Home Front in the North

Conscription Act (draft) due to struggles in recruiting.
  - Age range for eligible draftees was 20-45 years old.
  - Each congressional district had a quota for troop contributions.
  - Urban districts had higher quotas compared to rural ones.
  - Meeting the quota allowed districts to avoid drafts.

  • Exemptions from the Draft:
      - No occupational exemptions (e.g., factory workers).
      - Ability to hire substitutes or pay a commutation fee of $300 to avoid being drafted (equivalent to approximately $7,800 today).
      - Notable exemptions included those in poor health and sole supporters of dependents.

  • Wider Implications: Wealthier individuals often paid to evade the draft.

  • Draft Riots: Significant opposition arose, particularly from urban populations.

  • New York City Draft Riots (July 1863):
      - Worst riots occurred in New York City.
      - Protesters targeted the provost marshal's office and supportive newspapers.
      - Union troops were called in to restore order after local law enforcement was overwhelmed.

  • Statistics:
      - 776,000 men were drafted throughout the entire Union draft, contributing only 4% of the Union Army.
      - Many avoided the draft through evasion or hiring substitutes.

War Democrats

  • Divided into War Democrats (support for Lincoln) and Peace Democrats/Copperheads (opposing the war).

  • Supported the prosecution of the war and worked with Lincoln’s administration.

Peace Democrats (Copperheads)

  • Initially supported the war to preserve the Union; opposed it when it shifted towards emancipation.

  • Stronger in the Midwest (Ohio, Indiana, Illinois).

  • Critical of three issues:
      1. Civil Liberties: Opposed Lincoln's suspension of habeas corpus, allowing unlawful detention without cause.
      2. Conscription: Strongly opposed the draft, especially in relation to emancipation efforts.
      3. Emancipation: Resisted the notion of the war being about freedom and opposed the Emancipation Proclamation.

  • Clement Vallandigham: Leader of the Copperheads, facing arrest for anti-war speeches, ultimately exiled to the Confederacy by Lincoln.

  • Administration Republicans: Supported Lincoln's war strategies and policies.

  • Radical Republicans: Disagreed with Lincoln on several key issues.

Key Issues of Division:

  1. Emancipation: Radicals wanted emancipation as an early war goal, seeing Lincoln's timing as delayed.

  2. Use of Black Troops: Advocated for immediate recruitment of black troops to fight for freedom.

  3. Reconstruction Policy: Differing views on how Reconstruction should proceed post-war.

Lincoln's Approach

  • Defined Reconstruction as reintegrating Confederate states into proper relations with the Union without acknowledging their prior secession.

  • Proposed a lenient 10% Plan, requiring only 10% of eligible voters from the 1860 election to take an oath to be readmitted.

  • Led to questions of authority—Lincoln believed it was his prerogative to dictate plans without congressional approval.

Wade- Davis bill

  • Proposed a harsher 50% requirement for state readmission to ensure longer control over the process.

  • Utilized the ironclad oath, which was stringent and aimed at excluding many Confederates from politics.

  • Frustration over Lincoln's leniency led to conflict between administration and radicals culminating in the Wade-Davis Bill seeking Congressional control of Reconstruction.

  • Lincoln's clever disregard for the Wade-Davis Bill kept him in power over the reconstruction narrative.

Election of 1864

  • Lincoln decided against canceling the election amidst war despite expectations of losing.

  • Republican Nomination: Rebranded as the Union Party with Andrew Johnson as VP to unify northern and southern leaders.

  • Democratic Nominee: George McClellan, advocated for a peace platform with the Confederacy.

Soldier Voting

  • Soldiers were granted the ability to vote while serving away from home through state legislature efforts, significantly impacting troop support for Lincoln.

Ford’s Theater and Andrew Johnson

  • Lincoln’s second inaugural address emphasized unity and the need for charitable treatment towards all.

  • Lincoln’s assassination occurred on April 14, 1865, shortly after he attended a theater performance, leading to immediate nationwide mourning and political upheaval as Andrew Johnson assumed the presidency.