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why did presidents lincoln and johnson propose lenient treatment for the defeated south

by Esther Lubowitz Published 3 years ago Updated 2 years ago

How did Lincoln treat Southerners during Reconstruction?

Far from seeing Southerners as enemies to be punished, Lincoln regarded them as fellow Americans who needed to be brought back into the Union as soon as possible. This was the overriding objective his lenient Reconstruction plan was intended to achieve.

Was Lincoln's plan for reconstruction lenient?

But Lincoln believed that public opinion was firmly on his side, and that most people, both North and South, would, once the War was finally over, want to move on and put aside their differences. To this end, he put forward a Reconstruction plan which, by anyone's standards, was remarkably lenient, all things considered.

Why did Johnson want to reincorporate the south?

In keeping with Lincoln’s plan, Johnson desired to quickly reincorporate the South back into the Union on lenient terms and heal the wounds of the nation. This position angered many in his own party.

What were the criticisms of Lincoln's ten-percent plan?

Critics saw this as excessively lenient, as it set a low bar for re-admittance to the Union. However, it should be noted that Lincoln's ten-percent plan was conceived while the Civil War was still ongoing and was more of a political tactic designed to help bring the War to a speedy close than a detailed blueprint for post-war Reconstruction.

Why did Lincoln want to treat the South with leniency after the war?

Lincoln's reconstructive policy toward the South was lenient because he wanted to popularize his Emancipation Proclamation. Lincoln feared that compelling enforcement of the proclamation could lead to the defeat of the Republican Party in the election of 1864, and that popular Democrats could overturn his proclamation.

Why was Lincoln so lenient with the southern states?

Why was Lincoln so lenient with the Southern states? He planned on issuing punishments at a later date. He wanted the country to handle the problems themselves. He believed no true division had occurred.

What did Lincoln and Johnson require the South to do in their presidential Reconstruction plan?

The Confederate states would be required to uphold the 13th Amendment, which abolished slavery; swear loyalty to the Union; and pay off their war debt.

How did Johnson want to treat the South after the war?

In 1865 President Andrew Johnson implemented a plan of Reconstruction that gave the white South a free hand in regulating the transition from slavery to freedom and offered no role to blacks in the politics of the South.

What were Lincoln's and Johnson's plans for Reconstruction?

The three points of Lincoln's reconstruction plan were to ensure 10 percent of the citizens of former Confederate states swore an oath to the union, to then work to establish new state constitutions, and to provide opportunities for former Confederate soldiers and sympathizers to be granted full pardons for their ...

Why did southern states agree to Johnson's plan of Reconstruction?

Johnson believed in the abolition of slavery, but he did not believe in equal rights for African Americans. Johnson made it so that all southern states had to ratify the 13th amendment (that outlawed slavery in the USA), to be readmitted into the Union.

What was President Johnson's plan for Reconstruction quizlet?

Definition: President Andrew Johnson's plan to rebuild the United States by readmitting Southern States once they had rewritten their state constitution, recreated their state governments, repealed secession, paid off war debts and ratified the 13th amendment.

What was Lincoln's main goal for Reconstruction?

to preserve the UnionAbraham Lincoln's aim was to preserve the Union and end the Civil War as quickly as possible. He promised an easy Reconstruction in order to persuade southern states to surrender.

Was Johnson's Reconstruction plan successful?

Reconstruction was partially successful due to Johnson's reconstruction plan, the southern industry took quite a long fall but got back up because of reconstruction governments, and agriculture in the south changed very slightly in the absence of slavery. After the war, the word reconstruction was given a new meaning.

How did Lincoln and Johnson approach Reconstruction differently?

The main difference between Lincoln's plans for reconstruction and Johnson's was in regard to the rights of freedmen following the conclusion of the Civil War. While Lincoln wanted to ensure rights, such as voting, for the formerly enslaved, Johnson's plan did not have these same requirements.

Which action did president Andrew Johnson take as part of his strategy for Reconstruction?

Which action did President Andrew Johnson take as part of his strategy for Reconstruction? He pardoned many of the leaders of the Confederacy.

Why did President Johnson and the Radical Republicans fight so fiercely over Reconstruction?

The Radical Republicans in Congress were angered by Johnson's actions. They refused to allow Southern representatives and senators to take their seats in Congress. In 1866, the Congress passed the Civil Rights Bill, which granted African Americans equal protection under the law with whites.

What did Lincoln hope would bring about a quick and long-anticipated resolution and make emancipation?

Lincoln hoped that the leniency of the plan—90 percent of the 1860 voters did not have to swear allegiance to the Union or to emancipation— would bring about a quick and long-anticipated resolution and make emancipation more acceptable everywhere. This approach appealed to some in the moderate wing of the Republican Party, which wanted to put the nation on a speedy course toward reconciliation. However, the proposal instantly drew fire from a larger faction of Republicans in Congress who did not want to deal moderately with the South. These members of Congress, known as Radical Republicans, wanted to remake the South and punish the rebels. Radical Republicans insisted on harsh terms for the defeated Confederacy and protection for former slaves, going far beyond what the president proposed.

