...After the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln, Andrew Johnson took over and began his lenient Reconstruction plan for the defeated South. A program of rapid restores the U.S status. He was able to legislate “Black Codes” the preserved system of slavery. The Republican opposed Johnson’s reconstruction plan, and passed the Tenure of Office Act in March of 1867. The Act was put out to prohibit the President remove important government officials. President Johnson long wanted to dismiss Edwin M. Stanton, the Secretary of War. Johnson suspended Stanton on August 12, and appointed General Grant in Stanton place. Johnson hop challenge the Tenure of Office Act by doing so. The Congress later overruled Stanton’s suspension, and take back his...
Words: 288 - Pages: 2
...President Andrew Johnson Although Andrew Johnson was from the Democratic Party, in 1864, Lincoln chose Johnson as his running mate under the National Union Party banner. When Lincoln died April 15, 1865, Johnson became president. He did not have a Vice President. Johnson now had the job of trying to heal the country after the Civil War left the country in ruins. President Andrew Johnson lifted himself out of extreme poverty to become President of the United States. He was a man with little education who climbed the political ladder and held many different high offices. As a strict constitutionalist, Johnson believed in limiting the powers of the federal government. President Johnson was one of the most bellicose Presidents who “fought” Congress, critics, and many others. President Andrew Johnson faced numerous problems post-Civil War Era including reconstructing the Southern states to combine peacefully with the Union, his battles with Congress, and his career ending impeachment. Following Lincoln’s tragic assassination, President Andrew Johnson took on the accountability of making Reconstruction a reality. Andrew Johnson wanted to use Lincoln’s ideas of reconstruction but in a modified form. Since Congress would be in recess for eight more months Johnson decided to go ahead with his plan. Johnson was initially left to devise a Reconstruction policy without legislative intervention, as Congress was not due to meet again until December 1865. Radical Republicans told the...
Words: 1650 - Pages: 7
...Assuming the role of a Radical Republican Senator including arguing the Radical Republicans position of Reconstruction requires examining the highlights of Andrew Johnson’s Reconstruction views for the Union, which include developing an oath under which Caucasian southerners would have to accept upon regaining personal civil including political rights furthermore all property excluding slaves would be given back to the owners. Confederate hierarchies including individuals whose property was worth a specific amount of money were discounted from taking the oath in which these individuals had to apply for an independent pardon. Under Johnson’s plan states had draft new congress including the election of state officials including congress for recognition of new state government and martial law retracted from the state. Ex-confederates influenced Andrew Johnson by methods of threatening his life, which made Johnson conform to ex-confederate influences by writing pardon after pardon while in the public spotlight Andrew Johnson’s proclaim to Reconstruction was complete. Deriving from Johnson’s absurd claim were few followers representing Moderate Republicans who conformed to Johnson while possessing some views similar to Radical Republicans who openly opposed Andrew Johnson’s Reconstruction methods. Radical Republicans idea of Reconstruction centralized on making a mirror copy of the North out of the South while Moderate Republicans hold no regard for social revolution or equality...
Words: 725 - Pages: 3
...necessity that we remain in control with complete power over both the north and the south. In order to achieve this we must implement a reconstruction of the United States. Restoring the south to the way it was prior to the war is an important issue that we must address and it should take president over the other issues that will arise on the path to reconstruction. In order to rebuild the South to its pre war stature we will need to establish new states, establish new governments, and rejuvenate the economy of the south. The affect of the civil war on the south has been total devastation that includes economic devastation, land devastation and personal devastation. There has been a complete shutdown of all transportation of goods which means that the goods and materials can not be moved from one place to another. For example, the steel that was created in Alabama can not get to Georgia where it is needed to build factories. The main points of my reconstruction plan are that we need to punish the South for their acts of treason in not supporting the Union and we need to ensure that we protect the rights of the freed slaves. If we do not impose stricter polices the South will revert back to the same social and political way of thinking that started this war in the first place (Allard, 2006). What are the consequences of the reconstruction plan that I am proposing? One consequence is stricter federal intervention the South. Confederate officials will no longer be allowed to...
Words: 797 - Pages: 4
... in 1865, the United States was struck with a tragedy to the nation, which was Abraham Lincoln’s assassination. He was an outstanding president, a great man, and could not be replaced. However, now he needed to be replaced because the country needed to be ran and the next in line was Lincoln’s vice president, Andrew Johnson. He was forced into a leading position during one of the nation’s most difficult times, the Reconstruction period after the Civil War, and received a lot of attention, mostly negative. Many suspected him of being very biased towards the South and this ultimately lead to a lot of conflict between Johnson and Congress. The Republicans of Congress at the time, mostly the Radicals, wanted to remove Johnson from office as soon as possible for a number of reasons. First, his plan for reconstruction after the Civil War was much too lenient towards the South. Johnson’s “laid back” plan gave many opportunities for Southern states to move around the rules because none of his terms were even requirements. States chose not to follow his...
