Download US History - Georgia Standards

Georgia
Department of
Education
U.S. History
(High School)
Unit 5-Civil War and Reconstruction
Special
points of
interest:

Introduction to
Unit 5
Framework

Pre-Civil War

Civil War
leadership

Reconstruction
SSUSH 8 and
9 of the
Georgia
Performance
Standards
outline the
Civil War
period.
The
American Civil War
(1861-1865) is one of
the defining moments
in our nation’s history.
Divisions over slavery
and states’ rights,
which had been
present since the
nation’s formation,
tore the nation apart
in open conflict.
Unit 5 of the
GaDOE
Frameworks
analyzes
Civil War causes,
battles, leaders,
and the
subsequent
aftermath during
the
Reconstruction
period.
FOR TEACHERS:
From Colonization through the
pre-Civil War period, the first part of
the course contains clues leading to
the impending crisis
(Examples include the Three-Fifths
Compromise, Nullification Doctrine,
the Dred Scott Decision, etc.)
Conversely, many
post-Reconstruction events can trace
their origin to the Civil War period
(i.e. the Civil Rights Movement, the
Bakke Decision, etc.)
Use foreshadowing and
“working backwards” techniques to
enhance classroom instruction.
Page
2
PRE-CIVIL WAR PERIOD (1820-1861)
Slavery had been part of
America’s history since
before the nation was
established. The growing
rift between Northern
states and Southern
states became more complex and troubling as the
years went by. The last
Northern state to abolish
slavery was New Jersey
in 1804, but there was
still little attention given
to abolition on a national
level until Nat Turner’s
Rebellion in 1830.
Turner’s Rebellion
helped spark the
abolitionist movement
and moved slavery to the
political forefront.
John Brown
(1800-1859) led a
raid on the federal
arsenal at
Harper’s Ferry in
hopes of inspiring
and arming a slave
rebellion. Brown
was tried for
treason and
executed.
“In your hands, my
dissatisfied fellowcountrymen, and
not in mine, is the
momentous issue
of civil war.... You
have no oath
registered in
heaven to destroy
the Government,
while I shall have
the most solemn
one to "preserve,
protect, and
defend
it.“… Lincoln’s
1st Inaugural
Address (1861)
U.S.
John C. Calhoun’s
Nullification Doctrine
helped inject the issue
of states’ rights into
the national debate.
Since the states were
in existence before
the Constitution was
created, did the states
have the authority to
decide which federal
laws should be followed?
The federal system of
government adopted
by the U.S. made such
questions legitimate
concerns.
The issue of slavery
became even more
alarming as the nation
continued to expand
west during the
Manifest Destiny era of
The Missouri
Compromise,
Wilmot Proviso, and the
Compromise of 1850
were attempts to
decrease tensions but
ultimately proved to be
unsatisfactory.
The Kansas-Nebraska
Act of 1854 destroyed
any hope of compromise
between the two sides.
ABRAHAM LINCOLN: TRIAL BY FIRE
No other president has so
captured the interest and
imagination of generations
of Americans as
Abraham Lincoln has.
From countless books,
re-enactors, and even toys,
Lincoln is everywhere.
The defining
aspect of Lincoln’s
presidency is that the
entire four years is
consumed with one event:
The Civil War.
History
Of course there were
economic and international
decisions made during the
Lincoln administration, but
they were usually
involving the Civil War in
one way or another.
The Emancipation
Proclamation remains the
crowning achievement of
his administration.
Lincoln’s transformation
from a moderate who favored slavery’s containment to “the Great
Emancipator” serves as a testament to his evolving leadership.
Lincoln’s expansion of federal
power such as suspension of the
writ of habeas corpus and
utilization of emergency powers
remain controversial even
today.
Students should use critical
thinking to see how Lincoln
struggled to preserve the Union
and the tough decisions that he
made in order to accomplish
this goal.
Volume
1,
Issue
1
Page
CIVIL WAR LEADERS (UNION)
SSUSH 9 asks us to “describe
the roles of Ulysses Grant and
William T. Sherman”.
The key thing to remember
here is that both of these
Northern generals came to
prominence late in the war
