★Compromise of 1850: *REMEMBER* Henry Clay offered 8 proposals to the Senate:
* California would be a free state (1) but the rest of the Mexican Cession would have no restrictions [popular sovereignty] regarding slavery (2)
* Texas can’t claim New Mexico land (3) but federal government would pay $10 million for Texas’ debts (4)
* Slave trade would be abolished in DC (5) but slavery would be continued unless Maryland/Virginia said otherwise (6)
* Congress can’t regulate/interfere with interstate slave trade (7) *Mostly Dred Scott ruling
* Stricter national fugitive slave act (8)
Clay lumped all of the proposals into one bill, hoping people would pass the whole act in order to get the section they want; instead they didn’t vote for it just so others wouldn’t get what they wanted
Stephen Douglas (“Little Giant”) took charge and broke up the proposals and they passed one by one
EASED TENSIONS TEMPORARILY BUT CREATED DEEPER DIVISIONS LATER ON
★ Fugitive Slave Law: Most controversial part of the Compromise of 1850, divided the nation; required the return of slaves who had run away especially directed towards Northerners since slaves often escaped North
* National government enforced the law and sent federal commissioners to bring slaves back: $10 payment for return, $5 for freedom [most returned for the extra money]
* $1000 fine if citizens didn’t help return the slaves
* They only needed one WHITE witness to return the slaves, which led to the immense amount of slave returns
* Ironic because South didn’t want any federal power but they were demanding that the federal government enforce a stricter law
RETURN = HONOR AND RIGHTS OF SOUTH
OPPOSITION
Northerners were upset that slaves who worked hard to be free were being captured again, some states passed personal liberty laws (prohibition of state facility use to recapture slaves), upset the South because they weren’t honoring Southern rights
Uncle Tom’s Cabin: Written by a white woman, Harriet Beecher Stowe, in regards to the Fugitive Slave Act
* Central theme: families breaking up due to slavery (felt white women could sympathize as well)
* The law is cruel/immoral and should be broken when given the chance since slaves have been abused their whole lives
SHAPED VIEWS OF SLAVERY
Ralph Waldo Emerson: the level of morality of the act was nearly the same as arson/murder and individuals have a moral responsibility to disobey such immoral acts, such a law makes disunion inevitable
★ Kansas-Nebraska Act: Nebraska Territory (1853) split into Nebraska and Kansas; those pro-slavery were already upset with California being a free state, so they wanted Nebraska to be a slave state. Stephen Douglas decided on popular sovereignty in the territories which permitted slavery to expand into new lands
OPPOSITION: abolitionists, Free-Soilers, Northern Whigs/Democrats
DOUGLAS
CHASE (Free-Soiler)
KENTUCKY EDITOR*
Believed making slavery a state issue over a federal one with popular sovereignty would create peace since there would be no alienation
Free-Soilers aren’t to blame for the arguments, slavery was un-Democratic and went against old American fundamentals. Repealing the Missouri Compromise causes sectionalism
Against the Kansas-Nebraska Act because South went against the Missouri Compromise and the benefits of repealing the compromise don’t outweigh the consequences
Sectionalism: Douglas underestimated it and he thought it would bring the Union closer but it actually divided the country
No compromise could contain slavery, only full abolishment can stop slavery
Splits up the Union and if Missouri Compromise is repealed, they shouldn’t expect the North to respect any future Southern compromises
Why was the Kansas-Nebraska Act so dangerous to the stability of the Union?
* North and South stopped respecting each other
* Whig Southerners moved to Democrat
* Arguments of secession kept increasing
Stephen Douglas: Proposed Kansas and Nebraska to have popular sovereignty but both territories were above 36 30’ line so it went against the Missouri Compromise
MOTIVES: As a Northern Democrat, he wanted Southern Democrat support so it would be easier to become president during Election of 1856
Death of the Whigs:
REASONS:
* Southerners were already upset when Zachary Taylor [plantation and slave owner] was against the expansion of slavery and didn’t have Southern beliefs
* Free-Soilers
* Know-Nothings
* Northern Whigs opposition to Kansas-Nebraska, alienating Southern Whigs
Southern Whigs moved to Democrats and anti-slavery Whigs struggled to reunite
↓
Became the new Republican Party: Emerged with anti-slavery (Northern) Whigs, Free-Soilers, and Northern Democrats with the main goal being the opposition to the expansion of slavery but also supported industrialization; majority was in the North, while very little supporters in the South
Know-Nothings (American Party): an anti-immigrant and anti-Catholic party formed from two secret societies and supported temperance, limiting immigrant rights, and against tax support for parochial schools
↳ Nativism: opposition to immigrants, sentiments increased after the wave of immigrants in the 1840’s; declined due to the diminishment of the Know-Nothings, arguments switched from immigrants to slavery, and immigrants began to integrate into American society
Bleeding Kansas: Refers to violence over slavery within the Kansas territory which started because of the idea of popular sovereignty that Douglas implanted; pro-slavery known as Border Ruffians came from Missouri, and anti-slavery abolitionists moved to Kansas to oppose them