Words: 684 - Pages: 3
...After the Civil War, the United States was in ruins. The Southern society and economy were destroyed, and the freed slaves were without money, homes, and jobs. The government was split in two and did not know how to move forward. The changes made, or lack thereof, from the end of the Civil War until around 1877 are accumulated into what is known as the Reconstruction Era. President Lincoln’s Reconstruction plan thought that the federal government should be fairly lenient towards the southern states, and thought that only 10% of the state’s population should be loyal to the union. When Lincoln was assassinated on April 11, 1865, his vice president Andrew Johnson took over. Johnson’s plan was similar to Lincoln’s, but he wanted to be harsh on...
Words: 343 - Pages: 2
...known as Reconstruction. Reconstruction was essentially a time that was aimed at rebuilding and unifying the United States. This, however, was not at all an easy task. The United States was still trying to recover from the devastating, painful repercussions that had been embedded in the hearts and minds of countless people. Nevertheless, the nation needed to be restored and/or rebuilt immediately. The Reconstruction Era set out to do just that. It was a time that posed many debates and questions. For instance, what role would the federal government have in securing civil rights? In addition, what would the stipulations be in permitting the Confederate states to rejoin the Union and what should be done with the emancipated slaves? There were ultimately three main plans laid out in order to crack the many unanswered questions. The plans were as follows: President Lincoln’s Plan, President Johnson’s Plan, and Congress’s Plan. Ultimately,...
Words: 1014 - Pages: 5
...CHAPTER 22: THE ORDEAL OF RECONSTRUCTION The Problems of Peace Know: Reconstruction 1. "Dismal indeed was the picture presented by the war-wracked South when the rattle of musketry faded." Explain. Not only had an age perished, but a civilization had collapsed, economically and socially. Cities were reduced to rubble, there was no economic life; banks and businesses collapsed. The transportation system had broken down completely. Agriculture was hopelessly crippled. The planter aristocrats were humbled. Southerners were resentful and in denial. Freedmen Define Freedom Know: Exodusters, American Methodist Episcopal Church, American Missionary Association 2. How did African-Americans respond to emancipation in the decade following the war? Many southerners resisted this so they killed many slaves, etc. Some slaves were loyal to their master and resisted the liberating Union armies, other slaves' pent up bitterness burst forth violently on the day of liberation. Many newly emancipated slaves joined union troops in pillaging and some slaves got revenge. When the masters were forced to tell their slaves that they were free, some slaves were suspicious but later they celebrated. Emancipated slaves took on journeys to test their freedom, find lost family, look for jobs, etc. The Freedmen's Bureau Know: Freedmen's Bureau, General Oliver O. Howard 3. Assess the effectiveness of the Freedmen's Bureau. It taught ~ 200,000 blacks how to read and many former slaves...
Words: 1415 - Pages: 6
...there was a moderate politician and a reflective thinker – President Abraham Lincoln. One of the greatest statesmen of all time, Lincoln advocated a lenient stance, envisioning a “restoration” whereby the southern states would pledge allegiance and reenter the Union under the Constitution. Lincoln proved to be a great negotiator and worked successfully during the war to join opposing sides to unite behind the Emancipation Proclamation and passage of the 13th Amendment. Lincoln appealed to the common man and was revered by many of his era. One of his greatest admirers was poet Walt Whitman who penned his famous poem “Captain, My Captain” as a tribute to Lincoln and, according to Reynolds in Lincoln and Whitman, called Lincoln “the greatest, best, most characteristic,...
Words: 1831 - Pages: 8
...Reconstruction • Lincoln dies - Andrew Johnson, a Southern Democrat, becomes president Johnson the Politician • Johnson owned a few slaves and defended slavery and "states' rights" • But he was a small time farmer who did not own slaves early in his life. • He got elected by protecting the rights of non-slaveholding yeoman farmers • He proposed the Homestead Act • But he cared more about the Union than he did about slavery, so when the South seceded, he was the only Southern senator to remain loyal to the Union • That is why the republicans chose him to be Lincoln’s vice-presidential candidate in the 1864 election, so that border states with large slave-holding populations would vote for the Republican candidate • But when Lincoln died, Johnson implemented his own Reconstruction Plan during the first 8 months of his term as president. (It was based on Lincoln’s “Ten Percent Plan”) Andrew Johnson’s Reconstruction Plan • Handed out thousands of pardons to Confederate soldiers and politicians • Enforced Lincoln’s plan to admit states if they ratified the 13th Amendment • Took back the land promised to the slaves of Edisto Island, South Carolina (“40 Acres and a Mule”) • But, Johnson's plan left rebuilding the South in the hands of the same people who controlled the Southern governments during slavery • “States Rights” , to Johnson, meant not just letting the South rebuild what the Union army destroyed...
Words: 774 - Pages: 4
...itself will not function. The Civil War divided our country into what was perceived as right and wrong. However, both sides were caught together, stuck in an endless spiral downward. When Lincoln was assassinated restoring the nation was left to Johnson. A difficult task even for a strong man like Lincoln, but when Johnson, inexperienced in politics takes over the task become more or less impossible. Lincoln's assassination had a negative impact on the country after the Civil War because the South would have been better off with Lincoln's plan and Johnson accomplished nothing during his presidency. Lincoln's plan for governmental Reconstruction was flawless, until Johnson came along and ruined it. Lincoln's plan for Reconstruction was fair and peaceful; consequently he released the Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction in 1863. He believed the proclamation would muster northern support for the war and meanwhile persuade tiring Confederate soldiers to give up (Coyne and Bolotin). The proclamation permitted full pardons to all Southerners - except high-ranking...
