In the U.S., the reconstruction era was the one that constituted the historic transformation of this country after it was faced with the civil war. Also, reconstruction constituted the transformation of Southern part of the U.S as the requirement of the Congress. This paper will mainly focus on the Abraham Lincoln’s plans for the reconstruction of the United States.
In 1865, Abraham Lincoln signed a bill that was meant to establish a Bureau of the Refugees, Abandoned lands and also freedmen. This Bureau was specifically done to release the burden of the transition that was initially faced while transferring the Africans Americans from the slavery period so that they can achieve new liberation or freedom. Freedmen’s Bureau was headed by Union General Oliver, where it as given the mandate to provide some act of relief to the white and black refugees, give them adequate medical care and allocate them some lands. This was seen as the best and appropriate measure to ensure that prosperity and the security of these people have been fully done despite the challenges that were faced.
Another major point of concern that Abraham Lincoln had was the need to cater and repair the damaged infrastructure. For instance, transportation infrastructure was in shambles. Thus, his government prioritized every aspect of the infrastructure to enable the economy to regain its stability. On the other hand, Abraham Lincoln aimed at restricting Southern states with no legitimate government, where the civil war had affected these parts. The problem was that slavery issues had hit the conditions in the south parts, and thus, Abraham Lincoln began to rebuild with 10% percent plan. However, states that were governed by the Radical Republicans opposed his proposals. After Lincolns idea to apply ten-percent plan somehow became ineffective, he decided to use the Wade-Davis Bill was later applicable.
Lastly, Lincoln also aimed to help the widows and orphans, where in his second inaugural address speech, he vowed to “care for them that have borne the battle and for his widow and their children.” His words were aimed at healing the nation and protecting the less fortunate.
