Lincoln's Ideas For Reconstruction After The Civil War

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After the civil war both Lincoln and the South had differing ideas for reconstruction. Although the North had won the war, tensions were still high between the two sides of the country. Lincoln wanted no persecutions, no bloody work, and to let prisoners of war go; he had no interest in continuing the killing that the civil war had brought upon the nation. Lincoln also wanted them to draft a new constitution, he did not want to punish the south, he wanted to amalgamate them with the union as fast as possible. Radical republicans however did not want to the country to reunify, they also did not agree with Lincoln’s peaceful solution to end slavery. They wanted the South to be severely punished for their crimes. The debate between Lincoln and the radical republicans was fierce, it also had many consequences. Lincoln wanted nothing to do with war or conflict. His whole plan for reconstruction was focused on peace and prosperity for the country, he simply wanted the nation to forget their differences and become unified under one commander. Lincoln wanted a peaceful end to slavery, although the 13th amendment had been passed and slaves were emancipated everywhere. The South was reluctant on following this, although the South had to comply they put in laws to impose restrictions on African Americans. Lincoln believed the war …show more content…

They believed that anyone associated with the confederacy should not have the right to vote. They believed that Lincoln was too lenient on the South; they were also more accepting of freed black men. The party was also very wary of the South, Radical Republicans, although fighting for a good cause were unable to see past the mask of revenge that had formed over their eyes. Lincoln was trying to end the conflict as quickly as possible bringing normality back to the nation. The party wanted to enfranchise all freed men and ensure their