After the end of the
American Civil War, as part of the ongoing process of
Reconstruction, the
United States Congress passed four statutes known as
Reconstruction Acts. (March 2, 1867, 14 Stat. 428-430, c.153; March 23, 1867, 15 Stat. 2-5, c.6; July 19, 1867, 15 Stat. 14-16, c.30; and March 11, 1868, 15 Stat. 41, c.25) The actual title of
the initial legislation]was "An act to provide for the more efficient government of the Rebel States" and it was passed on March 2, 1867. Fulfillment of the requirements of the Acts was necessary for the former
Confederate States to be re-admitted to the Union. The Acts excluded
Tennessee, which had already ratified the
14th Amendment and had been readmitted to the Union.