↳ Created two opposite governments: Lecompton and Lawrence
↳ Incidents of violence in places like Lawrence
Border ruffians: Wanted a pro-slavery government, so they casted fraudulent votes (about 1700 ballots) even though majority of those in Kansas was anti-slavery
Caning of Sumner: Sumner’s speech towards Senate: mentions Don Quixote (believes he’s a knight and goes on crazy adventures and in love with a prostitute) Sumner portrays South Carolina/ Butler as Don Quixote and slavery is the prostitute
* Brooks, Butler’s cousin, became angry and beat Sumner with a cane
SIGNIFICANCE: South was mostly united under the idea of pro-slavery and North became angry at the South, used this aggression as an example of what a slavery society could lead to
“Black Republicans”: During the election of 1856 [Republican vs. Democrats vs. American], Republicans were the largest party in the North and nominated John C. Fremont for president; Democrats portrayed the Republicans as Black Republicans who wanted racial equality which most whites were opposed to
* John Buchanan won the election but South says he only won with Southern help, so they expect him to help the South out
Dred Scott case: Dred Scott was a slave, usually kept at military stations and after his owner died, he sued for freedom; the Supreme Court which was South heavy, ruled that the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional since the Congress lacked power to keep property out of a territory which later became law and African Americans weren’t citizens so they couldn’t sue
↳ Meant that SLAVERY WAS APPROVED AND COULDN’T BE BANNED
Sectionalism: The North were upset the their beloved Missouri Compromise became unconstitutional, and the expansion of slavery would spread into places that didn’t permit slavery before
★The Lecompton Constitution: Race between pro-slavery Kansas and anti-slavery Kansas to create a state legislature and pro-slavery (fraudulent) called for a convention at Lecompton; there were two versions pro-slavery people said the voters could vote for the one with slavery or the one without slavery (first referendum)
↳ The one with slavery would protect the rights of slaveholders completely but even the one without slavery would still protect the rights of existing slaveholders, meaning one was for keeping slavery and the other was protecting it indirectly
* Free-state advocates refused to vote and boycotted it, but due to the fraudulent votes, the Lecompton Constitution still passed [OUTCOME OF FIRST REFERENDUM]
* The president Buchanan was pro-slavery so he supported the Constitution
OPPOSITION: The anti-slavery advocates organized a (second referendum) with Congress in 1858 where the residents of Kansas could vote against or for the two Lecompton Constitutions; they were both rejected
* Stephen Douglas, although a Democrat, was strictly opposed to the Constitution due to his strong beliefs in popular sovereignty; Southerners HATED Douglas, and caused a split between the Democratic Party
* Congress sided with the free-state advocates and rejected the Lecompton Constitution after they saw how many Kansas people were against it
OUTCOME: Even after the defeat of the Constitution, Kansas was neither free or a slave state for some time, until 1861 when it entered the Union as a free state
Sectionalism: Division between the Democratic Party and also highlighted the deepening divide between the North and South regarding slavery
The “American System of Manufacturers” (Yankee Techniques): US paved the way for interchangeable parts which are crucial in the modern industry; played a crucial role in the industrialization of the United States
* Since the parts were cheaper, it led to mass production and also appealed to middle class more
“King Cotton”: The Southerners didn’t like how dependent they were on the North in terms of their economy demanded economic independence from the North so the South started investing in business (railroads, mills, etc)
“King Cotton” refers to the central role that cotton played in the South’s economy, and the global demand for cotton
Sectionalism: Industrialization vs. agriculture; the North was rapidly increasing their economy with new industries while the South kept their old ways with agriculture; people (Britain) believed the North’s new industrialization system was due to their education, and North used the South’s lack of education as evidence of the harm of a slave society
★ Panic of 1857: During the Crimean War, Russia’s grain export decreased, leading to the US filling the gap; expensive land with borrowed money, risky bank loans, overbuilt railroads, and increased Europe interest rates led to banks and businesses being shut down
↳ Recovered by spring 1859 but strikes happened for wages to go back to the amount pre-Panic
Sectionalism: The South escaped the panic since they were less reliant on railroads and more on cotton, giving the South a bigger ego boost of their economy but the North wasn’t happy and felt the Panic was because of the South for not letting them raise tariffs
“Free Labor Ideology”: work done in a free society was honorable and you could climb the social ladder, while slavery aligned with being forced to do work and slaves were always going to be at the bottom
Sectionalism: Implemented the idea that in a slavery society, people couldn’t rise up to the top, in a free society, the American Dream was still alive
