U.S. history concepts · AP U.S. History
Reconstruction
Reconstruction: The period after the Civil War (1865 to 1877) when the federal government tried to rebuild the South and define the rights of formerly enslaved people.
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What it means
Reconstruction produced the Thirteenth, Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments, which abolished slavery, defined citizenship and equal protection, and prohibited denying the vote on the basis of race. Black Southerners voted, held office and built churches and schools.
White Southern resistance, violence and declining Northern commitment ended federal intervention after the Compromise of 1877, leaving many gains unenforced for decades.
Example
The Fourteenth Amendment, ratified in 1868, guaranteed equal protection of the laws, a clause later central to Brown v. Board of Education.
On the exam
Reconstruction is a major Period 5 topic and a strong case study for continuity and change over time essays.