The Purpose of Reconstruction was to simply rebuild the South and restore the union. Reconstruction simply means to rebuild something that has been destroyed. After the American Civil War, the South was left with a ton of issues that need to be resolved. Cities and plantations were destroyed. Rich aristocratic whites are no longer rich. Union President Abraham Lincoln’s ratification of the thirteenth amendment will completely devastate the South’s economy and as a result, four million African Americans are set free in the South.
President Abraham Lincoln, a civil war hero had many challenges to face post-Civil war. One was trying to restore the Union. His Reconstruction plan was to reunite the Union. He had a plan that southern states could …show more content…
As a result, Southern democrats passed Black Codes which kept many freed black on the plantations and limited their freedoms and economic options. Additionally, this was a time where there was extreme violence and revenge against African Americans. Southern lawmakers provided no alternative; African Americans were constantly harassed by white police officers and nothing was done to those officers as far as punishment. Politicians in the North heard about the Black Codes and the violence against freedmen and are angered especially the Radical Republicans in …show more content…
Radical republican leaders from the north viewed Reconstruction as an opportunity for the south to rejoin the Union and rebuild their economy. In 1867, Congress passed a new Reconstruction Act. This act pertained to southern states that refused to ratify the fourteenth amendment. The act simply got rid of the states that refused to ratify the 14th Amendment. The South divided into five military districts, with military governors given the power to implement Reconstruction. In order to rejoin the Union, southern states had to write new state constitutions, ratify the 14th Amendment, and allow African Americans to vote. The 15th Amendment was ratified in 1870, providing a constitutional guarantee of voting rights for African American males. During Reconstruction African Americans took major advantage of their new freedoms. Some even made major political gains. They voted in huge numbers and held political power. Some African Americans were Congressmen and Senators. Organizations such as the Freedmen’s Bureau built public schools for both black and poor white children. They also rebuilt and added more railroads, telegraph lines, and bridges. Southern whites will become angry because these modifications were not cheap and would lead to tax
President Abraham Lincoln, a civil war hero had many challenges to face post-Civil war. One was trying to restore the Union. His Reconstruction plan was to reunite the Union. He had a plan that southern states could …show more content…
As a result, Southern democrats passed Black Codes which kept many freed black on the plantations and limited their freedoms and economic options. Additionally, this was a time where there was extreme violence and revenge against African Americans. Southern lawmakers provided no alternative; African Americans were constantly harassed by white police officers and nothing was done to those officers as far as punishment. Politicians in the North heard about the Black Codes and the violence against freedmen and are angered especially the Radical Republicans in …show more content…
Radical republican leaders from the north viewed Reconstruction as an opportunity for the south to rejoin the Union and rebuild their economy. In 1867, Congress passed a new Reconstruction Act. This act pertained to southern states that refused to ratify the fourteenth amendment. The act simply got rid of the states that refused to ratify the 14th Amendment. The South divided into five military districts, with military governors given the power to implement Reconstruction. In order to rejoin the Union, southern states had to write new state constitutions, ratify the 14th Amendment, and allow African Americans to vote. The 15th Amendment was ratified in 1870, providing a constitutional guarantee of voting rights for African American males. During Reconstruction African Americans took major advantage of their new freedoms. Some even made major political gains. They voted in huge numbers and held political power. Some African Americans were Congressmen and Senators. Organizations such as the Freedmen’s Bureau built public schools for both black and poor white children. They also rebuilt and added more railroads, telegraph lines, and bridges. Southern whites will become angry because these modifications were not cheap and would lead to tax