Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction & the Wade-Davis Bill

President Lincoln and Congress had differing views on the reconstruction of the South. Lincoln, known for favoring the preservation of the Union, proposed a way of quickly readmitting the rebellious states. This was summarized in the Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction in December 1863. This pardoned and returned property "all persons who have, directly or by implication, participated in the existing rebellion," save certain prominent Confederate leaders, as long as they took the following oath:

“I...do solemnly swear, in presence of Almighty God, that I will henceforth faithfully support, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States and the Union of the States thereunder; and that I will, in like manner, abide by and faithfully support all acts of congress passed during the existing rebellion with reference to slaves, so long and so far as not repealed, modified, or held void by congress, or by decision of the supreme court; and that I will, in like manner, abide by and faithfully support all proclamations of the President made during the existing rebellion having reference to slaves, so long and so far as not modified or declared void by decision of the supreme court. So help me God.”

If ten percent of the population of a state in rebellion took this oath, then the state would be able to set up its state government in which abolition was required. By making these concessions to southern states, Lincoln hoped the war would be shortened; Louisiana and Arkansas were in fact already on the path to statehood along these lines by 1864.

Members of Congress felt Lincoln was much to easy on southerners who they felt were traitorous to the Union, and they refused to acknowledge new members from Louisiana and Arkansas. They also felt that Lincoln was overstepping his position as president, and that Congress should decide by which means the rebellious states should be readmitted to the Union. Congress' legislative response to Lincoln's ten-percent plan was the Wade-Davis Bill. This required fifty percent of the voting population to take the oath, and only non-Confederates could participate in the state's constitutional convention. It also strongly encouraged black suffrage. Lincoln, already on bad terms with Congress, did not want to veto the bill, but he would not accept reversing his own efforts at bringing an easy end to the war. Therefore, he use a pocket veto to nullify the bill, and due to his assassination, the conflict between Lincoln and Congress was never resolved, and the issue of Reconstruction passed to Andrew Johnson.


Divine, Robert A., T. H. Breen, George M. Fredrickson, and R. Hal Williams. America Past and Present. Revised Sixth Edition, AP* Edition . Addison-Wesley Educational Publishers Inc., 2003. 456-57. Print.

“Lincoln issues Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction.” 2010. The History Channel website. Nov 14 2010, 9:51 http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/lincoln-issues-proclamation-of-amnesty-and-reconstruction.

"Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction, December 8, 1863." Freedmen and Southern Society Project. University of Maryland, n.d. Web. 14 Nov 2010. <http://www.history.umd.edu/Freedmen/procamn.htm>.