The Impending Crisis of the South vs. Cannibals All: War between the two books with the Impending Crisis being written by Helper (anti-slavery Southern advocate) and he uses statistics to contrast the South to the prospering North and Cannibals All by Fitzhugh saying slavery is a positive institution and slaves are treated better than free workers
Sectionalism: Impending Crisis was banned in the South, leading to the idea that free society had free speech while a slave society didn’t
Lincoln-Douglas Debates: Series of debates between Lincoln and Douglas for a spot in Senate, morality of slavery versus popular sovereignty; Douglas won the Senate spot but Lincoln gained more political support
★ Freeport Doctrine: Lincoln asked Douglas if people in a territory could still ban slavery even after the Dred Scott ruling, Douglas said yes due to his belief of popular sovereignty, and angered the South
↳ The South began demanding a federal slave code but North Democrats AND Douglas joined with the Republicans to stop it
Harpers Ferry: John Brown wanted to make an army full of slaves with arsenals from Harpers Ferry, but he got captured by the state militia; Brown had immense support from the North
Sectionalism: The North’s support of Brown led to the South grouping Brown and all Republicans together, they began being suspicious of slaves and all Northerners and more talks of disunion
★ Election of 1860: Four party election: Douglas (Democrat) vs. Lincoln (Republican) vs. Breckinridge (Southern Rights Democrat*) vs. John Bell (Constitutional Union)
* Southern Democrats were determined to keep Douglas from being nominated but when he did get nominated and ran on popular sovereignty, they walked out and made their own party
* Republicans carried all northern states except 5, meaning Lincoln (seen as more moderate, which appealed to the lower North) had to focus on those 5 swing states but only needed to carry ⅖ of the swings
[Between ⅔ of the time between 1789 to 1860, a Southerner was president, and a Republican president would put an end to the Southern political control and LINCOLN WON EVERY SINGLE FREE STATE]
↓
Lincoln’s election victory led to secession of 7 Southern states; they argued that while the national government had sovereignty in certain situations, states had underlying sovereignty, meaning they were able to leave if they wanted to
CREATED THE CONFEDERATE STATES OF AMERICA
OPPOSITION: North said secession was unconstitutional but Southerners argued back that the right to revolution justified it
Crittenden Compromise: Proposed constitutional amendments to prevent the Civil War, of the following:
* Guarantee slavery in states that didn’t want federal authority
* Congress can’t prohibit slavery in DC or federal property
* Congress can’t interfere with interstate slave trade
* Compensation to slave holders who couldn’t get fugitives back
* Territory south of 36 30’ slavery protected “now…or hereafter acquired”
ALL APPEALED TO THE NORTH, LINCOLN REJECTED IT AND ITS MODIFIED VERSION IN WASHINGTON
Jefferson Davis: President of the Confederacy, and a military war hero; Davis fired on Fort Sumter, the civil war started
★ The Confederacy: The seceded states (Florida, Alabama, South Carolina, Mississippi, Georgia, Louisiana, Texas) wrote a constitution for their new confederacy
* Guaranteed slavery in states/territories
* State power
* Congress can’t add a protective tariff
* President: single 6 year term
Told the Upper South they should secede too due to common origin and pursuits but the Upper South valued Union preservation over the protection of slavery
★ Fort Sumter: Many of federal forts in the South were already under Southern control, except for some with Fort Sumter being one; Robert Anderson stationed at Fort Sumter and Buchanan sent supply ships to Anderson but South Carolina artillery fired without being fired back
Lincoln had two options: resupply the troops (make the upper-South leave the Union) or withdraw troops (gives sense of victory to the Confederacy)
* He decided to send an unarmed supply ship and inform Davis beforehand meaning war or peace depended on Davis’ decision
CIVIL WAR STARTED IN 1861 WHEN DAVIS FIRED ON FORT SUMTER
Border States: Slave states that bordered the free states but wanted to be neutral (Missouri, Delaware, Kentucky, Maryland); the Border States remained the Union and were crucial to the war so Lincoln needed to control the border states in order to win the war; some border states had civil wars within the civil war between the Unionists and the Confederates of the states
West Virginia: Virginia voted to secede in 1861, but those who opposed the secession of Virginia traveled west to secede FROM Virginia and created West Virginia which joined the Union in 1863
Confederate Treasury Notes: The Confederacy was short on money and had to focus on keeping resources and had inflation because they printing too much money, leading to the amount of Confederate bills be basically worthless
Blockade: Part of the Anaconda Plan of the Union plan to cut the Confederacy off from resources; they blocked off the port and there were blockade runners to evade it
* Fort Fisher was one of the only places that had big guns to protect the blockade runners, however a fleet of warships attacked them, stopping the blockade runners