after many of their
predecessors had failed.
Ulysses Grant would utilize
determination, patience, and
doggedness in order to
capture the Confederate
stronghold of Vicksburg on the
Mississippi River in 1863.
The Vicksburg campaign
would last four months but
would prove to be a major
event in the ultimate Union
victory.
Gen. William T. Sherman’s
March to the Sea from Atlanta
to Savannah in 1864 would
help force the South into
submission while committing
acts that still raise questions
of the ethics of “total war”.
KEY QUESTIONS:
1.
Why were Grant and
Sherman able to succeed
where so many other
Union generals failed?
2.
What characteristics did
Grant possess that served
him well in the Vicksburg
Campaign?
3.
Do you think Sherman’s
total war techniques were
morally justified?
CIVIL WAR LEADERS (CONFEDERATE)
Jefferson Davis served as the
President of the
Confederacy from
February 1861 to May 1865.
Students should compare
and contrast the challenges
faced by Lincoln and Davis.
KEY QUESTION:
1. What specific issues did
Davis have to face as
president of a
confederal
government?
“That man
Grant will
fight us
every day,
and every
hour, until
the end of
this War.”
Confederate
General
James
Longstreet
One of the great ironies of the
Civil War was that the man asked
to lead the main Confederate
force had his doubts over slavery
and the legality of secession.
However, Gen. Robert E. Lee,
would side with his home state of
Virginia and lead his armies at
the battles of Chancellorsville
and Gettysburg.
The generalship of Thomas
“Stonewall” Jackson was a
major factor in Confederate
success early in the war.
His death at the Battle of
Chancellorsville in May of 1863
was a considerable blow to the
Southern cause.
KEY QUESTIONS:
KEY QUESTION:
1. Why did Robert E. Lee turn
down the opportunity to lead
the Union forces?
1. What if Stonewall Jackson
had been present at the
Battle of Gettysburg?
Would this have changed
the outcome?
2. What impact did Lee’s battle
strategy have on the
Battle of Gettysburg?
3
RECONSTRUCTION (1865-1877)
“What rights and protections should newly freed slaves receive now
that the fighting is over?”
“Who should take on the leadership role for the Reconstruction era:
the President or Congress?”
“What does it mean to be a citizen of the United States?”
These were just a handful of the momentous questions that faced
America in the post-Civil War era known as Reconstruction.
Americans had endured four years of horrendous fighting, but several
of the issues that had sparked the conflict remained unresolved.
Any hope for a smooth transition were marred by the assassination of
Abraham Lincoln and the rise of contentious Andrew Johnson.
President Andrew Johnson (1865-1869)
battled with the Radical Republicans over
the issue of Reconstruction.
President Johnson’s lenient plan for state’s readmission to the Union
was in stark contrast to the so-called Radical Republicans who favored
programs to assist newly freed slaves and punish ex-Confederates.
These quarrels would eventually lead to Johnson becoming the first
U.S. president to face the impeachment process.
The road to racial equality would not be an easy
one. Although the Thirteenth Amendment
abolished slavery in the U.S., groups such as the
Ku Klux Klan would emerge to try and regulate
African-Americans to the status of second class
citizens. The ratification of the 14th Amendment
helped further advance the cause of all Americans
being able to enjoy the rights and privileges of
citizenship. The 15th Amendment, giving African
-American males the right to vote was the last of
the Reconstruction Amendments to the Constitution.
Charleston, S.C. in 1865
KEY QUESTIONS:
1.
Why is the Reconstruction era often viewed by historians as a failure?
2.
How successful was the federal government in enforcing the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments?
3.
What aspects of the 14th Amendment were used in later court cases (i.e. Roe v. Wade and the Bakke Decision)?
4.
How did the election of Rutherford B. Hayes mark the end of the Reconstruction period?
5.
How does the presidential election of 2000 compare to the election of 1876?
Created by Alan Bowers