Southern Reconciliation and the “lost Cause”

Christian OjedaPeriod 1

Click icon to add picture

Southern Reconstruction

Presidential election 1864

• This election was a major shift in political structure for the South.

• The Republican candidate for the 1864 presidential election was Abraham Lincoln, who had already completed one term in office.

• The Democrat candidate for the 1864 presidential election was George McClellan.

• The election was concluded as Abraham Lincoln had remained as the 16th President of the Union States of America.

• This election is significant as it will affect the process of Southern reconstruction.

Political structure

• Due to the fact that a Republican (Abraham Lincoln) was in office, the Legislature was also composed of many Republican members.

• Because of this, the North was mostly composed of Republicans.

• The South however did not stop defending their cause and what they believed in, categorizing the South as mostly Democrat.

• The Union government was determined to start reconstructing the South but the South denied the requests they were sent many times.

Social Structure

• As an outcome of the Civil War, the social structure of the South flourished rapidly.

• Industrialization was the main cause for this growth of social structure.

• Cash crops were produced more in the South, oppose to the demand of cotton that was apparent

during the War• More industrial factories were built, creating the

opportunity for more Southerners to become employed and help produce these new products.

• Such occupations became available i.e. shopkeepers, lawyers, physicians, businessmen.

Social Structure (Cont.)

• Beliefs had also changed among individuals and families in the South.

• Some Southerners had accepted the new way of life they must now live a life without slaves. It was not a great amount, but was exceptional.

• Some Southerners had only changed their views to make the conversion of life easier for them.

• Others had not only believed in a life without slaves but became advocates for the new slave rights.

Southern Reconstruction

• Since the assassination of Lincoln, only a few days after the end of the War, President Johnson was appointed President of the Union States of America.

• President Johnson had proposed the plan to begin Southern reconstruction.

• The first step to this process began with the First Congressional Reconstruction, which was held from December 1865 to July 1866.

• This 39th Congress meeting was one of the most important in American history.

• This meeting began the constructing of the Reconstruction Acts of 1867.

• For the time being, one important issue brought up during this convention was the proposal of the 14th Amendment.

Southern Reconstruction (Cont.)

• There was a Second Congressional Reconstruction in December 1866.

• The Congress became angry towards the South and the President

• The South did not cooperate with the requests sent by the North.

• President Johnson was blamed for the opposition of the South. He had pro-South beliefs, therefore allowing the reconstruction process to not happen so quickly as Congress wanted it to.

• After this convention, Congress began the final approach to the reconstruction and proposed an act, or acts, called the Reconstruction Act of 1867.

Southern Reconstruction (Cont.)

Reconstruction Act of 1867

• There are three different acts which this one Act is composed of.

• Each act, being slightly different from each other, all dealt with “an act to provide for the more efficient government of the Rebel States.”

• The First Reconstruction Act was passed March 2, 1867.

• The Second Reconstruction Act was passed March 23, 1867.

• The Third Reconstruction Act was passed July 19, 1867.

Southern Reconstruction (Cont.)

Reconstruction Act of 1867 (cont.)

• This Reconstruction Act was to be enacted for all Rebel States, all Confederate states with the exception of Tennessee, the first state readmitted back to the Union.

• All three acts were passed by the House and the Senate but were vetoed by the President, however the Congress overrode the veto and passed the bill into law.

Southern Reconstruction (Cont.)

Radical Reconstruction

• This idea was the last major approach for the North to reconstruct the South.

• This idea was discussed in the third act from the Reconstruction Act of 1867.

• Radical Reconstruction called for the South to divide into military districts and for the states to adopt a new state constitution that will introduce black suffrage in these new drafts.

Southern Reconstruction (Cont.)

Radical Reconstruction (cont.)

• This approach was very successful to the extent that every Rebel State complied with the rules and conditions of Radical Reconstruction.

• This approach ended with an extra benefit for the North as the States slowly began to be readmitted into the Union States of America.

Southern Reconstruction (Cont.)

1. Tennessee – July 24, 1866

2. Arkansas – June 24, 1868

3. Louisiana – June 25, 1868

4. Florida – June 25, 1868

5. North Carolina – June 25, 1868

6. South Carolina – June 25,

1868

7. Alabama – July 14, 1868

8. Virginia – January 26, 1870

9. Mississippi – February 23, 1870

10. Texas – March 20, 1870

11. Georgia – July 15, 1870

Readmission of the States (Back into the Union)

Conclusion of Southern Reconstruction

• Once the Rebel States had been readmitted to the Union States of America, the single nation was called the United States of America.

• This final action that concluded the reconstruction of the South was the ratification of the 15th Amendment. Since the end of the Civil War, Amendment 13, 14, and 15 were ratified.

• Amendment 13: Ratified December 6, 1865; Slavery (or involuntary servitude) shall no longer exist within the United States

• Amendment 14: Ratified July 9, 1868; All persons born or naturalized are citizens of the United States and the state they reside in.

• Amendment 15: Ratified February 3 (or 17), 1870; All citizens of the United States have the right to vote, despite color, race, or any previous condition of servitude.

The “lost cause” & Reconciliation

CONCEPT

• The “Lost Cause” is considered the aftermath emotion toward the end of the Civil War from the Southerners’ perspectives. It is a described as the way the South must now deal with a new way of life as well as commemorating the lives that died for their cause, to keep their slave rights.