★ Battle of Bull Run: As the Union army marched into Bull Run Creek from D.C, Confederate reinforcements forced the inexperienced Union to surrender → reality check of how long the war would actually be; before, spectators were bringing lunches to watch
King Cotton diplomacy: The South had hoped that the demand for cotton from the South would keep their economy running, but Europe just found other ways to get cotton from other sources (plus other textiles) and Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation appealed to Britain workers who were anti-slavery and the Confederacy ended up not getting British recognition
Trent Affair: The Confederacy once got close to getting Britain recognition; two Confederate diplomats travelled to Britain on the British Trent but a Union ship took the two as prisoners to which Britain responded with threatening war if they weren’t released
↳ Since the Union did release the prisoners, Britain’s neutrality was reinforced meaning they couldn’t help the Confederacy although they were sympathetic to their situation
Monitor v. Merrimac (Virginia): Virginia was a ship made from the pieces of the Merrimac (Confederate ship) and attacked the Union ships, which ultimately jeopardized the Anaconda Plan; Monitor (Union ship) fought back for long and the battle ended in a draw [Merrimac wanted to shut down the blockade of the Union]
IMPACT: Naval warfare switched from wood to iron ships
Second Bull Run: Robert E. Lee defeated John Pope who had to surrender to protect D.C
IMPACT: Confederate victory and rising Lee’s reputation so that he continued to invade up North; Pope replaced AGAIN by McClellan
★ Battle of Antietam: Lee kept going into Maryland to gain Britain recognition and support; Lee’s plans were leaked to McClellan so they were intercepted at Antietam Creek and the Union army outnumbered that of the Confederacy but McClellan was too cautious and missed a great opportunity
OUTCOME: The battle ended in a draw between the two sides but the Confederacy failed to get Britain support
National Banking Act of 1863: To manage revenue for war funds
↳ Creation of a national bank that would issue national currency which would lead to greater stability and confidence in the US currency
Stonewall Jackson: One of the Confederate generals; when the Union forces were close to victory in the Battle of Bull Run, Jackson sent in reinforcements, which started his rise in prominence; he also helped the Confederacy win in the battle of Fredericksburg
McClellan: McClellan took things slow and steady, replaced and put back multiple times; due to his tactics of slowness, he missed multiple chances to win several battles
Ulysses S. Grant: Commanded the Mississippi river plan, captured forts on Cumberland River which is a branch of the Mississippi River where 14,000 Confederates were imprisoned; Grant defeated the Confederacy to retreat at Shiloh; Grant kept reducing Lee’s armies and Lee eventually surrendered to Grant at Appomattox
“Contrabands”: Slaves of the Confederacy that escaped to the Union military but the name degraded them
IMPACT: Turning point on how slaves were viewed during the Civil War, and showed the growing role of enslaved people at the frontlines; sped up the process of slavery abolition in a way
Peace Democrats/Copperheads: Democrats that wanted to just negotiate peace and were very against the war; but peace negotiations would basically pass the victory over to the Confederacy
Writ of habeas corpus: The writ of habeas corpus gives someone the right to appear in front of a judge so that they could have a trial; in the Constitution, the suspension of the writ would only be justified if the public safety is in danger plus it was a Congress power
↳ Lincoln suspended it multiple times between 1861-1863 but he argued that only the president has the speed to stop any dangers while Congress doesn’t
Especially controversial to the border states
↳[1863] Congress passed the Habeas Corpus Act in response to Lincoln’s suspension of habeas corpus which effectively legalized it
★ Emancipation Proclamation: States still in rebellion by January 1 of 1863 would be free states, only applied to Confederate states that weren’t in Union control meaning not border states and in the end only about 1% of slaves were freed
[Lincoln was waiting for a big military victory so it wouldn’t seem like it was a last resort so he did it after Antietam]
OPPOSITION: Democrats and border states
IMPACT: The Emancipation Proclamation led to the war being about slavery or not; if the North won, slaves would be freed if the South won, slavery would be protected; anti-slavery Britain didn’t want to help the Confederacy if the war was about slavery
Draft Riots: Lincoln set laws to draft people in the federal army and due to the suspension of habeas corpus, anyone who opposed the law would be imprisoned; Lincoln called for about 600,000 volunteers and Democrats who rioted against were arrested but it was said to be unconstitutional since it was against civil liberties
“Poor man's fight”: people could avoid service and the draft if they paid a fee, or having someone do it for them, which led to wealthier people having to not fight in the war; caused a commotion from the poor Northerners who still had to do service and more draft riots
Morrill Tariff Act: Raised tariffs to increase industrialization
Morrill Land Grant Act: federal land grants to states for agricultural technical colleges
Homestead Act: Free 160 acres of land to anyone who lived for at least 5 years in the area
