TIP #290: ONE LOOK AT RECONSTRUCTION Before the Civil War had ended, in December, 1863, President Lincoln issued his formula for reconstruction. Believing that the matters should be settled quickly, he created a lenient plan for bringing the rebellious states back into the Union. All Rebels, except military and civilian leaders, would be granted pardons by merely swearing allegiance to the Union and accepting the end of slavery. They did not have to say they were sorry, they only had to say they would not do it again. After only 10 percent of the people had taken the oath, the state could form a civilian government. When that state produced a new Constitution outlawing slavery, Lincoln would recognize them as reconstructed. President Johnson issued his own amnesty proclamation. Anyone with taxable property worth more than $20,000 was barred from participation, but he provided personal Presidential pardons for those excluded. By the end of 1865 he had issued 13,000 of these pardons. Congress rejected Lincoln's plan because of its leniency. After the war, President Andrew Johnson followed his predecessor's plan for Reconstruction. Johnson's terms for reconstruction were also moderate. Johnson's plan was similar to Lincoln's except he required ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment, repudiation of Confederate debt, and state constitutional provisions abolishing slavery and renouncing secession. He also recommended limited suffrage for Blacks. The leniency of Presidential Reconstruction and the unwillingness of southerners to admit or accept defeat outraged Congress. Many congressmen believed the provisions of Johnson's plan did not adequately punish the Confederates. Johnson's plan did fall short of radical hopes, but it would probably have been accepted if southern states had complied with the spirit of Johnson's proposal. Southerners seemed determined to ignore defeat. The state governments met only the minimum requirements. In fact, Mississippi refused to ratify the Thirteenth Amendment. Southerners showed almost total disregard for northern sensibilities. When Congress met again in late 1865, the South elected four Confederate generals, six Confederate cabinet members and the Confederate vice president, Alexander Stephens, as their congressional representatives. These acts of southern defiance enraged northern congressmen and they refused to seat the southern delegation. President Johnson refused to cooperate in any manner with Congressional wishes for a harsher Reconstruction. Between March and July of 1867, Congress imposed Military Reconstruction on the South with a series of Reconstruction acts. Another source states: "Even while the Civil War was in progress, the federal government offered amnesty to Confederate citizens in an attempt to encourage loyalty to the Union and to begin the process of reconstruction. The Confiscation Act of 1862 authorized the president of the United States to pardon anyone involved in the rebellion. The Amnesty Proclamation of December 8, 1863, offered pardons to those who had not held a Confederate civil office, had not mistreated Union prisoners, and would sign an oath of allegiance. Another limited amnesty that targeted Southern civilians came into effect on May 26, 1864. "On April 9th 1865, when Gen. Robert E. Lee surrendered his Army of Northern Virginia to Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, the men and officers were "allowed to return to their homes, not to be disturbed by United States authority so long as they observe their paroles and the laws in force where they may reside." This stipulation allowed Confederate soldiers to return to their homes without the threat of trials for treason. ' On May 29, 1865, President Andrew Johnson provided for amnesty and the return of property to those who would take an oath of allegiance. However, former Confederate government officials with the rank of colonel and above from the Confederate army or lieutenant and above from the Confederate navy, and people owning more than $20,000 worth of property had to apply for individual pardons. Though it was difficult for ex-Confederates to ask for a pardon for something they did not believe had been wrong, thousands did ask for and receive amnesty from President Johnson. On Christmas Day 1865, Johnson granted an unconditional pardon to all Civil War participants except high-ranking military and civil officials. In May 1872 the Congressional Amnesty Act gave the right to hold office again to almost all Southern leaders who had been excluded from public office by the 14th Amendment. Andrew Johnson official biography, White House website: "With the Assassination of Lincoln, the Presidency fell upon an old-fashioned southern Jacksonian Democrat of pronounced states' rights views. Although an honest and honorable man, Andrew Johnson was one of the most unfortunate of Presidents. Arrayed against him were the Radical Republicans in Congress, brilliantly led and ruthless in their tactics. Johnson was no match for them. "Born in Raleigh, North Carolina, in 1808, Johnson grew up in poverty. He was apprenticed to a tailor as a boy, but ran away. He opened a tailor shop in Greeneville, Tennessee, married Eliza McCardle, and participated in debates at the local academy. "Entering politics, he became an adept stump speaker, championing the common man and vilifying the plantation aristocracy. As a Member of the House of Representatives and the Senate in the 1840's and '50's, he advocated a homestead bill to provide a free farm for the poor man. "During the secession crisis, Johnson remained in the Senate even when Tennessee seceded, which made him a hero in the North and a traitor in the eyes of most Southerners. In 1862 President Lincoln appointed him Military Governor of Tennessee, and Johnson used the state as a laboratory for reconstruction. In 1864 the Republicans, contending that their National Union Party was for all loyal men, nominated Johnson, a Southerner and a Democrat, for Vice President. "After Lincoln's death, President Johnson proceeded to reconstruct the former Confederate States while Congress was not in session in 1865. He pardoned all who would take an oath of allegiance, but required leaders and men of wealth to obtain special Presidential pardons. "By the time Congress met in December 1865, most southern states were reconstructed, slavery was being abolished, but "black codes" to regulate the freedmen were beginning to appear. "Radical Republicans in Congress moved vigorously to change Johnson's program. They gained the support of northerners who were dismayed to see Southerners keeping many prewar leaders and imposing many prewar restrictions upon Negroes. "The Radicals' first step was to refuse to seat any Senator or Representative from the old Confederacy. Next they passed measures dealing with the former slaves. Johnson vetoed the legislation. The Radicals mustered enough votes in Congress to pass legislation over his veto--the first time that Congress had overridden a President on an important bill. They passed the Civil Rights Act of 1866, which established Negroes as American citizens and forbade discrimination against them. "A few months later Congress submitted to the states the Fourteenth Amendment, which specified that no state should "deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law." All the former Confederate States except Tennessee refused to ratify the amendment; further, there were two bloody race riots in the South. Speaking in the Middle West, Johnson faced hostile audiences. The Radical Republicans won an overwhelming victory in Congressional elections that fall. "In March 1867, the Radicals effected their own plan of Reconstruction, again placing southern states under military rule. They passed laws placing restrictions upon the President. When Johnson allegedly violated one of these, the Tenure of Office Act, by dismissing Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton, the House voted eleven articles of impeachment against him. He was tried by the Senate in the spring of 1868 and acquitted by one vote. In 1875, Tennessee returned Johnson to the Senate. He died a few months later. " I am hoping to find a list of Kentucky soldiers who were granted pardons and I know such a list exists. If anyone has any leads, please write me! (c) Copyright 4 May 2000, Sandra K. Gorin, All Rights Reserved. sgorin@glasgow-ky.com Col. 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