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Ten-Percent Plan
The government would pardon all Confederates-except high-ranking Confederate officials and those accused of crimes against prisoners of war- who would swear allegiance to the Union. After 10% of those on the 1860 on the voting lists took this oath of allegiance, a Confederate state could form a new state government and gain representation in Congress. -
Wade-Davis Bill
In response to the Ten-Percent Plan, the Radicals passed the Wade-Davis Bill. This bill proposed that Congress, not the president, be responsible for Reconstruction. The Wade-Davis Bill included demanding and stringent terms for Reconstruction in 1864, which was passed by Congress. Most of all the bill required 50% of voters had to take loyalty oath and vote for a new state constitution. -
Black Codes
Southern state legislatures adopted Black Codes which restricted the rights and movements of the newly freed African Americans. The Black Codes were strict and organized. They restricted the rights and movements of freed African Americans, the blacks worked in cotton fields under supervision, and they refused to seat Alexander and elected representatives and senators from ex-Confederate states. -
Freedman's Bureau
Bureau acted as a welfare agency, providing food, shelter, and medical aid for both blacks and homeless whites. The bureau's greatest success was in education. Freedmen's Bureau provided and accomplished a few things that benefited their people like acting as a welfare agency, and being a success in education. -
Reconstruction Act of 1867
Congress passed three Reconstruction acts, putting the South under military occupation. Divided the former Confederate states into five military districts.Republicans sent the military in order to ensure that blacks' rights were protected. This radical form of Reconstruction included increased requirements for gaining readmission to the Union, such as ratifying the Fourteenth Amendment and guaranteeing the right to vote for all males. -
Impeachment of Andrew Johnson
Johnson became the first president to be impeached. The impeachment of Andrew Johnson had a few ups and downs, such as the Tenure of Office Act being able to be passed by Congress in 1867, and also this law prohibiting the president from removing a federal official or military commander without the approval of the Senate. In the end Johnson became the first president to be impeached. -
14th Amendment
Declared that all people born on US territory were US citizens. Obligated the states to respect their rights as citizens and provide them with "equal protection" and "due process." Countered the Dred Scott decision and provided legal protection against the Black Codes. For the first time, states (not just the federal government) were required by the US constitution to uphold the rights of citizens, which would lead to many Civil Rights court cases in the 1950s. -
15th Amendment
Prohibited any state from denying the right to vote based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude.Considered to be one of the three Reconstruction Amendments. The Republican Congress passed this amendment quickly in order to secure the black vote for their party, which had been important in the previous election.