What did Lincoln do to reunify the Union?

President Lincoln worked to reach his goal of reunifying the nation quickly and proposed a lenient plan to reintegrate the Confederate states. After his murder in 1865, Lincoln’s vice president, Andrew Johnson, sought to reconstitute the Union quickly, pardoning Southerners en masse and providing Southern states with a clear path back to readmission. By 1866, Johnson announced the end of Reconstruction. Radical Republicans in Congress disagreed, however, and in the years ahead would put forth their own plan of Reconstruction.

What did Booth do to the Confederacy?

Booth had steadfastly defended the Confederacy and white supremacy, and his act was part of a larger conspiracy to eliminate the heads of the Union government and keep the Confederate fight going.

What did radical Republicans want?

These members of Congress, known as Radical Republicans, wanted to remake the South and punish the rebels. Radical Republicans insisted on harsh terms for the defeated Confederacy and protection for former slaves, going far beyond what the president proposed.

What was the plan for reconstruction?

ten percent plan. Lincoln’s Reconstruction plan, which required only 10 percent of the 1860 voters in Confederate states to take an oath of allegiance to the Union.

What was the goal of the Civil War?

President Lincoln moved quickly to achieve the war’s ultimate goal: reunification of the country.

Why was the nomination of Johnson important?

It was important for them to show that the party supported all loyal men, regardless of their origin or political persuasion.

What was Lincoln's goal?

Lincoln’s goal to put down the Confederate rebellion and reassemble the Union as quickly as possible also comported with Lincoln’s inherent personality and leadership style. Lincoln was a thoughtful and modest person. He seldom, if ever, bragged or exercised power for his personal benefit. Rather, Lincoln derived his own power and influence by empowering others. So, Lincoln’s advocating to bring the South quickly back into the Union, and thus reestablishing the power of the secessionist states as full members of the United States, was consistent with Lincoln’s modesty and nature to empower others.

What was Abraham Lincoln's goal as President?

From the beginning of his Presidential campaign and certainly once he was elected, Abraham Lincoln’s overarching goal as President of the United States was to preserve the Union. Because South Carolina seceded almost immediately upon Lincoln’s election followed swiftly by several other Confederate states, Lincoln had no option to avoid the Civil War through negotiation. When Confederate troops fired the first shot at Fort Sumter, the Civil War was underway and Lincoln’s persistent goal throughout was to defeat the South and reassemble the Union.

Why did Lincoln send a representative to the Virginia Convention?

Lincoln sent a representative to the Virginia Convention to try to get a commitment from Virginia to stay in the Union. A representative, Colonel Baldwin reported to Lincoln that Virginia wanted to stay in the Union and would help keep the border states from seceding. They were not worried about slavery, but their concern was in Lincoln using force to bring back the seceding states. The convention wanted a written proclamation of not more than five lines that Lincoln would uphold the constitution and federal laws. They wanted a firm commitment that he would not use force to bring the states back into the Union. If he would sign such a proclamation, Virginia would not secede and use their influence to keep the border states from seceding.

Why did the commissioners report to Washington on March 5th?

The commissioners reported to Washington on March 5th, with the goal of speaking to Lincoln to resolve their differences and to acquire diplomatic recognition of their government. Lincoln refused to even talk to them.

What did Lincoln say in his second inaugural address?

As President Lincoln so poetically put in his Second Inaugural Address: “With malice toward none, with charity for all . . . let us strive . . . to bind up the nation’s wounds.” So, Lincoln was not so much exhibiting leniency as he was the final chapter of his policy to preserve the Union.

What did Seward say on April 4th?

On April 4th Seward said to a London Times correspondent; “It would be contrary to the spirit of the American government to use armed force to subjugate the South. If the people of the South want to stay out of the Union, if they desire independence, let them have it.

What was the Crittenden compromise?

The Crittenden Compromise was one attempt at compromise. It extended the Mason Dixon line which would allow slavery in the territories of Arizona and New Mexico, an area that at the time had no more than twenty to thirty slaves living therein. Other portions included compensation for slave owners who lost slaves and a modification of the fugitive slave law making it less objectionable to people in the North. Many in Congress are on record supporting the compromise.

What was Lincoln's plan for the United States?

On December 8, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln offers his conciliatory plan for reunification of the United States with his Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction. By this point in the Civil War, it was clear that Lincoln needed to make some preliminary plans for postwar reconstruction.

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Why did some radical Republicans think the plan was far too easy on the South?

Some Radical Republicans thought the plan was far too easy on the South, but others accepted it because of the president’s prestige and leadership. Following Lincoln’s assassination in April 1865, the disagreements over the postwar reconstruction policy led to a heated battle between the next president, Andrew Johnson, and Congress.

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Was Lincoln's plan for slavery a charitable plan?

In short, the terms of the plan were easy for most Southerners to accept. Though the emancipation of enslaved people was an impossible pill for some Con federates to swallow, Lincoln’s plan was charitable, considering the costliness of the war.

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