Reconstruction
period between 1865-1877 in which the nation begins to rebuild itself.
actions and processes taken to readmit southern states back into the Union.
black codes
restrictions on former slaves in the south, essentially slave codes by a different name.
proof that the South had no intention of honoring new rights held by African Americans.
Lincoln's 10% Plan
southern states could be readmitted back into the Union once 10% of voters took an oath of allegiance and created a new state government and constitution
Radical Republicans
led by Thaddeus Stevens
believed in full citizenship and voting rights for African Americans
wanted harsh punishment for Confederate states
Wade-Davis Bill
Proposed by Radical Republicans in response to Lincoln's 10% plan in 1864
said that Confederate states could not reenter the Union until a majority of the state swore allegiance to the Union and guaranteed black suffrage
vetoed by Lincoln
Andrew Johnson
Became 17th POTUS after Lincoln's death
wanted harsh punishment for Southern states and abolition, but did not necessarily want full rights for blacks.
almost impeached for firing Edwin Stanton from the cabinet.
Johnson's Presidential Reconstruction Plan
southern states could be readmitted if...
1) withdrew secession
2) swore allegiance to the Union
3) cancelled Confederate war debts
4) Ratified the 13th Amendment (banning slavery)
Freedmen's Bureau
established in the last months of the Civil War.
gave aid (food and clothes) to African Americans and poor whites.
established hospitals and schools in the south
Civil Rights Act of 1866
ensured the rights of black citizens
black codes
Laws denying most legal rights to newly freed slaves; passed by southern states following the Civil War
Reconstruction Act of 1867
passed to punish the South
divided remaining southern states into 5 military districts - voters in the districts (including African Americans) would elect delegates to make new state constitutions that ensured black suffrage
all states had to ratify the 1
Tenure of Office Act
passed by the Radical Republicans - stated that a president could not fire anyone from the cabinet during an active term without the approval of the Senate - Johnson fired Stanton, Sec. of War to test the act
impeach
To accuse government officials of misconduct in office
Ulysses S Grant
Commander of the Union army (after McClellan)
18th POTUS from 1868-1876.
War hero yet little political experience, not a very effective president
Enforcement Acts of 1870
designed to overturn the black codes and punish states who failed to extend civil rights to African Americans
13th Amendment
banned slavery
14th Amendment
gave citizenship rights and equal protection under the law to African Americans
15th Amendment
African American suffrage
Hiram Revels
first black US Senator
Scalawags
Derogatory name for Southerners working for or supporting the federal government during Reconstruction
Carpetbaggers
northerners who came to the south after the Civil War
Tenant farming
farm system that included paying rent to a landowner and then was free to choose/manage his own land.
Sharecropping
system in which landowners leased a few acres of land to farm workers in return for a portion of their crops
led to perpetual debt and essentially a legal form of slavery
Ku Klux Klan
formed in TN in 1866, wanted to restore white supremacy in the south through preventing African Americans to exercise their new rights.
killed and terrorized thousands of people.
Tactics used by southerners to deny voting rights to African Americans
poll taxes, literacy tests, and the Grandfather clause
Redemption
the term given to Democratic regain of power in the South during Reconstruction
Election of 1876
Hayes would be elected president if he agreed to the Compromise of 1877
Rutherford B. Hayes
19th POTUS, ended Reconstruction with the Compromise of 1877
Samuel J. Tilden
Democratic candidate for the US presidency in the disputed election of 1876, the most controversial American election of the 19th century.
Compromise of 1877
Hayes would be granted POTUS if he would remove all troops from the South, fund a southern railroad, and appoint a conservative southerner to his cabinet