The Civil War: Post-War Years (revised, 1983)

[Music] May 1865. The Civil War is over and the troops are returning home. For all Americans, there are vivid memories of the closing days of the war. It was on April 2nd, 1865 that southern troops were forced to abandon Richmond, Virginia, the Confederate capital. Within a week, they would surrender. On April 3rd, President Abraham Lincoln visited Richmond. He hoped to achieve a rapid reconstruction of the South, establishing state governments loyal to the Union. That hope was expressed in the words of his second inaugural address. With malice toward none, with charity for all, let us bind up the nation's wounds. But Lincoln would not fulfill his plan to restore national unity. The assassination of the president has produced shock and anger, increasing the feelings of great bitterness that remain between North and South. Lincoln's successor as president is Andrew Johnson, a Democrat and a Southerner who has remained loyal to the Union. His childhood experience of great poverty has made him a lifelong enemy of the southern aristocracy, whose wealth and power, Johnson believes, has been maintained at the expense of the small farmer and other white southerners. Johnson retains the members of Lincoln's cabinet. And like Lincoln, he believes that legally the southern states have never left the Union. They can be reconstructed quickly by a presidential authority before Congress meets again. But political reconstruction is only one of the serious problems that must be faced in the aftermath of the Civil War. Southern soldiers returning home have found transportation disrupted and food in short supply. Weary after a long journey, many of them have discovered their homes destroyed and their fields overgrown with weeds. Ruined buildings are all that remain of Atlanta, Richmond, and other once proud southern cities. The economic life of the South must be rebuilt from the ashes of war. In the past, the southern economy was based largely on slavery. But during the war, many slaves were set free by Union troops advancing into the south. A few of these black families have been given possession, at least temporarily, of up to 40 acres of land seized from wealthy Confederates. Ownership of land means financial independence, and it is a major goal of the former slaves, who are now called freedmen. This land distribution program has an uncertain future, even though many freedman have been led to believe they will soon receive 40 acres and a mule. The former slaves are also enthusiastic about opportunities for education. By 1865, many schools for blacks have been established in the south, sponsored by northern church groups and other volunteer organizations. The freedman believe that education will help to prepare them for a new role as free citizens. But there are other urgent needs which must also be met. Volunteer groups are helping to provide clothing and food for many freedmen and for white refugees as well. Since March of 1865, these volunteer efforts have been coordinated by an agency set up by Congress and known as the Freriedman's Bureau. The bureau is organized under the War Department and many of its administrators are union officers. One of their duties is to supervise labor contracts between black workers and their employers. But the Freriedman's Bureau is deeply resented by most white southerners who see it as no less than an army of occupation. Many former slaves have moved away from the plantations and into towns and cities. This has also aroused hostility from white southerners. They consider the black population to be a valuable agricultural labor force which must be brought back under control. Few whites are ready to accept blacks as equals even though they can no longer expect an actual return to slavery. The final step to the total abolition of slavery has already been taken by Congress. On January 31st, 1865, abolitionists celebrated passage of a congressional resolution approving the 13th amendment to the Constitution. When ratified by the states, this amendment will be a victory for the abolitionist movement. But many leading abolitionists believe that more is needed. Frederick Douglas has said slavery is not abolished until the black man has the ballot. That view is shared by a group of anti-slavery Republicans in Congress, where they're known as radicals. The leaders of the radicals are Senator Charles Sumner of Massachusetts and Congressman Thaddius Stevens of Pennsylvania. Their determination to win civil rights for blacks will meet strong opposition in the North as well as in the South. President Johnson is quoted as saying, "This is a country for white men, and so long as I am president, it shall be a government for white men." Johnson's program for reconstruction of the southern states is announced in May of [Music] 1865. Most white southerners can regain their political rights by taking an oath of allegiance to the United States. This provision does not apply to the former officials of the Confederacy or to wealthy aristocrats. They must request a special pardon from the president. Southerners who have taken the oath will elect delegates to state conventions which must repeal the ordinances of secession, repudiate Confederate debts, and abolish slavery by ratifying the 13th amendment. By December 1865, all of the southern states except Texas have been reconstructed under the president's program. But in electing the officials of the new state governments, southern voters have turned mainly to their traditional leadership, the Confederate leaders and aristocrats that Johnson intended to exclude. To save his program from total failure, the