Reconstruction Study Guide

Flashcards about the Reconstruction Era after the Civil War

10% Plan

Lincoln's plan for Reconstruction; 10% of state voters must pledge loyalty to the US, new state governments must ratify the 13th amendment, Southerners are pardoned and able to keep private property (except high-ranking officers).

Wade-Davis Bill

Radical Republicans' response to Lincoln's plan; 50% of state voters must pledge loyalty to the US, new governments must abolish slavery and give black men the right to vote, high-ranking Confederate officers cannot vote or hold office.

Pocket Veto

President does not veto or sign a bill while Congress is on recess, effectively killing the bill. Used by Lincoln to block the Wade-Davis Bill.

Andrew Johnson

Lincoln’s VP who became president after his assassination; Southern Democrat from Tennessee who hated Southern elite planters but did not support equal rights for Black citizens.

Johnson's Reconstruction Plan

Similar to Lincoln’s plan; granted amnesty and pardons to Confederate officials, returned confiscated property, states had to ratify the 13th Amendment, did not support the Freedmen’s Bureau.

Civil Rights Act of 1866

Granted full equality and citizenship to “every race and color” (newly freed people); Johnson vetoes the bill, but Radical Republicans override the veto, leading to the 14th Amendment.

Radical Republicans

Republicans who believed the Confederacy should be punished, wanted to protect freed people’s rights, supported the Freedmen’s Bureau. Gained control of Congress after the 1866 elections.

Military Reconstruction Act of 1867

Divided the South into 5 military districts under Union general and troops (martial law); states had to ratify the 13th and 14th Amendments and give Black men the right to vote.

Tenure of Office Act

Prevented the President from removing officials (cabinet) without Senate approval.

Freedmen's Bureau

Worked to provide opportunity and equal treatment for Freedmen; opened schools, helped negotiate labor contracts, and registered marriages.

Oliver Otis Howard

Head of the Freedmen’s Bureau.

Carpetbaggers

Republicans (Northerners) who came to the South to seek economic opportunity and help rebuild the South.

Scalawags

Negative nickname for White Southern Republicans.

Enforcement Acts

Protected civil rights for newly freed people; made it a federal crime to violate people's right to vote, hold office, or serve on a jury; authorized federal government to oversee elections and gave president right to enforce acts.

Compromise of 1877

Democrats agreed to give the presidency to Hayes; Republicans agreed to end the military/Northern presence in the South, effectively ending Reconstruction.

Black Codes

State laws that limited the rights and behavior for freed people in the South, leading to Jim Crow Laws.

Ku Klux Klan

Secret, white supremacist group formed during Reconstruction to terrorize the Black community in the South and prevent Black men from voting.

Jim Crow Laws

Laws enforcing segregation and discrimination in the South, affecting education, marriage, public accommodation, voting rights, and transportation.

Plessy v. Ferguson

Supreme Court case that legalized segregation in Southern states, ruling that segregation was allowed if it was 'separate but equal'.

13th Amendment

Abolished slavery.

14th Amendment

Granted citizenship to anyone born or naturalized in the US and equal protection under the law.

15th Amendment

Gave the right to vote regardless of race.

How did Johnson work around Congress to get his plan in place?

Stated plan when Congress was on recess (vacation)

How did Congress get both of the Tenure and Military acts passed with Johnson as president?

Override veto

How did Congress use its power of impeachment against Johnson?

Johnson fired Secretary of War (Stanton) without Senate approval, House of Representatives brought impeachment charges against him. Senate found him not guilty.

How many schools were created in Freedmen’s Bureau?

3000