Civil War Dbq

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The Civil War, from 1861-1864, was a collection of brutal battles between the North and South as a result of their sectional differences. Although the North won the military victory against the South, the South was able to keep many of its policies in place after the Civil War. During the Reconstruction Period, 1865-1877, it was evident that the South won the Civil War in many ways because of their political and social policies that they implemented or kept in place. While the 13th through 15th amendments changed social issues for a period of time in the South by allowing more opportunities and rights for former slaves, the South continued their social dominance over black people. Also, politically, near the beginning of Reconstruction and …show more content…

In the beginning of Reconstruction, the presidents’ plans, Lincoln’s and Johnson’s, were lenient towards ex-Confederates, even though they had just fought a war with them. One of the policies that was put into place in the South during this lenient period was the Black Codes, which restricted rights and movements of former slaves. The Black Codes prohibited black people from either renting land or borrowing money to buy land, testifying in court, as well as placing freedmen in a form of semi bondage. These policies allowed for the South to keep their cultural institutions intact. Also, towards the end of Reconstruction, the “redeemer” governments regained control. Redeemer governments occurred when white Southern democrats and ex-Confederates were able to vote once again. After this occurred, white politicians tried to regulate the former slaves’ involvement in government and politics by voting out black people thus removing them from office. This caused Southern white citizens to dominate the government for almost the next 100 years. The South was able to control their state government during the beginning of Reconstruction and towards the end of Reconstruction, which, in turn, would have resulted in victory to the Civil