president allows the southern voters to have their way and he pardons almost all of the former Confederate leaders. In Congress, as the new session begins, there is growing opposition to the president's program. Congress refuses to seat the representatives elected by the southern states and Thaddius Stevens proposes the establishment of a joint congressional committee on reconstruction to investigate conditions in the south. A major concern of the committee will be to gather information on the status of the former slaves. In order to maintain white supremacy, the new state governments have passed laws known as the black codes which severely restrict the civil and legal rights of blacks. The effect of the black codes is a partial return to slavery. Conditions under the new southern state governments, as reported in testimony before the joint congressional committee, provoke anger throughout the North. Radical Republicans proposed two bills in Congress. The Civil Rights Bill declares that the rights of citizens may not be restricted on the basis of race. The second bill would extend the life of the Freriedman's Bureau and give it greater power to protect the civil and legal rights of blacks. The two bills are passed by Congress, but they are vetoed by President Johnson, who believes they are unconstitutional. In Congress, the Republicans eventually muster the votes to override the vetos. But Stevens and the other radicals fear that the Supreme Court may declare the civil rights bill unconstitutional. Their solution is to incorporate the main provisions of the bill into a proposed 14th amendment to the constitution. The amendment would grant citizenship to the former slaves by defining citizens as all persons born or naturalized in the United States. Another provision is directed against the black codes. All persons must be given the equal protection of the laws. A state must not pass a law punishing blacks unless it punishes whites. In exactly the same way, President Johnson denounces the proposed amendment and urges the southern states not to ratify it. The conflict between the president and Congress has intensified and it becomes a major issue in the congressional elections of 1866. During a speaking tour of several states, Johnson urges voters to elect Democrats to Congress, members of the president's own party, who can be expected to support his reconstruction program. But the Republicans are also waging a vigorous campaign, attacking both the policies and character of the president. Most northern voters become convinced that by restoring the Confederate leaders to power, Johnson has betrayed the goals of the Union in fighting the Civil War. And northern resentment is intensified by news of rioting in the South. In Memphis and New Orleans, white terrorists have murdered more than 80 blacks and destroyed homes, schools, and churches. Reports of the riots helped to convince many northerners that President Johnson's program has failed. The Republicans win an overwhelming majority in Congress. They now have the power to begin a new program of reconstruction. In March 1867, the new Congress passes the first of four reconstruction acts. One former Confederate state, Tennessee, has been recognized by Congress. The remaining southern states will be divided into five military districts. The congressional program of reconstruction will be enforced by military governors, most of them civil war veterans, whose authority is certain to provoke the hostility of most white southerners. The existing state governments have been declared illegal by Congress, and state officials are expelled from office. Congressional reconstruction will cause a major shift in the balance of power in the South. Eligible voters are registered in preparation for an election of delegates to a new constitutional convention in each southern state. For the first time, southern blacks are registered to vote. And in five of the 10 states, black voters will be in the majority. Nearly all blacks will vote Republican, while most whites will vote Democratic. But the Republican program is supported by some whites in the south. This includes many white southerners who remained loyal to the Union during the war. Most of them are responsible citizens, but they have been branded by other southern whites as scallowags, implying that they are deceitful and unprincipled. Cooperating with the scallowags are a number of northern whites who have moved to the south. They have been labeled carpet baggers because resentful southerners consider them to be opportunists who have bundled all their belongings into cheap suitcases made of carpeting material and traveled south in the hope of seizing wealth and political power. Actually, most of the so-called carpet baggers came south before any political opportunities were open to them. Many have come to invest in the development of industry or in agriculture which will benefit the economic recovery of the south. But whatever their motives, their presence is resented by most white southerners. As the southern states prepare for new elections, the Republicans in Congress have become concerned that the president may refuse to enforce their reconstruction program. Congress has passed the Tenure of Office Act restricting the power of the president to dismiss federal civil servants, including his own cabinet members. But in February 1868, Edwin M. Stanton is dismissed by the president. Stanton is Secretary of War and the only radical in the cabinet. Congressional Republicans respond by passing a resolution of impeachment, hoping to remove the president from office. March 5th, 1868. With the Senate galleries crowded