Reconstruction Review

What was the 13 th Amendment?

Amendment that abolished slavery by deeming it illegal.

What was the 14 th Amendment?

Amendment that granted birth-right citizenship to all.

What was the 15 th Amendment?

Provided suffrage (voting rights) to African Americans

What was the name of Lincoln’s Reconstruction plan and what were some characteristics about it?

The Ten Percent Plan. -meant to be lenient and allow for quick re-entry. - believed that individuals had left the union, - not states. -only high ranking CSA officials and those convicted of war crimes would be tried.

What were Radical Republicans? Why were they considered radical?

Minority in congress that believed Lincoln’s reconstruction plan was too soft on the south. Were early abolitionists who wanted equal rights for African-Americans and citizenship.

What was the Wade-Davis Bill?

Bill that proposed that the responsibility of Reconstruction would fall to Congress.

Name the prominent Radical Republican that we discussed in class.

Thaddeus Stevens.

Question 8. What was the name of Andrew Johnson’s Reconstruction Plan? Describe it.

Presidential Reconstruction. States were to be readmitted under three terms: Accept the 13 th Amendment Handle war debts Swear allegiance to the United States of America

What was the main problem with Johnson holding office after Lincoln had passed away?

He was a Democrat at the head of a Republican office with a Republican ruled Congress.

What were the reasons for Congressional Reconstruction beginning?

Johnson vetoing the Civil Rights Act and the Freedmen’s Bureau.

Why was the Congressional Election of 1866 so vital to both the Democrats and the Republicans? Who won?

It would determine which party would have a majority in the House of Representatives. Republicans maintained 2/3 majority.

What act did Johnson look past by firing Secretary of War, Edwin M. Stanton?

The Tenure of Office Act.

To impeach President Andrew Johnson, how many votes were needed to convict him? Acquit? What was the verdict of his impeachment?

36 to convict, 19 to acquit. Not guilty.

Who were the two candidates that ran for office in the Election of 1868?

Ulysses S. Grant (R) v. Horatio Seymour (D) Grant Re-elected.

What was a Scalawag? Carpetbagger? Why did Southerners not like them?

Scalawags = Southern whites who supported Reconstruction and the Republican Party after the Civil War. Carpetbaggers = Northerners who put all of their things in “carpetbags” and made their way south. Some were teachers, priests, or other members that tried to better the south. For the most part, they were people who went to abuse the system and take advantage of the plight of the south.

Which political party benefitted the most from the 15 th Amendment?

The Republican Party

Who was Hiram Revels and why was he important?

-only slave to become a Senator - Senate seat previously filled by Jefferson Davis -Served in deeply racist Mississippi - inspired countless African-Americans

Define sharecropping and tenant farming. Why were they no better than slavery?

Sharecropping = Borrowing the land and the tools. Often gave 50% of yielded crop to landlord. Tenant Farming = Owning the tools and renting the land.

Describe 40 Acres & a Mule. What was it, how did it come to be, and how did it end?

Gave 40 acres of abandoned farmland to the freedmen that were following General Sherman on his march to the sea. President Johnson ended this during his Reconstruction plan that gave back all abandoned land to their previous landowners.

What were some of the changes that happened to the southern economy after the Civil War?

Tobacco and rice were focused on more along with the constant demand for cotton. The construction of railroads allowed the south to rebuild their economy, although this would only be just the start. Other products also contributed such as coal that fueled the railroads.

This group was established after the Civil War in Tennessee to promote far-left ideals such as white supremacy and racial superiority, often resorting to terrorism to achieve these goals.

KKK (Ku Klux Klan) attacked African-Americans to keep them from voting, but also attacked their means of wealth in order to force them back into labor under a white landlord, and attacked whites who supported African-American rights.

What were the Enforcement Acts of 1870 & 1871? Why were they important?

Laws that protect the equality of African-Americans in such areas as voting and holding office. Created due to the constant attacks on blacks after the 14 th Amendment made them citizens. These acts said if the state did not protect the rights of the people, the federal government could step in.

What were the Amnesty Acts of 1872 and why are they important in the topic of Reconstruction?

Removed any former restrictions on ex-CSA officials who had held office during the Civil War and allowed them to run for office again. This excluded any high- ranking official, however. This allowed the south to begin to retake their offices again.

Who were Liberal Republicans and how did they form? How is the formation of this group significant?

Party that formed prior to the Election of 1872 to oppose the re-election of President Grant. Opposed corruption and it was rampant within Grant’s presidency. Their formation is significant because it split the Republican Party in two, which would allow the Democratic Party to gain power in the years to come.

Who was Horace Greeley?

Editor of The New York Tribune who was nominated to run on behalf of the Liberal Republicans and the Democrats.

Describe the Panic of How did it happen and what was its impact of the nation?

The economy was expanding following the Civil War. People believed that this would continue for a long time to come. To take advantage of the many possible chances for wealth in the south, people borrowed enormous amounts of money to build new factories, railroads, etc… to make as much money as possible. Many borrowed more than they could pay back. Jay Cooke, head of Jay Cooke & Company, could not find enough investors for his railroad business and soon he declared bankruptcy which led to many other businesses and banks to close. 18,000 companies folded leaving over 3 million unemployed.

Who were the candidates in the Election of 1876? Who won?

Samuel J. Tilden (D) and Rutherford B. Hayes (R). Hayes would win.

How did Hayes win the Election of 1876?

Through the Compromise of 1877.

What did the Compromise of 1877 state?

Republicans would gain the office of the President only on terms that Federal troops were removed from the south, Federal assistance in the rebuilding of the southern economy such as funding of railroads and bridges, as well as more Democrat influence in the cabinet of the President. This formally ended Reconstruction.

Who were the Redeemers? And what was Home Rule?

The Redeemers were Southern Democrats who fiercely opposed Republican rule in the south. Their goal was to retake state governments from Republican rule and make them Democratic again. Home Rule was the ability for states to run their government without Federal intervention.