of the Thirteenth Amendment served
as moral justification for the war. The
fact that slavery was no longer legal
anywhere in U.S. territory was befitting
considering all the deaths and suffering
that the nation had endured.The implications
In practical terms,
the implementation
of the measure still
had to play out.
Emancipated, or
freed, slaves were no
longer in legal
bondage, but most
of them still had to
earn a living tilling
the lands on which
they had formerly
worked, and their
rights had to be won
and protected. Full
civil rights for blacks
would be a long time
coming and the fight
would span far into
the next century.THE THIRTEENTH AMENDMENTRatification of the amendment was the
final measure in ending slavery in the
United States. The way was legally open for
the integration of former slaves into society.DEFINING FREEDOM
The amendment guaranteed that slaves would
be free, but the exact nature of that freedom
remained to be defined. Other measures were
needed. The Fourteenth Amendment, ratified in
1868, gave former slaves U.S. citizenship,
and the Fifteenth, passed into law the following
year, guaranteed their right to vote.THE ONGOING DIVIDE
White opposition in the South later rolled back
integration by making voter registration harder. In
practice, the South’s black population would have
to wait almost another century, until the Civil
Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act
of 1965, to win effective enfranchisement.year. George W. Julian, a Republican
congressman, noted, “I have felt,
ever since the vote, as if I were in
a new country.”
Unlike the struggle in the House
of Representatives, ratification itself
proved relatively straightforward.
Most Northern states quickly fell into
line, and as the Civil War came to an
end it was made known to former
Confederate states that acceptance was
a precondition for full re-admission into
the Union. The necessary quorum was
achieved on December 6, 1865, and 12
days later Secretary of State William H.
Seward proclaimed the amendment
adopted. For abolitionists, the passing
In the meantime, the thousands
of former slaves who poured onto
the nation’s streets to celebrate
the passing of the amendment
experienced personally an important
milestone. The United States had
changed decisively
and they were no
longer regarded as
property. Still they
looked forward to
the day when they
could vote and live
among whites with
true equality.AFTER
A new life
For most former slaves the
amendment’s passing was
a joyful time. Celebrations
took place on plantations
throughout the South.
Couples were finally allowed
to marry, and many people
dropped their slave names.A celebration of emancipation
In this Thomas Nast print of 1865, African-Americans are
shown in the center enjoying a comfortable home life. On
the left are scenes of their former slavery; the right shows a
future with equality in the workplace and education for all.
The number of states that had
voted to ratify the amendment
27 by December 6, 1865.