Words: 1512 - Pages: 7
...RECONSTRUCTION, WHAT WENT WRONG I. Historiography of Reconstruction A. Early Views Journalists, Poets, & Rebels Negative view of Reconstruction Sidney Andrews, The South Since the War (1866) John Dennett, The South as It Is. Southern frame of reference Sidney Lanier (poet) Attempt to justify Civil War B. Early Professional Historians John Ford Rhodes Ohio Democrat Not impartial Blamed North for problems of Reconstruction’ Claimed Black Rule forced on South at point of bayonet John William Burgess Tennessee Unionist Former Union soldier Studied at University of Berlin Organized History Graduate Program at Columbia University Produced historians such as U.B. Phillips and William Archibald Dunning Traditionalist view of Reconstruction Burgess, Phillips & Dunning Basic view: Stressed Southern problems Minimized achievements of Freedmen Regarded White Supremacy as normal in South C. Dunning School And Traditionalism William Archibald Dunning Taught at Columbia University Attracted best historical minds of his day Wrote histories of their own states James W. Garner, Reconstruction in Mississippi (1901) Walter Lynwood Fleming, Civil War and Reconstruction in Alabama (1905) William W. Davis, Civil War and Reconstruction in Florida (1913) Clara Mildred Thompson, Reconstruction in Georgia (1915) Histories very detailed and accurate BUT hostile...
Words: 1994 - Pages: 8
...Reconstruction and the West Patrick Tidwell HST/120 October 15, 2014 Paul Bishop Question: How did western settlement, particularly in terms of railroad expansion and farming, lead to inevitable conflicts with the Native Americans? The thought of having two very different societies collide, the bigger stronger is always going to prevail. With Americas rapid expansion into the plains states, confrontations with Native Americans was inevitable, due to their nomadic nature. The Homestead Act of 1862 opened the way for Americans looking for a fresh start after the Civil War, giving 160 acres to families that took part. With these homesteads came farms, livestock, modernization and fences. The idea of cordoning off a section of land was an unheard of concept for Native Americans. According to "Native American Indian Facts" (2014), “Many of the tribes of the Great Plains were nomadic and followed the buffalo migrations which provided their food. These tribes spent a good part of the year living in camps that could easily be dismantled and moved to follow the buffalo migrations”. The Native Americans had been traveling the plains in search of food for generations before settlers even ventured west. When these nomadic Indians came across these fences in their nomadic pursuit of food, they were ignored which led to confrontations with farmers. The transcontinental railroad had a significant impact with Native Americans and the decline of the nomadic way of life. According to...
Words: 885 - Pages: 4
...Do you ever wonder what could have happened if our 16th president had not been assassinated? Would his Reconstruction plan work? Would he have been impeached by the Radical Republicans? Would Lincoln go on to be reelected and run for a second term? (He was , in 1864. )Abraham Lincoln was an outstanding president, and he achieved great things while he was in office. Lincoln was elected as president during one of the toughest times in U.S. history, the Civil War. Under the circumstances, Lincoln was able to form a Reconstruction plan to unite the Union and the Confederate States. (Mikael. You need to have a Thesis Statement in your intro that is the basis for the entire rest of your essay, as well as briefly introduce your 3 major points that will support your thesis statement in your intro. ) One route history could have taken if Abraham Lincoln hadn’t been shot would be that his plan for Reconstruction worked. The North and South would agree to terms and sort out their differences. It would be a give and take relationship between the two sides. Lincoln’s plan would have worked more quickly and efficiently than Jackson’s (Andrew Johnson’s)plan. With Lincoln as president, the South wouldn’t have been treated as bad as they had been. It may not have...
Words: 506 - Pages: 3
...both the civil war and civil war reconstruction time periods, there were many changes going on in the Union. The Emancipation Proclamation, as well as legislation such as the thirteenth, fourteenth and fifteenth amendments, was causing a new awakening of democracy; while the renouncing of secession by the South marked a definite triumph for Nationalism. As well, the government was involved in altercations of its own. During reconstruction, the legislative and executive branches eventually came to blows over the use of power. The nation was being altered by forces which caused, and later repaired, a broken Union. The first of these "forces", was the expansion of democracy. As early as 1862, Lincoln was taking a major step in that direction. On September 22, Lincoln announced the freeing of all slaves in areas not in Union control. Although the proclamation did not free all slaves everywhere, it was the action that would push Congress to pass the thirteenth amendment in 1865. The amendment, ratified later in 1865, stated that "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude . . . shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction." It seemed democracy had triumphed by giving freedom to slaves, but the amendment was not complete. It only stopped slavery, and made no provisions for citizenship; therefore, blacks were still not considered United States citizens. The fourteenth amendment was the democratic expansion that...
Words: 1187 - Pages: 5