↳ To encourage settlement further west
Pacific Railroad Act: Transcontinental railroad West to East
★ Gettysburg and Vicksburg: the two battles were the turning points of the Civil War and they happened right after each other;
1. Gettysburg: Confederate goal was to gain a clear path to DC but 51,000 total casualties put a final end to any hope for foreign recognition
* Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address: redefined the purpose of the war as slavery by promoting the ideas of equality/ freedom
2. Vicksburg: Gave the Union control of Mississippi which split the Confederacy and Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana were cut off from the Confederacy
Chattanooga: Chattanooga was a big transportation center since it was near lots of railroads; the Union’s victory in the Battle of Chattanooga paved the way for the Union army to advance South towards Georgia and Alabama
54th Massachusetts Infantry: Most Whites didn’t want to fight for Black freedom and Black soldiers would mean that Whites and Blacks are even closer to racial equality; there was an African American regiment under the leadership of a white officer
BOUGHT BRAVELY WITH COURAGE AND GOT RECOGNITIONS
★ Sherman’s Campaign: Sherman’s objective was to capture Atlanta which was vital for the Confederacy; Sherman’s forces faced that of the Confederacy outside of Atlanta and Sherman forced the Confederates to retreat and surrender and Sherman destroyed Atlanta [TOTAL WAR]
Prisoner Exchange: Union and Confederacy did prisoner exchanges but Black soldiers were murdered during their surrender or captured and returned as slaves → Lincoln suspended the exchange unless Whites and Blacks were treated equally which turned out to be a problem because Northerners kept dying in prison, especially in South where there are less resources
↓
Confederacy abandoned the refusal of Black soldier exchange because they realised they wanted slaves to fight for the South as well
Sherman’s March: Sherman marched into South Carolina since he felt it was the reason the whole war started, and left less standing than he did in Atlanta while defeating Confederate forces sent to stop them
↳ In order to prevent the Union armies from getting any Confederate supplies, the Confederate army set fire to their military stores, but the fires eventually reached Richmond, destroying more than Columbia (South Carolina) or Georgia (Atlanta)
↳ Sherman destroyed Atlanta and kept foraging towards the sea, made the US look stronger → Lincoln reelected
BUT THE WAR COULD ONLY BE STOPPED WHEN CONFEDERACY SURRENDERED
★ Appomattox: Lee had to give up both Petersburg (Virginia) and Richmond (Virginia) and when they were returning, they were cut off at Appomattox; the only thing Lee could do was surrender to Ulysses Grant
↓
They were very generous, 30000 Confederate prisoners were allowed to return home on the condition that they don’t rebel against the United States again
[13th Amendment (abolish slavery): passed in Congress in January 31, 1865 but wasn’t ratified by the states until December, after the war ended
Loophole: labor could be enforced as a punishment of a crime and Congress had the power to enforce it
↳ All people had to do was get the African Americans in jail and they could be used as slaves again]
CIVIL WAR
UNION
CONFEDERACY
ADVANTAGES
- More numbers
- Better economy → more resources
- Had the US Navy
- Strong central government
- Emancipation Proclamation appealed to the anti-slavery Britain
- Britain compensation ($15 mil)
- More fighting experience
- On defense
↳ Had to travel and conquer less
- Robert E. Lee
- Strong military leaders
- Had the Mississippi River (which would later be taken)
DISADVANTAGES
- Had to conquer more land
- Inconsistent military leaders
- Robert Lee too strong
- Some battles had more Union suffering compared to the Confederacy
- Terrible military leaders
- Weak central government
- Less resources and army
- No foreign recognition from Britain and France
- inflation
- Europe found other places to get textiles
BASIC STRATEGY
- Anaconda plan: block off Souther ports to cut resources
- Mississippi River conquer which would split Confederacy
- Large army
- Long training time
- Prevent Confederacy from getting federal aid
- Hoped Union would turn on Lincoln and quit
- On defense
- Gain Britain support
- Using their experience to defeat the inexperienced Union
- Outside demand for cotton would keep their resources going
KEY BATTLES
- First Battle of Bull Run
↳ Reality check of how long the war would be
- Appomattox, Virginia
↳ Where Lee surrendered to Grant
- Sherman’s March
↳ The battle at which the Confederacy lost the will to fight
- Battle at Vicksburg
↳ Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas cut off from Confederacy
- Battle of Antietam
↳ Lee’s plans leaked and Confederacy failed to get Britain support AND it paved the way for Emancipation Proclamation
- Monitor v. Merrimac
↳ Naval warfare switched from wood to metal ships
Assassination of Lincoln: John Wilkes Booth shot Lincoln in the head because he hated Lincoln for what he did to Booth’s beloved South; Lincoln’s death brought grief to the North and the newly freed Southern slaves
IMPACT OF THE CIVIL WAR
The North’s victory solved two big issues: Union or no Union, and the continuation of slavery or not. The amount of casualties led to no serious secession proposals since 1865, and the 13th amendment of 1865 abolished slavery.