• This concept derived from the Ghosts of the Confederacy, which consists of Confederate veterans and strong Confederate advocates.

• These “Ghosts” supported their people was well as their accomplishments made in during the War.

Concept (Cont.)

• As more Southerners began to grasp this concept of the Lost Cause, they began to remember the war the way they want to remember it.

• The South believed that their cause was something the Union could not understand as well as they do.

• The South also began to believe their surrender to the Union was merely a subsidiary defeat. This was believed as so to not seem like imposters when boasting about their accomplishments and honors.

Reconciliation

Freedmen’s Bureau Act

• This act, established by Congress on March 3, 1865, created an agency, or organization, known as the Freedmen’s Bureau and The U.S. Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen and Abandoned Lands.

• This organization was used to assist the newly freed, yet poor, slaves and the abandoned white people after the end of the War.

• This organization was established in 1865 with Oliver Howard as the Head.

• Provided food, shelter, medical and financial aide to people of these categories.

• This organization was placed under the supervision of the U.S. Department of Defense.

Reconciliation (cont.)

Issues with the Freedmen’s Bureau Act

• This act was approved by Lincoln before his assassination but was not enforced correctly by President Johnson.

• This act was meant to be existent and help assist these people only within the first year since the end of the Civil War but was shut down by Congress in 1872, due to lack of funding.

• Many of the white people had gained their land back and left nothing for the freed slaves.

• More land = Successful individual

Reconciliation (cont.)

• As many more Southerners began to believe in the concept of the Lost Cause and the purpose of the Freedmen’s Bureau weakened, African American rights were ultimately ignored.

• Many of the Ghosts were frustrated by their new rights.

• Because of the frustration white people were having against African American rights, they formed white supremacies, two of which we know of very well.

Reconciliation (cont.)

• The two major white supremacies formed during this time of the Lost Cause were the Ku Klux Klan, KKK, and the White League.

• There was not a difference between these two organizations besides the members, however it was the job of both groups to use violence in order to stop and scare African Americans of their new citizenship.

O. P. V. L.“The Union As It Was” by Thomas Nast. Published in

Harper’s Weekly, October 1874

Click icon to add picture

O. P. V. L.

• Origin (O): The cartoon was illustrated by Thomas Nast. It was published in October 1874 in Harper’s Weekly newspaper.

• Purpose (P): The purpose of this cartoon depicts a type of propaganda which shows how the power of these two major white supremacies during this reconciliation period are the central organizations in fighting against the new rights given to African Americans since the end of the War. Their hate for black people is shows as the slave family in the flag of the picture is crouching in fear, supporting the evidence that violence was present in order to make these people fear the white supremacies. There is a negative comment towards the advocates of the freedom and suffrage of slaves (Union), and a positive comment towards the advocates of these supremacies, the Ghosts of the Confederacy.

O. P. V. L. (cont.)

• Value (V): The value of this cartoon was the time in which it was created, being in 1874, during the active movement of these supremacies throughout the country. It is historically accurate as the illustrator captures significant roles of the White League and the Ku Klux Klan being the violence during the time of Southern reconciliation.

• Limitation (L): The limitation of this cartoon is that it is biased in terms of being supportive propaganda for these white supremacies. It also depicts the opinions of the Ghosts of the Confederacy only, not including the opinions of the opposing advocates, supporting the civil rights of African Americans.

Conclusion to Southern reconciliation

• This period of violence and hate continued until the end of the 1870s as the White League and the KKK both diminished in the shadow of Southern reconstruction.

• The KKK would surface again even stronger during the civil rights movement of the 1960s.

• Now, Southerners began to come to terms with the new way of life they must have to live and began to show signs of reconciliation after the Civil War.

Bibliography

• "Lost Cause." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2014. Web. 7 Oct. 20 http://americanhistory.abclio.com/Search/Display/294606?terms=lost+cause

• "White League and Ku Klux Klan terrorize cowering African Americans.” Photos/Illustrations. Library of Congress. American History. ABC-CLIO, 2014. Web. 7 Oct. 2014. http://americanhistory.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/1582171?terms=lost+cause

• McPherson, James M. Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era. New York: Oxford University Press, 1988. Print.

• Foster, Gaines M. Ghosts of the Confederacy: Defeat, the Lost Cause, and the Emergence of the New South, 1865 to 1913. New York: Oxford University Press, 1987. Print.

• "Reconstruction: Political & Economic, 1865-1877." - 1962, Page Iii by William Archibald Dunning. Web. 8 Oct. 2014. http://www.questia.com/read/16224153/reconstruction-political-economic-1865-1877

• Beck, Tim. How “The Ghosts of the Confederacy” Changed the South. Sandia High School, July 26, 2007. Print

• American Experience: Reconstruction, the Second Civil War. PBS, 1997-2004. Print. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/reconstruction/states/sf_timeline.html

• Carr, F.L. A Timeline of Reconstruction: 1865-1877. GMU’s History 122, June 23, 1998. Print. http://chnm.gmu.edu/courses/122/recon/chron.html

• US Constitution. Amend. XIII. Amend. XIV. Amend. XV. Print.

• “Freedmen’s Bureau.” HISTORY. American History. 2014. Print. http://www.history.com/topics/black-history/freedmens-bureau