Summary
Redeemers were white Southern Democrats who overthrew Reconstruction governments during the 1870s and then dominated Southern politics during the New South Movement. They controlled every former Confederate state during the last quarter of the 19th Century and formed about one-third of both houses of Congress. Their political strength allowed them to rival Northeastern and Western Republicans and dominate Democratic congressional and national party meetings.
About 90% of Redeemers were veterans of the Confederate Army or Confederate government. They supported “Home Rule” and sought to weaken federal protection of African American civil rights. However, economic policy divided them. Major issues included paper money, the national banking system, bond redemption, taxes, tariffs, railroads, and internal improvements.
Southern Republicans had failed to secure many of these economic programs, in part because Northern Republican leaders, often referred to as “Radical Republicans,” distrusted Southern Republicans, excluded them from important decisions, and denied them political patronage through the Spoils System. This divide between the Republicans allowed the Redeemers to gain political strength and push their agenda.
Redeemers eventually supported the Compromise of 1877, which led to the election of Rutherford B. Hayes as President, removed Federal troops from the South, restored Home Rule, and opened access to Federal economic assistance for the former Confederate States. This conservative approach became known as the “Right Fork on the Road to Reunion.”
The “Left Fork” preferred agriculture and supported labor reform and cooperation with Western Republicans. The Left Fork supported more paper money, silver coinage, easier credit, decentralized banking, lower tariffs, an income tax, and stronger railroad regulation. The Panic of 1873 helped the Left Fork gain political power in 1877.
Political opponents, including Republicans, Independents, and Populists, referred to the Redeemers as “Bourbons,” a derogatory term to suggest that the Redeemers were not forward-thinking. Critics felt the Bourbons had failed to learn any lessons from the Civil War and sought to reverse the legal and social progress achieved. By 1872, Redeemers Alfred H. Colquitt, John B. Gordon, and Joseph Brown, all from Georgia, rose to prominence and were known as the “Bourbon Triumvirate.”
Overall, the Redeemers continued to support Southern industrialization while limiting African American civil rights. They attracted support from business interests, farmers, and both large and small landowners. Whether they supported the Left Fork or Right Fork, they are often represented as reinforcing a predominantly white Southern society shaped by States’ Rights.
Essential Facts
- Also Known As: Bourbons.
- Origins: About 90% of Redeemers had served in the Confederate Army or Confederate Government.
- Goal: Redeemers supported Home Rule and worked to remove Federal oversight from the South’s state governments. They clashed with both Carpetbaggers and Scalawags.
- Process: Redemption was the process by which the Redeemers overthrew Reconstruction governments in the South during the 1870s.
- Success:
- State Governments: They controlled every former Confederate State during the last quarter of the 19th Century.
- Congressional Power: Southern Democrats formed about one-third of both houses of Congress and became a major national political bloc.
- Division:
- Right Fork: The Right Fork represented cooperation between conservative political forces in the North and South.
- Left Fork: The Left Fork favored agrarian-labor reform and cooperation with Western Republicans and Democrats. It also favored silver coinage, Greenbacks, lower tariffs, an income tax, easier credit, and railroad regulation. These policies benefited farmers.
Significance
The Redeemers are important to American History because they ended Republican Reconstruction governments across the South and established Democratic control over every former Confederate State. They weakened federal protection of African American civil rights while restoring Home Rule and seeking greater access to Federal economic assistance. Their influence extended into Congress, where they played an important role in debates over money, banking, tariffs, taxation, railroads, and internal improvements. Despite divisions between the Right Fork and Left Fork, they were successful in gaining control of the Democratic Party in the late 1800s.
Timeline
- 1870s — White Southern Democrats known as Redeemers overthrew Reconstruction governments across the South.
- 1873 — The Panic of 1873 created an economic crisis that strengthened support for agrarian reform.
- 1877 — The Left Fork Redeemers gained political power.
- 1877 — Redeemers supported the Compromise of 1877 that helped elect Rutherford B. Hayes as President, secured the removal of Federal troops from the South, and restored Home Rule, effectively ending Reconstruction.
- 1875–1899 — Redeemers controlled every former Confederate State and formed a powerful Democratic bloc in Congress.
AP US History
Definition
Redeemers — Redeemers were white Southern Democrats who ruled the South after Reconstruction and split over how to address the nation’s major economic issues. Many supported the Left Fork, which favored paper money, silver coinage, easier credit, lower tariffs, and railroad regulation through alliances with Western politicians. At the same time, they limited African American civil rights, pursued Southern industrialization, and upheld a distinct white Southern social and political order. They supported the Compromise of 1877, which ended Reconstruction.
Alignment
Redeemers are part of the following AP US History sections:
Terms
Carpetbaggers — Carpetbaggers were Southern whites who supported Reconstruction and the Republican Party. They were primarily responsible for establishing the public school system throughout the South but failed to improve the infrastructure or make significant advancements in Civil Rights. Carpetbaggers were often accused of corruption and opposed by the Redeemers, Ku Klux Klan, and other groups that opposed Reconstruction.
Compromise of 1877 — A political agreement that resolved the disputed 1876 Presidential Election between Republican Rutherford B. Hayes and Democrat Samuel J. Tilden, after 20 electoral votes were disputed due to contested results in South Carolina, Florida, Louisiana, and Oregon. A special Electoral Commission ruled in favor of Hayes. In exchange for a Hayes Presidency, Democrats secured promises to remove Federal troops from the South, end Reconstruction, and appoint a southern Democrat to the Hayes Cabinet. The compromise ended Reconstruction and set the stage for the Jim Crow Era.
Home Rule — Home Rule was the post-Reconstruction idea that former Confederate States should govern themselves without Federal military or political intervention. Southern Democrats used the term to argue for removing federal troops and restoring local control after the Civil War. Home Rule often accompanied the return of Democratic Party-controlled governments, the decline of the Republican Party’s influence, and the weakening of Federal protections for African American civil and political rights.
Presidential Reconstruction — Presidential Reconstruction was the phase of Reconstruction in which President Andrew Johnson initiated policies to quickly readmit the former Confederate States to the Union. Johnson appointed temporary Governors to oversee the drafting of new state constitutions, and he agreed to recognize each state that complied with constitutional requirements for statehood and ratified the 13th Amendment. The plan allowed many former Confederate leaders to regain political power, and lacked protections for the civil rights of newly freed African Americans. The plan was heavily criticized by Radical Republicans for its leniency.
Radical Reconstruction — Radical Reconstruction refers to the period of reconstruction in the United States following the Civil War, which was led by the Radical Republicans in Congress. During this period, Congress implemented a more aggressive policy towards the former Confederate states, requiring them to make significant reforms and grant equal rights to African Americans before being allowed to rejoin the Union.
Reconstruction Acts (1867) — The Reconstruction Acts were a series of laws passed by the U.S. Congress in 1867 that established a new system for the reconstruction of the former Confederate states. The acts divided the South into five military districts, each governed by a military governor appointed by the president. The acts also imposed stringent requirements on the former Confederate states for their re-admission to the Union, including the granting of equal rights to African Americans.
Scalawags — Scalawags were Southern whites who supported Reconstruction and the Republican Party. One of the most well-known people associated with this group was James Longstreet, a former Confederate General.