Presidencies:
- 1864-1868: Andrew Johnson (Republican, Democrat at heart)
- 1868-1876: Ulysses Grant (Republican)
- 1876-1880: Rutherford Hayes (Republican)
Three stages of Reconstruction: Presidential (1865-1867), Congressional, and Redemption
PRESIDENTIAL
CONGRESSIONAL
REDEMPTION
* Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson
* Goals: Quickly restoring the Union with lenient punishments for the South
* Lincoln’s 10% Plan
* Johnson’s Policy, Reconstruction Plan
* Black Codes
* Reason for end: Congress rejecting Johnson’s policies
* Also known as Radical Reconstruction
* Led by the Radical Republicans in Congress
* Reconstruction Acts of 1867
* Civil Rights Act
* Amendment ratification
* Johnson veto and impeachment
* White resistance
* Reason for end: Panic of 1873, Republican corruption
Southern Democrats gained control of South
* Compromise of 1877
* Military troops pulled out, internal improvement federal money, Southern Democrat (Keys) as postmaster general in exchange for respect and equal treatment to Blacks
Lincoln’s Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction (10% Plan): Outlined Lincoln’s plan for Reconstruction after the Civil War to bring the Union back together
1. Presidential pardon to anyone who swore allegiance
2. Acceptance of abolition
3. When 10% of a state’s voting population took the oath of allegiance, that state could reorganize a new state government
IMPACT: Offered a way for the ex-Confederates to rejoin the Union with lenient term, criticized by Radical Republicans who thought it should be more severe
Radical Republicans: Republicans who wanted equality for African Americans and punishing the Southern states for secession
KEY BELIEFS: Advocated for slavery abolition and equal rights for African Americans with constitutional [voting] rights and wanted harsh punishments for the South; wanted Congress to be in charge of Reconstruction, not the president
Wade-Davis Bill: Gave strict loyalty laws to the South; introduced by Radical Republicans in the House and passed in both House and Senate
↳ Lincoln vetoed the bill because he felt it was too strict to the South and would damage their return to the Union
IMPACT: Republican conflict, which would ultimately subside after the Sherman’s March
PRESIDENTIAL RECONSTRUCTION
POSITIVES
NEGATIVES
* Focusing on quickly bringing the Southern states back into the Union
* Lenient policies to bring the South back
* South started to rebuild their infrastructure that was destroyed during the war
* Some freedmen were able to buy land
* Some labor jobs switched from African Americans to white people since they couldn’t employ slaves
* Slaves would get wages or crop share
* Democrat ran as Republican (Andrew Johnson)
* African Americans still couldn’t vote
* Ex-Confederate beliefs [by Johnson]
* Violence towards Black people
* Black people could still be enslaved due to the 13th amendment loophole [enforcement of labor for a punishment of a crime]
Andrew Johnson: A former Democrat from Tennessee, nominated by the Republican party as Lincoln’s second runner; became vice president but then president after Lincoln died
Beliefs: planters were “stuck up aristocrats” and refused to support Confederacy even though he was a Democrat
↓
Switches up on everyone and begins pardoning the ex-Confederates and restored everything; replaced Republican officials with Democrats
WANTED TO SLOW DOWN RECONSTRUCTION UNTIL 1868 [hoped the Northern voters would abandon the Reconstruction for presidential election]
________________
Why was he impeached?
↳ Ultimately, he removed the Secretary of War Stanton who favored Reconstruction which went against the Tenure of Office Act; the House initially impeached him (February 24, 1868)
[In order to impeach, the president had to have committed treason, bribery, etc]
Did Johnson commit “treason, bribery…high crimes and misdemeanor”?
↳ Some people felt he shouldn’t have been impeached, so they voted for acquittal; in Senate vote (May 1868) the tally was 35 guilty 19 not guilty, fell one vote short so Johnson was impeached but not removed from office
NEGATIVE: Johnson didn’t actually get removed from office, thus allowing him to complete his full term
POSITIVE: Johnson had no chance of being reelected
*Impeached does NOT mean removed from office; Johnson was impeached but Senate vote tallies said he wouldn’t be removed from office*
Presidential Pardons: primarily used by Andrew Johnson to restore land and property to ex-Confederates; both Lincoln and Johnson promised pardons with lenient conditions (allegiance to the Union, acceptance of slavery abolition, etc)
Johnson’s leniency led to former Confederates to regain power and he wanted to prevent freedmen from getting rights
IMPACT: Restoration of South and rights, but return of Confederate power and failure of freedmen protection
Johnson’s Reconstruction Plan: The proposed idea of Johnson’s reconstruction after the Civil War
1. Punish planter class
2. Allowed for presidential pardons
3. Quickly reconstruct state governments
4. Didn’t enfranchise Black people
Johnson’s Policy (1865): Two proclamations that were issued
1. Blanket amnesty except for high rank Confederate officials, or those with taxable property worth $20000 or more
↳ Only WHITES with the amnesty could vote; excluded “stuck up aristocrats” and Blacks
2. Temporary governor to draft new constitution in North Carolina
13th Amendment (abolish slavery): passed in Congress in January 31, 1865 but wasn’t ratified by the states until December, after the war ended
Loophole: labor could be enforced as a punishment of a crime and Congress had the power to enforce it
↳ All people had to do was get the African Americans in jail and they could be used as slaves again
Black Codes: laws passed in the Southern United States aimed to restrict the rights of freedpeople; Southern states still wanted control over Black populations to preserve white supremacy
EXAMPLES (Louisiana County):
1. Can’t move past the limits without the special permission IN WRITING from his employer; if they violate they have to pay a fine
2. Required to work under a white person, and free time has to be given permission IN WRITING and can’t exceed 7 days at a time
3. No meetings between others after sunset and can only be held between sunrise and sunset with permission IN WRITING under indirect supervision
4. Can’t preach or deliver words to other colored people without permission IN WRITING
5. Can’t carry firearms if they aren’t in the military service unless they have permission IN WRITING and approved by the nearest chief of patrol
6. Every citizen has to act like a police officer to detect any offenses to the rules and hand them over to the police
Freedmen’s Bureau: made by the Congress in 1865, oversaw relations between freedpeople and owners in the South
↳ Helped freedpeople created schools for freedpeople in rural areas
SOUTHERNERS WERE HOSTILE TO THEM
“40 acres and a mule”: Sherman ordered abandoned land to be distributed to the freedmen but Johnson’s orders had already restored most land to former owners
Congressional Reconstruction: Republicans wanted to gain control of the reconstruction process. Many Southern Unionists, freedpeople, military officials spoke up about the terror in the South. This convinced Congress to not admit former Confederates. Some Republicans wanted black voting rights which were seen as too radical.
