict

• Johnson’s attempt at a moderate Reconstruction programme which aimed to restore state govs to the former Confederacy as soon as possible had failed

• Clearly abandoned the fate of ex-slaves into the hands of white southerners, most of whom had fought for and supported the Confederacy in the CW

• His attempt gave way to Reconstruction programme supported by Radical Republicans

Radical Reconstruction - The impact of military rule in the south: What was the tipping point of Radical Republican influence increasing

congressional elections of 1866, when Radical Reps made a large number of gains in seats to both the House of Representatives and Congress. From then on, set the agenda for reconstruction

The impact of military rule in the south: What had formed part of the incitement for rapid change?

events in the South, May 1866 white crowds in Tennessee attacked blacks who had fought in the northern army. 46 killed. In July 1866, Louisiana, whites attacked blacks on their way to a political meeting, leaving 40 dead

The impact of military rule in the south: Military Reconstruction Act

• invalidated the state administrations approved by Johnson

• Instead divided the former Confed states, except Tennessee, into 5 military districts, under commanders empowered to employ the army to protect life and property.

• to be recognised by Congress, its written constitution had to provide for the same right to vote for all adult males

• state legislature also had to support 14th amendment, and hold new elections before 1868

The impact of military rule in the south: How did Congress ensure that they had the final say in the Military Reconstruction Act

March 1868, it removed the power of the Supreme Court to review cases that arose from the application of the Military Reconstruction Act

The impact of military rule in the south: What supreme court decision upheld Congress power?

Texas v White confirmed that Congress had the power to decide on the organisation of state governments

The impact of military rule in the south: Command of the Army Act

required all orders to the army from Johnson goes through Ulysses S. Grant, keen supporter of Reps

The impact of military rule in the south: Tenure of Office Act

required consent of Republican-dominated Senate for the president to remove any office-holder

The impact of military rule in the south: impact of the Military reconstruction Act, Command of the Army act and Tenure of Office Act

• required former Confeds to accept blacks had vote

• 14th amendment, all citizens have equal protection of the law

• military gov directly ruled confed states which did not have state govs

• military gov implemented required changes from 14th, protected ex-slaves, scalawags and carpetbaggers

The impact of military rule in the south: how were the military governments perceived

• to ex-slaves and supporters of the fed gov, they were seen as protectors

• to other southern white Americans, seen as a northern army of occupation

The impact of military rule in the south: The Reconstruction Acts of 1867 transformed the southern electorate by …

temporarily disenfranchising 15% of potential white voters, who had been office-holders under the Confederacy. Also let to the enfranchisement of 703,000 ex-slaves. As a result, black voters outnumbered whites by almost 100,000

The impact of military rule in the south: states with black voting majorities

South Carolina, Mississippi, Louisiana, Florida and Alabama

The impact of military rule in the south: given the electoral changes, many northerners….

moved south to exploit the new political environment. Many were former northern soldiers. Known as carpetbaggers, they encouraged black voters to join the Union League - urged blacks to vote for carpetbagger candidates in elections

The impact of military rule in the south: who were scalawags

white southerners who had now owned slaves that supported the Rep system of gov. Held many political offices under Radical Reconstruction

the 14th and 15th amendments: What supreme court case did 14th Amendment reverse?

Dred Scott case, so ex-slaves became citizens of the USA.

the 14th and 15th amendments: impact of the proposal of the 14th amendment?

• helped unite republicans in 1866

• acted as an important platform for their campaign to win seats in the 1866 congressional elections

• helped form the basis for the removal of Johnson’s state govs and their replacement with state govs acceptable to the Rad Reps

the 14th and 15th amendments: limitations of the 15th amendment

• made no reference to the right of ex-slaves to hold political office

• failed to make the requirements to vote uniform across the USA

• one rad rep, Henry Wilson, criticised the proposal because it did not forbid literacy, property or educational tests

• female voters not included

The Civil Rights Act 1875: what did the Act proclaim

• supporting equality before the law for all citizens

• justice for all regardless of race

• full enjoyment by all citizens of places of public amusement

The Civil Rights Act 1875: limits?

failed to mention public schools

The Civil Rights Act 1875: how did the Supreme Court undermine Radical republican actions

• in 1873, Slaughterhouse decision, 14th only protects national citizenship rights - fed gov could not safeguard the rights of black citizens against any violation by the states, negated much of 14th amendment impact

• 1876, US v Reese, threw out indictment against a Kentucky official who had prevented blacks from voting

• 1883, invalidated the 1875 Civil Rights Act

• as a result, many landmark changes since 1866 were negated by supreme Court

Significance of black American reps in fed and state legislatures: how many state political conventions had a majority of black delegates

one - South Carolina

Significance of black American reps in fed and state legislatures: Overall, in state gov, how many black people served as legislators?

600

Significance of black American reps in fed and state legislatures: How many blacks were US Senators

2, from Mississippi

Significance of black American reps in fed and state legislatures: How many blacks served as congressmen in the House of Representatives

14

Significance of black American reps in fed and state legislatures: What did southern white people place the blame on for the perceived failure of reconstruction?

• radical reforms cost millions and gov accused of financial incompetence by southern whites

• accusations fuelled the idea that Reconstruction was a failure, and part of that failure was allowing Blacks to participate in political process

The KKK and White League: Height of KKK violence 1869-71

• autumn of 1870, nearly every black church and black schoolhouse in Tuskegee, Alabama, was burned down

• in 1871, 500 masked men stormed the Union County Jail and lynched 8 black prisoners

The KKK and White League: during the 1868 elections, how many potential Republican voters, both black and white, were murdered?

1,300

The KKK and White League: What caused lynchings to decline rapidly

Fed gov passed the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871, which allowed southern govs to introduce martial law in counties where they deemed white terror groups were active. in 1868-76, the incidence of lynching stood at 50-100 per year.

The KKK and White League: Most notorious act attributed to the White League:

Coushatta massacre, August 1874, sparked off by a dispute between the White League and Marshall Twitchell, a northern carpetbagger who had become a Louisiana state senator. Members of the White League forced 6 Rep Party officials to resign then murdered them, along with 5 blacks

The KKK and White League: White League greatest triumph

• Battle of Liberty Place

• opportunity arose when President Grant removed most of fed troops from Louisiana because of yellow fever

• the WL assembled in New Orleans and demanded the resignation of the governor, Kellogg, and his replacement by Mcenery, the unsuccessful Dem Party candidate

• in a fracas, 5,000 members of the WL routed 3,500 New Orleans policemen and ousted the Rep governor

• no charges brought against anyone, Grant sent in fed troops

The KKK and White League: US Congress attempts to protect blacks and their white supporters

• 1870 Enforcement Act placed penalties against anyone who interfered with a citizen, either black or white

• Second Enforcement Act placed the election of congressmen under the surveillance of federal election officials

• Third Enforcement Act gave federal troops the power to suspend habeas corpus and arrest suspected KKK members

• outlawed activities associated with KKK activity, such as forming secret conspiracies, wearing disguises and intimidating officials

The Restoration of Democrat Control in the south: Why did Democrats come back to power in south?

• white terror group activity undermined Rep Party organisation in Deep South

• 1875 Mississippi elections, local Democrat Party rifle clubs paraded in black areas and provoked riots in which hundreds of black people were killed

• on election day many blacks stayed hidden away

• resentment of military occupation and the impact of black participation in elections and local politics alienated many white voters

The Restoration of Democrat Control in the south: by 1875, which states still had Rep-controlled state govs?

Louisiana, Florida, South Carolina

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