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DBQ about the Reconstruction Era
Reconstruction goal civil war
Reconstruction goal civil war
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“The best way to predict your future is to create it” (Lincoln). President states the principal of Reconstruction, where to unite the United States, there must be an authoritative action to carry it out. The Reconstruction Era (1863-1877) is a period where Lincoln sought to restore the divided nation by uniting the confederates and the union and to involve the freedmen into the American society. The main objectives were to initially restore the union, to rebuild the South and to enact progressive legislation for the rights of the freed slaves. Thus, the executive and legislature branches had enacted a series of polices to “create the future” for the United States. Although the policies tied down to the Reconstructive motive, there was controversy …show more content…
In July 1864, the Radical Republican proposed the Wade-Davis Bill in response to Lincoln’s lenient plan (Keene 412). The Radical Republicans Reconstruction Plan had called for the punishment of the South (SparkNotes). The Wade-Davis bill asserted congressional control over the rehabilitation of the defeated Confederacy and it also prohibited Confederate officials and veterans from voting (Keene 413). Lincoln, however, vetoed the bill because it was a harsher means to unite the country. This refusal had angered the Republicans and showed the contrasting opinions that the legislative and executive branch obtain about Reconstruction (Keene 413). With the ratification of the Amendments, tension built around the southern districts. To enforce the security of the African Americans elections, martial law (1867-1870) was implemented throughout the southern districts that included the Carolinas and Texas (Dockswell). The ex-Confederates were directly affected by the martial law and the upcoming Johnson plan because it had ultimately kept the southerners in surveillance and in strict provisions. Upon the assassination of Lincoln in 1865, the preceding President (Andrew Johnson) took a whole different approach to Lincolns Plan …show more content…
In order to unite the nation, intense dispute had aroused. Through various laws both African Americans and ex-Confederates were affected by the reconstruction period. Although the Reconstruction Era had gained a negative legacy, the ratification of the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments were a breakthrough in the life of African Americans. The continuous development of polices was to reach the intended goal that the Reconstruction Era was sought for, to unify the United States of
Reconstruction is the period of rebuilding the south that succeeded the Civil War (1861-1865). This period of time is set by the question now what? The Union won the war and most of the south was destroyed. Devastation, buildings turned into crumbles and lost crops. The South was drowning in poverty. To worsen the situation there were thousands of ex-slaves that were set free by the Emancipation Proclamation and the 13 Amendment. "All these ex-slaves", Dr. Susan Walens commented, "and no place to put them," The ex-slaves weren't just homeless but they had no rights, unlike white man. The government and congress had to solve the issues present in the south and the whole nation in order to re-establish the South. These issues were economical, social and political. The United States had presidential and congressional reconstruction. Reconstruction was a failure, a great attempt to unify the nation. It was a failure due to the events that took place during this period.
Reconstruction was the time period following the Civil War, which lasted from 1865 to 1877, in which the United States began to rebuild. The term can also refer to the process the federal government used to readmit the defeated Confederate states to the Union. While all aspects of Reconstruction were not successful, the main goal of the time period was carried out, making Reconstruction over all successful. During this time, the Confederate states were readmitted to the Union, the thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth amendments were ratified, and African Americans were freed from slavery and able to start new lives.
Between 1860 and 1877, America experienced a number of constitutional and social changes, as a result of the Republican election and loss of southern power that lead to the Civil War, and the reconstruction efforts that would follow, inevitably proving unsuccessful. During this period, the south, and the freedmen left residing in southern states as well, had to adjust to a new society, driven by constitutional developments such as the Emancipation Proclamation, and later, the 13th amendment, which freed slaves and left them to assimilate into a white civilization. These freedmen gained the rights to vote, hold positions of power in congress, serve in the army, and own land- which although would not last for a very long period- would prove to
In 1865 the beginning of the end of the Civil War was in effect called “Reconstruction”. The purpose of Reconstruction was to make the United States a unified nation once again. Reconstruction was a success in the sense of the southern states ratified the constitution and chose not to secede. The southern states also agreed to pledge loyalty to the union and ratify the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth amendments. On the other hand, with the election of Rutherford B. Hayes in 1876, by pulling the troops out of the South white slave owners regained power and the south slowly went back to the ways of the “old south”. The end of Reconstruction was influenced by specific causes such as: the northerners exhaustion with fighting the south and trying to punish the Klu Klux Klan, Radical Republicans being struck down by the Supreme Court, and white unionists, carpetbaggers, and scalawags being pushed out of the South by the Klu Klux Klan (Reconstruction (1865-1877)).
The period of reconstruction started in 1865 and lasted until 1877. The period of reconstruction was a way the north thought they were punishing the south; they wanted to rebuild and make the south better. Reconstruction took place after the civil war. The radical republican’s goals were black male enfranchisement and strong reconstruction policy for the south. (Williams, 8/25) During this time it was very challenging. When the reconstruction began, President Lincoln was in office. He came up with
In 1863, two years prior to the end of the Civil War, the Era of Reconstruction of the United States had begun. This period of reconstruction was a time of chaos and disorder uprooted from the strong resentment against white Southerners that postwar plans had created. Reconstruction plans of Abraham Lincoln, Radical Republicans in Congress, and Andrew Johnson were very diverse and contained many distinct differences. Passage of the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments, which banned slavery, established the rights of African Americans, and defined the basis by which Southern states could rejoin the Union, inflamed this strong sense of anger and resentment. The actions of the Radical Republicans, especially, led to many changes in the South. Thaddeus Stevens and Charles Sumner, leaders of this zealous antislavery advocate group, held many motives which they hoped would lead them to possess power by taking advantage of South through any way possible.