POSITIVES
NEGATIVES
* Constitutional amendments
* Promoted educational and economic development in the South
* More political participation of African Americans
* More white backlash towards African Americans (Violence: KKK)
* Corruption in Southern state governments
* Failure to address economic issues like land distribution
14th Amendment: Johnson tried to veto, but Congress overrode the veto with more than two-thirds majority; passed in Congress then went to states for ratification
Section 1: All naturalized people (Black people included) were citizens and Congress can’t take away their citizen rights
Section 2: States have to enfranchise Black people or they’ll lose some seats in office/ votes
Section 3: Large number of ex-Confederates can’t hold office
Section 4: National debt due to the war but Confederate debt is separate
Section 5: Congress has power to enforce the amendment
Reconstruction Acts of 1867: The 10 South states divided into 5 military districts placed under the control of Union generals; in order for a state to be readmitted to the Union they needed to draft a state constitution with equal rights for African Americans and the 14th amendment; limit voting rights for ex-Confederate officials
↳ Johnson vetoed these acts but the Radical Republicans in Congress overrode the veto
IMPACT: Important in reshaping the South in favor of African Americans but led to more resistance from Southern whites, leading to more discrimination
Carpetbaggers and Scalawags: Different slurs the Democrats had for people who didn’t agree with their beliefs
“Carpetbaggers” were what Northerners were called and there was a myth that they were corrupt; they only came to the South for economic opportunities and to invest in it
POSITIVE: Republicans held majority in the states where there were a lot of carpetbaggers
NEGATIVE: the mentality that white Republicans just wanted to exploit the Southern whites and are selfish; led to Democrats wanting to crush Republicans
“Scalawags” were what Southern white Republicans were called, myth that they were mischievous because they supported the Reconstruction and sided with the freedpeople
Ku Klux Klan: White terrorist organization founded in Tennessee that wanted control of the Black population and to destroy the Republican Party by terrorizing its voters
15th Amendment: Granted African Americans the right to vote and prohibited the federal and state governments from denying a citizen the right to vote “on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude”
IMPACT: African Amricans could now have a voice in government, but women still couldn’t vote which led to opposition from women
OPPOSITION: Southern whites resisted against the 15th amendment with violence, laws, etc.
President Grant: Seen as a war hero, 2 terms total; won the 1868 election against Horatio Seymore (Democrat) who said the Reconstruction was unconstitutional because they didn’t want “Black supremacy”
Grant was too trusting and made mistakes in appointments due to his lack of political experience, leading to corruption
BELIEFS: Wanted the Reconstruction and advocated for protection of African American rights with the help of federal troops
Foreign policies: Annexation of Santo Domingo, Treaty of Washington [$15.5 million from Britain for Confederate damages by British ships]
Second Term: Troubles because some people had stopped supporting the Reconstruction especially after the Panic of 1873 and rising violence in the South between white people and black people
American Equal Rights Association: Created for Black/women suffrage but Black voting rights favored more than women; some influential women walked out and created the National Woman's Suffrage Association
↳ Supported the 14th amendment (citizenship and equal rights under the law) but debates arose regarding the 15th amendment since it gave African Americans the right to vote, but excluded women
Credit Mobilier Scandal: Credit Mobilier was the construction company for the Union Pacific Railroad, but inflated construction costs and made the Union Pacific pay then they pocketed the money; Credit Mobilier paid with federal loans
↳ In order to avoid investigation into the financial situation of the Credit Mobilier, they bribed Congressmen with company stock or sold them at discounted prices and the scheme was ignored
↳ The story was let out in 1872 to the public, and the government gained lots of backlash, some of the bribed Congressmen were punished but not all
IMPACT: Shows the corruption between big business and the government during industrialization; demonstrates how federal funds can be used for personal gain
Pendleton Act: The spoils system first started with Andrew Jackson, it was rewarding government positions for presidential support; Civil service reformers wanted to eliminate the spoils system
↳ Required for a competitive exam other political connections; made it illegal to fire civil service employees for political reasons
IMPACT: Politicians now couldn’t use federal jobs for political support so they had to find new ways to get support; reduced corruption in government
“Negro Rule”: derogatory term by Southern whites to describe the social and political changes when African Americans gained more power; African Americans kept gaining more political roles in local, state, national offices
