Reconstruction

Reconstruction

Rebuilding the South after the Civil War

13th Amendment

• In 1863, Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which freed all slaves in the South, but technically the U.S. Constitution still allowed slavery.

• So, in 1864, Lincoln officially made slavery illegal, by issuing the 13th Amendment to the constitution, which officially made slavery illegal in the United States.

• An "Amendment" is what we call a change to an important document!

Multiple Choice

What did the 13th Amendment do?

• It made it illegal for Waffle House to move north of New Jersey

• It officially made slavery illegal in the United States

• It gave free black people the right to vote

The Civil War Ends

• On April 9, 1865, Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered to Union General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House, ending the Civil War.

Multiple Choice

Where did General Robert E. Lee surrender to General Ulysses S. Grant, ending the war?

• Waffle House

• Appomattox Court House

• Lee's back yard.

• The White House

The Aftermath

• When the Civil War ended, the South was in bad shape.

• A lot of men died in the war, a lot of farms were destroyed, and the slaves that did the work on those farms had been emancipated (freed).

• With the Confederacy beaten, it was now up to the Federal Government to rebuild the southern states, and try to change their way of life. This process was called Reconstruction.

Multiple Choice

What was Reconstruction?

• A movie that came out at the end of the Civil War.

• The period after the Civil War when the Southern states had to be rebuilt.

• When the Union forced former Confederates to rebuild the property they destroyed in Union territory.

Lincoln's Plan

• Before the war ended, Lincoln had come up with a plan to bring the southern states back into the Union.

• He wanted to go easy on most Confederates so they would not be bitter or hold a grudge.

• It was called the "Ten Percent Plan"

Multiple Choice

What was the name of Lincoln's plan to bring southern states back into the Union?

• 10 Percent Plan

• 12.5 Percent Plan

• 100 Percent Plan

• He had no plan, just a welcome back party. With balloons. And cake.

The Ten Percent Plan

• Basically, Lincoln would allow all southern states to rejoin the Union as long as 10 percent of the state pledged allegiance to the United States, and the state ratified (agreed to) the 13th Amendment.

• He also pardoned all former confederates who signed an oath of allegiance to the U.S., except for leaders and officials.

• Lower ranking southern leaders and officials were not prosecuted for treason.

• High ranking Confederate leaders and Confederates who tortured Union soldiers were prosecuted.

Multiple Choice

Under Lincoln's Ten Percent Plan, what did most Confederates, except high ranking leaders and soldiers who tortured Union soldiers, have to do to rejoin the Union?

• Promise they weren't racist anymore

• Hire black people

• Sign an oath swearing allegiance to the U.S.

• Go to jail

Lincoln's Assassination

• On April 14, 1865, just 5 days after the South surrendered, President Lincoln was shot by John Wilkes Booth while watching a play at Ford's Theatre in Washington DC.

• Lincoln died the following day, April 15, 1865.

• Booth escaped the theater, but was tracked down and killed in Virginia on April 26.

Multiple Choice

Who shot Abraham Lincoln on April 14, 1865?

• Ronnie James Dio

• Steve

• John Wilkes Booth

• It's a mystery. Nobody knows.

Well...Now What?

• After Lincoln's death, Andrew Johnson, his Vice President, became the new President.

• Johnson was a former slave-holder, so he was even more lenient than Lincoln, and pardoned many former Confederate leaders. But he did not allow any state to rejoin the Union until they had ratified the 13th Amendment.

• He did not require a 10 percent vote of allegiance to the U.S., like Lincoln did.

• All 11 Confederate states were allowed to rejoin the Union by December of 1865.

Multiple Choice

Who became the new President of the United States after Abraham Lincoln was killed?

• Andrew Johnson

• Andrew McVay

• Steve

• Ted Johnson

Andrew Johnson's Presidency

• Andrew Johnson was a former slaveholder, so he did what he could to preserve the southern way of life.

• He vetoed (blocked) many laws that gave freed black people rights and support to help them start their new lives, including the 14th Amendment.

• By 1868, Congress had enough of Johnson, so they impeached him. He was the first president to ever be impeached, and he was 1 vote away from being removed from office.

Multiple Choice

Which of the following is true about Andrew Johnson?

• He fought for the equal rights of black people.

• He was very popular with Congress.

• He is the founder of Waffle House

• He tried to block a lot of laws that gave rights and support to black people.

The 14th Amendment

• Proposed in 1866, this amendment made all freed slaves citizens of the United States.

• This law caused outrage and race riots across the South. White southerners were not happy that their "way of life" was changing. Hundreds of black people were murdered.

Multiple Choice

What did the 14th Amendment do?

• It made all former slaves citizens of the United States.

• It made Chick Fil-A close on Sundays.

• It ended Reconstruction.

The 15th Amendment

• Issued in 1870, the 15th Amendment made it so that all black males had the right to vote.

Multiple Choice

What did the 15th Amendment do?

• It freed the slaves

• It gave all black males the right to vote.

• It called Andrew Johnson a doofus.

Black Codes

• As White Southerners lost their power over African-Americans, they got angry and began making laws, called Black Codes, that limited the rights of Black people in southern states.

• These laws tried to stop black people from going to school, owning land, and even getting jobs.

• They also made it easier for White southerners to assault black southerners with little punishment.

Multiple Choice

What were Black Codes?

• Racist laws in southern states that limited the rights of African Americans.

• Special codes that only black people knew.

• Codes that were always written in black marker.

The Ku Klux Klan

• The Ku Klux Klan was a secret, white supremacist organization that formed in 1866 to terrorize black people in the south.

• They would wear white robes and hoods, and would frequently harass, beat, and even lynch (hang) black people.

• They tried to keep black people from getting too much power in the south. For example, even though black people could legally vote, the Ku Klux Klan would frequently wait at the polls to beat or even kill any black people who wanted to vote.

Multiple Choice

What is the Ku Klux Klan?

• A social club that didn't know how to spell "clan"

• A secret, racist organization that terrorized black people in the South.

• Ghosts.

Compromise of 1877

• The election of 1876 was too close to call.

• Neither Rutherford B. Hayes or Samuel Tilden had enough electoral votes to be declared President, so Democrats and Republicans made a deal.

• Democrats agreed to give Hayes the presidency if he agreed to withdraw federal troops from the South, ending Reconstruction.

• This was called the Compromise of 1877, and it ended Reconstruction.

Multiple Choice

What did the Compromise of 1877 do?

• It gave Rutherford B. Hayes the Presidency and ended Reconstruction.

• It allowed Waffle House into New Jersey, but no further north.

• It gave Samuel Tilden the presidency.

Multiple Choice

How did White Southerners react to Reconstruction?

• They tried to keep power over free black people through terrorism and racist laws

• They were super happy that they were being rebuilt

• They were angry because Lincoln's beard smelled

• They were happy because Andrew Johnson was DOPE.