World War II was only a proportion of what the United States was about to encounter. The South had suffered from the tramatic disaster of the war, and was in desperate need of reconstruction. Northern government officials were now suffocating in the difficult tasks they would have to perform to achieve their goal. As the African Americans were finally gaining freedom as well as other laws, the South and the North remained racist, whereas only the South acted upon their feelings with violence. Reconstruction was important because it was going to help the South get back on their feet. The South is the main reason for the end of reconstruction because of their white supremacist group, violent racism, and inability to follow government laws.
After the conclusion of the Civil War that ended in 1865, slavery was abolished and of course with the victory from the Union, America was now a nation again. Although America was together as one, still, the north and the south had different views of approaching the way of life regarding to “ex-slaves”. During the post war, it lead America to a time called the Reconstruction era(1863-1877) where mainly the southern states of America learned to refigure out their new lifestyles without owning slaves. As you can imagine after losing a war, the former Confederates faced many problems during the aftermath of the battles. Families were lost and destroyed, the southern lands were a state of chaos due to the massive destruction of the fighting, emancipation of slaves occurred, money was lost due to their property being destroyed, and of course,
The Reconstruction debate has haunted historians since the process began. First, both politicians and citizens argued about how the ordeal should be carried out. Then, the historians analyzed and debated over the success of Reconstruction and the true motives of those who pushed for Reconstruction; for instance, questions regarding whether the radical Republicans really cared about obtaining freedoms for freed African Americans (rather than solely caring about revenge and power) and whether Reconstruction actually worked reigned. To answer such questions, various historians over time set forth different theories.
Therefore, when the Senate’s control by the Republicans passed the Thirteenth Amendments and was approved by the Confederate states it became law on December 18th 1865 (Mullane, 1993, p. 293). The Thirteenth Amendment emancipated all U.S. Slaves no matter where they were located and the Southern blacks now had to face the many challenges the Northern blacks has face for many years (Reconstruction and Its Aftermath, n.d., para 1). The new Reconstructed Congress approved the Fourteenth Amendment in which calling for equal protection for slaves under the law. Additionally, the passing of the Fifteenth Amendment had the power to abolish male suffrage, regardless of their race or color, but black women didn’t have the right to vote (Mullane, 1993, p. 293). The passing of the 14th and 15th Amendment was a huge success because it allowed the black males to have a say so in the new Congressional Reconstruction between 1867 and 1869 in which it allow black males the right to vote (Robin D. G. Kelley, 2000, p. 240). There was a major difference between the President Reconstruction plan and the Congressional Reconstruction because the
Reconstruction was a major changing point in people’s views of freedom, because it presented the very idea of freedom for more than just white males and laid the foundation for other movements to follow. It occurred after the Civil War from 1865 to its official end in 1877. It originated primarily out of necessity. The government needed a plan to deal with all the now freed African Americans and the once confederate states rejoining the union. The Republican Party backed it though they themselves could not agree on an official plan. Several plans emerged, but in the end, it was a hodgepodge of each plan put together. Several historians would probably argue that reconstruction fail...
The reconstruction period which is the period of rebuilding the United States after the civil war is said to be a time of great pain, and endless questions to the United States (Gienapp, 2012). The Civil War led to the end of slavery, and three constitutional amendments which altered the nature of the African-American rights. The Thirteenth Amendment facilitated the abolishment of slavery in all territories, and states. What is more, the Fourteenth Amendment proscribed the US from depriving male citizens’ equal rights, and protection under the law, in spite of their race or color. Likewise, the Fifteenth Amendment granted all African-American males, the right to vote. All these changes and their ratification was a vital requirement for the Southerners to be re-admitted to the Union. As much as these changes were positive steps towards racial segregation, their enforcement proved difficult as the Southerners were against them, terming them as revenge, from the Northerners. The Southerners could not hold onto the idea that, black men could enjoy the same status as white men by being allowed to vote, and hold office (Reconstruction: American’s Unfinished Revolution, 2010).
The North’s neglect and greediness caused the reconstruction to be a failure.The corrupt government, terrorist organizations, unfocused president, and ignorance were also part of the ending of the reconstruction. President Lincoln didn’t want the civil war he wanted to keep the nation together. When Lincoln went into office he wasn't planning on getting rid of slavery nor starting a civil war. Before the reconstruction era was the civil war. Many good things and bad things came from the civil war. The civil war was a war between the North and the South. The war for the north was to end slavery, but for the south it was about rights and liberty. It wasn’t until afterwards that Americans started to notice the good and the bad. Not as many people
On paper, the Reconstruction had a lot going for it. Lincoln had proposed his ten percent plan. This plan would allow the Southern states to reenter the Union if each state redrafted its constitution and at least ten percent of all eligible voters in that state pledged an oath of allegiance to the United States. This plan seemed promising because it was easy access back into the union but Lincoln was assassinated before the plan could be implemented. On March 3, 1865, Congress established the Freedmen’s Bureau Bill which cre...
The reconstruction Era is the time after the civil war when we started to form ourselves as a complete united country. The civil war ended in April of 1865, and Abraham Lincoln was sadly assassinated less than a week later. Reconstruction was Lincoln’s idea, and he was largely anti-slavery, so his plan for reconstruction involved all states to draft new state constitutions that completely abolished slavery. It was his ultimate goal to reunited our nation after the war. Unfortunately, after his death, Lincoln’s vice president, Andrew Johnson, took over, and introduced a different plan for reconstruction. He said that states had to take a vow to abolish slavery before they could be readmitted into the nation, but after that, horrible black codes