↳ When Southern states had to reconstruct the government, African Americans were appointed to political offices
Ku Klux Klan Act: in order to enforce the 14th and 15th amendment, gave the president power to suspend the habeas corpus in extreme situations and then sent in federal troops against the KKK
↳ Thousands of Klansmen convicted in 9 South Carolina counties
↳ Made it a federal crime to use violence to prevent citizens from using their constitutional rights (ex. voting, holding office, etc)
IMPACT: The KKK sort of declined after these acts, but would reemerge after during the 20th century; federal government more willing to protect the rights of African Americans, demonstrating the federal government’s commitment to enforcing civil rights
Panic of 1873: The economy was finally growing after the small postwar decline; after the first Transcontinental railroad was done in 1869, the second transcontinental Northern Pacific was going to be built
↓
Jay Cooke invested heavily in the Northern Pacific but ran into financial difficulties when the construction cost became more expensive with less profit → DOMINO EFFECT: Banks and businesses that invested in the railroad also declined
ECONOMIC FACTORS: Over speculation of railroads, paper vs. gold money, credit tightening
IMPACT: Same as any other panic - economy declines, employment rates decline; power switched from Republican to Democrats, and support for change sort of lost momentum
“Bayonet rule”: use of federal troops to enforce Reconstruction policies and maintain order in the South, used by critics of military occupation and federal intervention especially amongst Southern Democrats
MILITARY OCCUPATION: Under the Reconstruction Acts of 1867, the Southern states were divided into military districts which was seen as necessary to implement Reconstruction policies
IMPACT: Backlash against Republicans within the party, led to Democrats gaining control of state governments and only four states were under Republican control
Mississippi Plan: While people were criticizing the Grant administration, Democrats devised the Mississippi Plan:
1. Have Republicans switch parties to Democrats
2. Intimidate black voters*
* Violence towards African Americans, a Union general wanted federal troops to help ease the tension but Democrats threatened Grant, “If you send troops in we’ll use the “bayonet rule” so the Democrats can gain Ohio”; Grant felt Ohio was more important so he didn’t send troops into Mississippi
IMPACT: Democrats became the majority of the state
U.S v. Cruikshank / U.S v. Reese: two court cases that went to the Supreme Court, the decisions ruled that the enforcement of the 14th and 15th amendment was unconstitutional
WHY?
The amendments only applies to the actions of STATE, meaning it’s unconstitutional to prosecute INDIVIDUALS who violated the amendments
Explanation of each:
U.S v. Cruikshank: Came from a massacre in Louisiana where a mob of white people attacked African Americans and 100+ people were killed; federal government charged under the Enforcement Acts
U.S v. Reese: Kentucky refused to register an African American’s vote; federal charges under the Enforcement Acts
OTHER COURT CASES:
Civil Rights Cases:
Civil Rights Law banned racial discrimination in public (transportation, etc); similar to the other two court cases, the Supreme Court labeled the prosecution of individuals unconstitutional since the law applied to the state
Bulldozing: a new form of intimidation for Democrats to terrorize Republican voters; used in the election of 1876 and violence increased but this time federal troops were sent for supervision
Election of 1876: Due to the corruption of the government, reform became the leading issue for the election
Democrat nominee: Samuel J. Tilden (New York)
Republican nominee: Rutherford Hayes (Ohio)
Tilden won the popular vote but just barely missed the margin for the electoral votes, Hayes had less electoral votes
↓
Since no candidate got the necessary electoral votes, the Constitution says to have the two houses choose but that couldn’t happen since the two houses were of different parties
↳ Congress created a special electoral committee with 5 Representatives 5 Senates, and 5 Justices
RESULT: the disputed electoral votes were given to Hayes, giving him presidential victory
Compromise of 1877: To please the Southern Democrats and to secure Hayes presidency the Republicans had been working on a compromise while Democrats had begun a filibuster
Hayes promised support for federal sponsor for rebuilding destroyed infrastructure and new internal improvements IN THE SOUTH, withdraw federal troops from the South, and appoint a Democrat in Hayes’ cabinet in exchange for equal treatment of African Americans and respect of constitutional rights
Solid South: Most Southern whites were Democrats and South voted Democrat for federal positions for over 100 years after that; Republicans were considered the “party of Lincoln”
OVERVIEW:
Before the Civil War, people feared a strong national government, but that changed when the national government was given some power during the Civil War / Reconstruction. Amendments were created under the national government and Congress was also given power to enforce the amendments. Reconstruction reincorporated ex-Confederates to the Union and switched to more freedom in the South.