If not previously reviewed, have students read the first two paragraphs of the Student Context to develop content knowledge to engage in this activity.

As a class, read through Andrew Johnson’s 1865 “Proclamation of Amnesty and Pardon.” The proclamation language is dense and may prove challenging so begin by guiding students through the text, reading the first two paragraphs out loud. After each sentence, call on a volunteer to rephrase in their own words. Write the revised version on a dry erase board, smartboard, or chart paper so that students may have access to a more accessible and jointly written version.

Next, have students turn and talk to a partner, explaining their own understandings of the paragraph. Call on volunteers to share. Students should be able to explain that President Johnson was allowing some–but not all–former Confederates to return to the Union and have their property–except for formerly enslaved people–returned to them if they were willing to swear an oath to the Constitution and honor the emancipation of formerly enslaved people. Have students also discuss and reflect on the following questions:

“Why do you think President Johnson would grant amnesty and pardons to former Confederates?

What does that reveal about his goals for Reconstruction?

What do you think could be possible consequences of this action?”


Next, have students remain in conversation with a partner, assigning each pair one of the fourteen listed “classes of persons” who were declared ineligible for this pardon and amnesty along with the final two paragraphs of the proclamation, which state that even ineligible persons may apply for and receive clemency. Pairs should discuss the following question before sharing their thoughts to the whole class:

“Why do you think that President Johnson did not extend amnesty to this class of people?

What does Johnson’s willingness to offer clemency to this class of people imply about his approach to Reconstruction?”


Conclude this activity by engaging in an open discussion of President Johnson’s approach to Reconstruction.

As an additional extension you may opt to screen the first minute and thirty seconds of President Johnson’s Reconstruction Plan and have students engage in an open discussion of the film’s analysis of President Johnson’s approach to Reconstruction. Focus specifically on historian Eric Foner’s insistence that Johnson was “lenient” in his treatment of former Confederates. Ask students, “Why would Eric Foner consider President Johnson’s approach to Reconstruction lenient and why would leniency be seen as a problem?”