Cartões: KQ1 'Free at last', Reconstruction 1865-1877 | Quizlet

Three problems presented by Southern defeat in Civil War:

- Damaged Southern economy

- Obsolete Confederate political system

- Great disagreements in both North and South over social position and political and economic rights of former slaves.

When did the Senate approve the 13th Amendment?

April 1864

What did the 13th Amendment do?

Made slavery unconstitutional.

When was Lincoln re-elected?

November 1864

When did the House of Representatives approve the 13th Amendment?

January 1865

When did the Civil War end?

April 1865

When was Lincoln assassinated?

14th April 1865

When was Presidential Reconstruction/Reconstruction Confederate style?

April-December 1865

When did the New Congress block the restoration of the Confederate elite?

December 1865

When was the 13th Amendment ratified?

December 1865

When was the Civil Rights Act?

April 1866

When was the Ku Klux Klan established?

April 1866

When was the Military Reconstruction Act?

1867

When did Congressional Reconstruction begin?

1867

When was the 14th Amendment ratified?

1868

What was the 14th Amendment?

Granted citizenship to African Americans

When was the 15th Amendment ratified?

1870

What was the 15th Amendment?

Gave African American men the right to vote

When were the Force Acts?

1870-1

What were the Force Acts?

Gave President Grant powers to crush the Klan

When was the Amnesty Act?

1872

What did the Amnesty Act do?

Helped restore political power to ex-Confederates

What did the 1875 Civil Rights Act do?

Tried to prevent discrimination in public places

What marks the end of Reconstruction?

The withdrawal of federal troops from the South

When were federal troops withdrawn from the South?

1877

When did the Emancipation Proclamation come into effect?

January 1863

Why did the Emancipation Proclamation not end slavery?

It was not a constitutional amendment

What did the Women's National Loyal League do?

Petition for a 13 Amendment that would end slavery, which got an unprecedented 500,000 signatures.

When did Lincoln stand for re-election?

1864

What did Lincoln call for in June of 1864?

Constitutional amendment to end slavery.

Why did Lincoln and the Republicans go quiet on the issue of the constitutional abolition of slavery?

It proved unpopular with white voters.

What did the National Convention of Coloured Men do?

Met in 1864, endorsed Lincoln's candidacy, and demanded citizenship, the vote, and land for former slaves.

What did Radical Republican Thaddeus Stevens claim following the approval by the House of Representatives of the 13th Amendment?

"the greatest measure of the nineteenth century was passed by corruption, aided and abetted by the purest man in America."

Why was the 13th Amendment seen to have passed by corruption?

Lincoln's cabinet used financial bribes and government posts for Democrats to persuade them to accept the 13th Amendment.

Section 1 of the 13th Amendment:

Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.

Section 2 of the 13th Amendment:

Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

Reasons why the 13th Amendment was passed:

- Slavery was moral issue

- Events during Civil War meant no going back

What events of the Civil War contributed to the passing of the 13th Amendment?

- Many black soldiers had fought against the Confederacy and played an important part in its defeat.

- Republicans felt that slavery had been underlying cause of conflict.

- Black agency

- Constitutional status of slavery

How did Black Agency play a role in the passage of the 13th Amendment?

So many slaves had run away from their enslavers that the restoration of slavery would have proved impossible.

What was Black Agency (in this context)?

When black Americans took control of their own destiny, as opposed to having their fate determined by white Americans.

Why did Lincoln worry about the constitutional status of slavery?

The Emancipation Proclamation was a war measure that would be of dubious validity once the war was over.

What was the position of the original Constitution of 1787 on slavery?

It had recognised and approved slavery.

What did leading black activist Frederick Douglass say about slavery?

"The work does not end with the abolition of slavery, but only begins."

What was the importance of the 13th Amendment?

Confirmed the end of slavery and gave each black American the freedom of movement and control over his/her fate.

What demonstrated widespread white anxiety about the implications of the release of several million enslaved black people?

The struggle to get the 13th Amendment through Congress and to obtain the necessary ratification by 3/4 of the states.

What were the limitations on future black progress?

The economic, social, and political realities of life in the post-war South, and the attitude of Congress and the President toward black equality.

What did the pre-war Southern economy depend on?

Slave labour

What was one of the drawbacks of the 13th Amendment?

Former slaves had acquired freedom of movement but they lacked land and money, and most were illiterate.

How many former slaves were illiterate?

Over 90%

What was the result of the poor economic position of formerly enslaved African Americans?

Most had little choice but to remain in the South and trapped in poverty.

What did plantation owners and the Freedmen's Bureau do?

Encourage former slaves to return to the plantations where they had previously worked, which many did out of no other choice.

What did former slaves do on the land of the white plantation owners?

Worked as tenant famers/sharecroppers for the white elite.

What were sharecroppers?

White land owners provided land, seed, tools and orders, while a black worker (sharecropper) provided the labour. The crop produced was usually divided between the two men.

What were the positives of sharecropping?

It meant freedom from white supervision and a greater incentive to work.

What were the negatives of sharecropping?

Seemed little better than slavery, and there was less security for the African Americans.

