The Loyalty Oath during the Civil War

[Anita]

(02-01-2015 04:53 PM)STS Lincolnite Wrote:  Lincoln's plans for reconstruction...one of the great what ifs in history. I agree with what Bill and Mark Neely (per Roger's post) have stated.

With the start of the war, Lincoln's primary purpose was a restoration of the Union - all the states returning to "their proper place". Slavery, for example, still existing where it already existed. Then the nature and circumstances in the war caused a change in his ideas and philosophy. Soon the war was about more than just restoring the old Union with its same problems. It became about a transformation from that old Union into what Lincoln believed was one that was more consistent with the promise of the Founding Fathers. A Union where "all men are created equal". In hindsight, I think this is really what "reconstruction" was - a process of transformation that began with the start of the war itself.

I don't think we can ever know how Reconstruction would have looked under Lincoln's leadership, and I don't think what his thoughts were April 1865 would give us much of a clue as to how it would have turned out. This is because whatever Lincoln's plans were or were not at the time of his death, they would certainly have changed and evolved as the circumstances regarding the post-war Reconstruction unfolded. This was one of his great gifts. An approach that allowed him to see the bigger picture, to grow in his thoughts and ideas and to effectively adjust the "game plan" as he went along and as circumstances dictated. To pigeonhole Lincoln into a straight forward, unchanging course of action (leniency toward the South or harshness toward the South) is just too simple and it would be wholly inconsistent with his modus operandi.

Thank you for this insight. I think it is right on. I believe in his private thoughts he had set goals for what he wanted to achieve in his second term so this nation could know a new burst of freedom. How and when they might be realized would be dependent upon a political playing field he was denied.