Examkin

Question

Difficulty: MediumResistance to Reconstruction and its Ultimate Collapse

"The committee are of the opinion that the State of Mississippi is now governed by a minority of its people, and that this minority has obtained power by violence, intimidation, and fraud. . . . The colored people of the State are, with few exceptions, Republicans. . . . [but] the Democratic party of the State, by a system of organized violence, intimidation, and fraud, has succeeded in obtaining control of the State government. . . . In this campaign, the Democratic party adopted a policy known as the ‘peace line’ or ‘white line’ policy. . . . Under this policy, the colored voters were threatened with discharge from employment, and with starvation, if they voted the Republican ticket."
— Report of the Senate Select Committee to Inquire into the Mississippi Election of 1875 (Boutwell Report), 1876

The political tactics described in the excerpt most directly contributed to which of the following developments by the late 1870s?

  1. The collapse of Republican state governments and the restoration of Southern Democratic ruleAnswer
  2. B
    The introduction of popular sovereignty to determine the legal status of civil rights in Southern territories
  3. C
    The passage of the Reconstruction Acts to divide the South into military districts controlled by the Union army
  4. D
    The federal government's creation of a permanent agency to redistribute plantation land to freedpeople

Answer

The collapse of Republican state governments and the restoration of Southern Democratic rule
The organized intimidation, violence, and economic coercion described in the report (known as the Mississippi Plan) successfully disenfranchised African American voters and Republican officials. This led directly to the 'Redemption' of Southern states by Democratic coalitions, resulting in the collapse of Republican state governments and the end of Reconstruction by 1877.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the stimulus document to identify the context, main actors, and historical events.
The document is the Boutwell Report of 1876, describing the systematic use of violence, intimidation, and economic coercion (known as the Mississippi Plan) by Southern Democrats during the 1875 Mississippi election.
Understanding the source and the specific methods of resistance to Reconstruction helps clarify the historical cause-and-effect relationships.
2
Evaluate the choices to determine the direct consequence of the Southern Democratic tactics described.
The tactics succeeded in disenfranchising African American voters and overthrowing Republican state governments, a process known as Southern 'Redemption' that led to the collapse of Reconstruction.
This matches the historical development where Redeemers regained political control of the South, culminating in the Compromise of 1877.

Key Concept

The political and economic tactics used by Southern Democrats to resist Reconstruction and restore local control, leading to the collapse of Republican state governments.
Rate this question

Topics

Resistance to Reconstruction and its Ultimate Collapse

More questions from this topic