December 8, 1863---The Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction

DECEMBER 8, 1863:          

In his third State of The Union Address, 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. The Union armies had captured large sections of the South, and some States were ready to have their loyal governments reestablished. The Proclamation addressed three main areas of concern:  First, it allowed for a full pardon for and restoration of property to all engaged in the rebellion with the exception of the highest Confederate officials and military leaders. Second, it allowed for a new State government to be formed when 10 percent of the eligible voters had taken an oath of allegiance to the United States.  Third, the Southern States admitted in this fashion were encouraged to enact plans to deal with the freed slaves so long as their freedom was not compromised. 

In short, the terms of the plan were easy for most Southerners to accept. Though the emancipation of slaves was an impossible pill for some Confederates to swallow, Lincoln's plan was charitable, considering the costliness of the war. With the Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction, Lincoln was seizing the initiative for Reconstruction from Congress. 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. After Lincoln’s death, the terms of Reconstruction were to become far, far more onerous.