with spectators, the impeachment trial begins. Congressman Benjamin Butler presents the opening argument for the prosecution. He declares that the president has shown contempt for Congress and is guilty of high crimes and misdemeanors. But William Evers and other defense lawyers argue that the charges have no legal basis and conviction of the president would destroy the constitutional system of checks and balances. In the voting on the articles of impeachment, a twothirds majority is needed for conviction. By a margin of only one vote, the president is acquitted and he will serve out the remaining 10 months of his [Music] term. In the south, meanwhile, conventions have been assembled to prepare the new state constitutions. In addition to Tennessee, six other southern states fulfill the requirements of Congress by June 1868. In these states, voters will be able to take part in the presidential election of 1868. As required by Congress, the new state constitutions guarantee blacks the right to vote, a right which is denied to blacks in most of the northern states. The Republican party has nominated General Ulysus Srant for president and Congressman Skyler Kfax for vice president. Grant has promised to support the congressional reconstruction program. The Democratic nominees are Horatio Seymour and Francis Blair. Their party platform strongly opposes the Congressional Reconstruction Program. When the votes are counted, Grant receives about 53% of the popular vote, including the votes of more than 600,000 blacks in the South. A few months after the election, Congress approves the 15th amendment intended to assure voting rights for blacks in every state of the union. In the seven reconstructed southern states, some former slaves have been elected to public office. The new state governments are controlled by Republicans, blacks, carpet baggers, and scallowags. Most southern whites denounce these governments as being wasteful and corrupt. All too often these accusations are justified. Bribery, graft, and other forms of political corruption are widespread in the south. But that is true in the north as well. In New York City, the Democratic organization known as Tam Hall has begun a theft of public funds that will exceed the total amount of graft in all the southern states combined. There's no doubt that the new state governments in the south are spending large amounts of money, thus increasing the public debt and raising taxes. But most of the money is being spent on worthwhile projects. The states are providing new services to the public, programs to assist the poor, to build state hospitals and schools, and to provide free education for both black and white children. Other large sums of money are being spent on construction projects, repairing the devastating effects of war on roads, buildings, and bridges. A vast expansion of southern rail lines is also in progress. To pay for these construction projects and services, state legislators have placed a heavier tax burden on wealthy land owners, intensifying the hostility of southern conservatives. Opposition to radical reconstruction has erupted into violence. The Ku Klux Clan is one of several terrorist groups that have begun a campaign of intimidation, destruction, and murder. This reign of terror quickly begins to achieve its goal of restoring southern conservatives to power by preventing blacks and other Republicans from voting or running for political office. In 1870, the last four southern state governments are recognized by Congress. In one of them, Virginia, control has already fallen to the conservatives. The Republican program of reconstruction has begun to lose its momentum. Northern businessmen have become concerned about their investments in the South and have begun to call for an end to reconstruction. During the administration of President Grant, beginning in 1869, the Republican party underos a basic change. Most of the leading radicals disappear from public life through death or retirement, and the new party leaders are willing to compromise with southern conservatives. In 1876, the Republican candidate for president is Rutherford B. Hayes of Ohio. His Democratic opponent is Samuel Tilden of New York. Tildon wins a clear majority of the popular vote, but when the electoral votes are counted in Congress, the returns from three southern states are disputed, and this could be enough to swing the election to Hayes. After weeks of controversy, the crisis is resolved by a compromise. The Democrats concede the election and Hayes is sworn in as president. The Republicans have agreed to southern demands for federal funds and job appointments and for an end to radical reconstruction. April 10th, 1877, the last federal troops are withdrawn from the South. All of the radical state governments have fallen to the conservatives. For the former slaves, there is an increasing feeling of despair. Their hope of becoming land owners has been lost. Almost all of the land seized from Confederate leaders has been returned to its former owners. Most blacks have become sharecroppers living and working on land owned by wealthy whites in exchange for a share of the crop. This economic dependence has led to the loss of civil rights. Blacks who exercise their right to vote will be denied the opportunity to earn a living. In the words of one former slave, "In 1877, we lost all hopes. Every state in the South had got into the hands of the very men that held us as slaves." But the goals of the congressional radicals have not been defeated entirely. The 14th and 15th amendments will provide a legal basis for a renewed struggle for civil rights in the years to come.