Why was there less security in sharecropping?

Former slave owners used to pay for medical bills and take care of their slaves in order to protect their investments, which they felt no need to do in the case of sharecropping.

When did Congress establish the Freedmen's Bureau?

March 1865

What was the Freedmen's Bureau designed to do?

Help former slaves with food, clothes, fuel, and medical care.

When did Congress pass an act re-authorising the Freedmen's Bureau?

Spring 1866

Why did some contemporaries (and historians) criticise the Freedmen's Bureau?

Claimed it was a corrupt and inefficient Republican tool that encouraged a dependency culture.

What was the good work that the Freedmen's Bureau did?

Helped poor people with healthcare, education, and employment, and bureau agents monitored state and local law courts on behalf of black litigants.

When did the Freedmen's Bureau stop work?

June 1872

Why did the Freedmen's Bureau stop work?

Northerners were beginning to lose interest in the South.

Why did most white Southern people resent the new social order?

Racism, fear, and bitterness over losses suffered during the Civil War.

Why were white Southerners bitter about the war?

Destroyed the Southern economy, and around 1/2 of all white Southern men of military age had either died or been seriously wounded.

What did white Southerners fear in former slaves?

New-found black self-confidence - they were worried that former slaves might resort to violence against white people.

What was the benefit for the African Americans who joined the Union Army?

They had learned to read and write in army schools.

What did former slaves do in the summer of 1865?

Organised mass meetings and petitions for civil equality

What did the black demands lead to?

Exacerbated the resentment of white people, and led to widespread violence in the South during 1865-66.

What happened in the summer of 1866?

Serious race riots in Memphis and in New Orleans

What happened in the riot in Memphis in 1866?

Fights between black veterans and white police encouraged white mobs.

What were the impacts of the 1866 Memphis race riot?

At least 40 black men were murdered, black women were raped, and black churches and schools were destroyed.

Statistic on white murder convictions in the South:

Texas courts indicted 500 white men for the murder of black Americans during 1865-6, but zero were convicted.

What did formerly enslaved man George King say?

"The Master he says we are all free, but it don't mean we is white. And it don't mean we is equal."

What was Andrew Johnson's background?

Born and raised in the South, came from a poor family.

What was Andrew Johnson's position in the Civil War?

He remained loyal to the Union, despite having been a fierce supporter of slavery.

Why was Andrew Johnson the obvious choice to be Lincoln's running mate in the 1864 campaign?

Johnson was a Unionist, a Southerner, and a Democrat, and Lincoln sought to present himself as a unifier.

How quickly after Lincoln's victory in the 1864 election did Johnson become president?

Within 6 weeks

Why was Johnson's presidency significant?

Unsuccessful Presidential Reconstruction and unsuccessful opposition to Radical Reconstruction.

What were states' rights?

Under the American Constitution, the states retained the rights (for example over voting and education) and resented federal interference in their exercise of those rights.

What was Johnson's stance on states' rights?

A firm believer - he was content to see the re-establishment of the Southern white Confederate elite and white supremacy in in 1865.

What happened as a result of Johnson's white supremacist views?

He clashed with Congress over the continuation of the Freedmen's Bureau and the passage of the 1866 Civil Rights bill.

What did the 1866 Civil Rights bill do?

Guaranteed citizenship for black Americans.

What did Congress do in response to Johnson's vetoes?

Congress overrode the vetoes, and their relationship was irreparably damaged - Johnson only narrowly avoided impeachment.

Why was the 13th Amendment important in terms of a political settlement?

It exacerbated tensions over the reincorporation of the South into the Union.

What was the Radical Republicans' view on the political settlement?

Wanted former slaves to have the vote and they resisted the re-establishment of the political dominion of the old white elite.

Which president had to deal with the issue of a new political settlement?

Andrew Johnson

Details of the Confederate surrender:

April 1865, at Appomattox

Who assassinated Abraham Lincoln?

John Wilkes Booth, a Confederate sympathiser.

What did the New York City Council vote to do?

Exclude black mourners from Lincoln's funeral procession

Reconstruction

The process of rebuilding and reforming the 11 ex-Confederate states and restoring them to the Union.

Which states made up the Confederacy?

Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia.

Presidential Reconstruction

President Johnson's policies toward the South during 1865 allowing the Southern white Confederate elite to re-establish their power.

Reasons why Johnson moved to re-establish the traditional power of the white Southern elite:

- wanted the loyalty of white Southerners

- federal intervention was against states' rights

- black Americans should not have the vote

- best way to ensure his own re-election in 1868

Terms of Presidential Reconstruction:

Any Southern state that accepted the end of slavery and rejected the Confederacy was readmitted into the Union.

Who were elected to govern the Southern states?

White officials who had served the Confederacy

What did white officials introduce in Southern States in 1865-6?

Black Codes

What were Black Codes?

Laws passed by the Southern States in order to control former slaves, especially economically.

When were the Black Codes passed?

1865-6

What were features of Black Codes?

Many codes made it impossible for black Americans to purchase or rent land, to obtain and education, to vote, or to receive any meaningful protection from the law.