20. Wartime Reconstruction: Imagining the Aftermath and a Second American Republic

The Civil War and Reconstruction (HIST 119)

This lecture begins with a central, if often overlooked, turning point in the Civil War--the re-election of Abraham Lincoln in 1864. Although the concerted efforts of northern Peace Democrats and a palpable war weariness among the electorate made Lincoln's victory uncertain, timely Union victories in Atlanta and Mobile in September of 1864 secured Lincoln's re-election in November. This lecture concludes Professor Blight's section on the war, following Lee and Grant to Appomattox Courthouse, and describing the surrender of Confederate forces. The nature of Reconstruction and the future of the South, however, remained open questions in April of 1865.

00:00 - Chapter 1. Introduction: Perceiving the Scale of Death through Whitman
06:26 - Chapter 2. Lincoln's Re-election in 1864
15:57 - Chapter 3. The South Surrenders: Grant and Lee at Appomattox
31:41 - Chapter 4. The Aftermath: Changes in the Constitution and Ideas of Reconstruction
46:39 - Chapter 5. Conclusion

Complete course materials are available at the Open Yale Courses website: http://open.yale.edu/courses

This course was recorded in Spring 2008.