The Ten Percent

The "10% Reconstruction Plan" was introduced by Abraham Lincoln in December 1863. It was essentially a pattern to restore the Rebel states back into the Union, once the fighting had ceased and the Union declared victory. Under this plan, Lincoln laid out how the South would be rebuilt, physically, economically and socially, and then eventually bring back the rebellious states back into the fold of the Union. Unfortunately, this plan would never get the chance to be put into effect, since Lincoln's assassination by John Wilkes Booth thrust Andrew Johnson into power, and gave Johnson the ability to implement his own plan.

President Lincoln's design to rehabilitate the South began with the decree that would give it the nickname "10% plan": if 10% of the population of a Rebel state – according to the 1860 voter roll – would take an oath of allegiance and pledge to abide by the Emancipation Proclamation and 14^th Amendment, they would be repatriated into the Union. (Mintz) That 10% would then be allowed to elect delegates to craft new state constitutions and governments, provided they recognized the abolition of slavery, and anyone save Confederate government officials and high-ranking military officers would be eligible for a full pardon from the President. One of the most attractive – to the Southerners – yet controversial – to Congress – moves by Lincoln was to guarantee that all of the South's citizens would have their private property protected, with the exception of slaves. (Foner) Most of the more moderate Republican in the Senate and House of Representatives supported this whole-heartedly, since they wanted to just end the conflict, much to the chagrin of the more hardened partisans, who wanted to punish the South with an iron hand.

It was primarily a political move, and in Lincoln's eyes, it would bring about a faster end to the war, by encouraging the populace of the South to abandon the rebel cause, and strengthening the North's resolve by giving them the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. However, Congress wanted citizens to take an oath of loyalty before being repatriated, and said that not just 10%, but 50% of the voters should be required to take this oath before being allowed statehood again. This clash of ideas begged the question: who should make the policies for the Reconstruction? Congress, or the President? The Democrats in the Congressional houses, who were clamoring the loudest for a truce and peaceful solution, were initially unopposed to Lincoln's plan, but then claimed that the Legislative Branch should be the ones to create the terms of Reconstruction. Hardline Republicans agreed with this, but only because they felt the terms needed to be stricter, to punish the South for seceding. They feared the rise of the plantation aristocracy once again, and that blacks would be forced back into slavery or virtual slavery, by being kept on the bottom rung of the social ladder. Because of this, in spite of Tennessee, Louisiana and Arkansas electing officials and ratifying constitutions that met all of Lincoln's requirements, Congress rejected them, even though the received presidential approval. Those self same hardline, radical Republicans presented the Wade-Davis Bill as an alternative to the 10% Plan, and it was strong armed through both houses of the legislature. They had hoped to wrest control of the restoration process, and fundamentally transform the society of the South, disbanding the established plantation aristocracy, redistribute the land, develop industry, and guarantee civil liberties – though not a vote – for former slaves, and in spite of being a minority in the Republican party, managed to sway enough of their fellow GOP members to pass the Wade-Davis Bill. This bill incorporated the 50% requirement thought necessary, and the so-called "ironclad oath" swearing allegiance to the Union of the United States. But thanks to the system of checks and balances integrated into the framework of our nation, Lincoln pocket-vetoed the bill, letting it simply expire on his desk. It is interesting to note that if Congress had waited until after the election to pass the bill, Lincoln might have possibly considered it. As it stood, however, he would've appeared as a uncompromising, partisan radical who wasn't interested in ending the war quickly.  (Phillips)

The 10% plan had begun to be implemented under Lincoln, with certain aspects of it being run by the military, and some from the civilian sector, as Lincoln authorized several of his wartime generals to resettle former slaves on confiscated lands. For example, General William T. Sherman’s Special Field Order No. 15 set aside land in South Carolina and islands off the coast of Georgia for roughly 40,000 former slaves. To counter this, and in retaliation for the veto of the Wade-Davis Bill, Congress established the Freedmen's Bureau, and it was only slightly more successful than the failed bill. Many in the South regarded it as little more than a nuisance, and most considered it a threat to the very way of life in the recovering states. The southern aristocracy saw the bureau as a northern attempt to redistribute their lands to former slaves and resisted the Freedmen’s Bureau from its beginning, and more than a few plantation owners intimidated the former slaves into giving up their land, while others bribed the Bureau officials, who would then turn a blind eye to the abuse of the freed blacks. Despite the debauchery to be found in the department, the Freedmen's Bureau did manage to establish schools for the blacks, giving nearly 250,000 freed slaves access to education.

Unfortunately, the crazed, deranged schemes of John Wilkes Booth never gave the country a chance to see Lincoln's 10% Plan to be fully implemented, even though Lincoln and Congress were heading to a political showdown. After Lincoln's death the day after he was shot, it vaulted Vice President Andrew Johnson – a Tennessee Democrat who didn't care for Lincoln's plan at all – into power.

References

Foner, Eric. Forever Free: The Story of Emancipation & Reconstruction. New York: Vintage Books, 2005.

Mintz, R. (n.d.). Oracle thinkquest. Retrieved from http://library.thinkquest.org/J0112391/reconstruction.htm

Phillips, B. (n.d.). Spark notes. Retrieved from http://www.sparknotes.com/history/american/reconstruction/section1.rhtml