Reconstruction Begins

What happened

With the war over and slavery abolished, the nation faced the vast task of rebuilding the South and defining the place of some four million newly freed people. Congress would pass the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments guaranteeing citizenship and voting rights, but Southern 'Black Codes' and violent resistance sought to preserve white supremacy.

Why it matters

Reconstruction transformed the Constitution and the meaning of American citizenship, even as its promises of equality went unfulfilled for another century.

Sources

• National Park Service. Reconstruction · Reputable source