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GED Social Studies: Civil War, Reconstruction, and Civil Rights Concepts

Importance ★★★★★ · 30% (estimate)

Overview

This chapter follows the long struggle over slavery and equal rights, from the Civil War to the Civil Rights Movement.

Sectionalism, or loyalty to the North or South over the nation, grew in the 1800s, mostly over slavery, and helped cause the Civil War (1861-1865). After the war, three amendments changed the Constitution: the 13th ended slavery, the 14th made people born in the U.S. citizens and promised equal protection, and the 15th barred denying the vote because of race.

After Reconstruction, Southern states used Jim Crow laws, poll taxes, and literacy tests to keep Black citizens apart and from voting. Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) allowed separate but equal facilities, but Brown v. Board of Education (1954) ruled school segregation unconstitutional. The Civil Rights Movement used nonviolent protest and civil disobedience and won the Civil Rights Act (1964) and the Voting Rights Act (1965). Separately, the women's suffrage movement, begun at Seneca Falls in 1848, won the vote with the 19th Amendment in 1920.

Key concepts

  • Civil War Amendments

    13th (1865) ended slavery. 14th (1868) citizenship and equal protection. 15th (1870) no race-based voting limits.

    Memory tip13 free, 14 citizen, 15 vote.

    Source: U.S. Constitution · as of 2026

  • Jim Crow

    Laws and practices, such as segregation, poll taxes, and literacy tests, that kept Black Americans apart and from voting.

    Memory tipJim Crow undercut the 14th and 15th Amendments.

  • Plessy vs. Brown

    Plessy (1896) allowed separate but equal. Brown (1954) ruled separate schools unconstitutional.

    Memory tipBrown overturned Plessy for schools.

  • Civil disobedience

    Openly and peacefully breaking an unjust law and accepting the penalty.

    Memory tipSit-ins, marches, boycotts.

  • 19th Amendment (1920)

    Barred denying the vote because of sex, giving women the vote nationwide.

    Memory tipSeneca Falls (1848) started the fight.

    Source: U.S. Constitution · as of 2026

Often tested

  • Gettysburg Address: "four score and seven years ago" points back to 1776.
  • Montgomery bus boycott, March on Washington, and the Voting Rights Act belong to the Civil Rights Movement.
  • Sectionalism over slavery helped cause the Civil War.

3 sample questions

Verified practice questions from this unit.

Practice questionReviewedUnited States History › Civil War, Reconstruction, and Civil Rights★★★★★

Question 1. Which amendment ended slavery in the United States?

  1. ① The 19th Amendment
  2. ② The 15th Amendment
  3. ③ The 14th Amendment
  4. ④ The 13th Amendment
▼ Show answer and explanation▲ Hide answer and explanation

Answer: ④ The 13th Amendment

Key point: 13th Amendment (1865) ended slavery

The 13th Amendment, ratified in 1865 at the end of the Civil War, abolished slavery in the United States. It is the first of the three Civil War (Reconstruction) Amendments: the 13th, 14th, and 15th.

Wrong choices

  • The 19th Amendment: The 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote.
  • The 15th Amendment: The 15th Amendment barred denying the vote because of race.
  • The 14th Amendment: The 14th Amendment gave citizenship and equal protection of the laws.
Practice questionReviewedUnited States History › Civil War, Reconstruction, and Civil Rights★★★★★

Question 2. Which amendment, ratified in 1920, gave women the right to vote?

  1. ① The 15th Amendment
  2. ② The 13th Amendment
  3. ③ The 19th Amendment
  4. ④ The 26th Amendment
▼ Show answer and explanation▲ Hide answer and explanation

Answer: ③ The 19th Amendment

Key point: 19th Amendment (1920): women's suffrage

The 19th Amendment says the right to vote cannot be denied because of sex. It was the result of decades of work by suffragists such as Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton.

Wrong choices

  • The 15th Amendment: The 15th Amendment barred denying the vote because of race.
  • The 13th Amendment: The 13th Amendment ended slavery.
  • The 26th Amendment: The 26th Amendment lowered the voting age to 18.
Practice questionReviewedUnited States History › Civil War, Reconstruction, and Civil Rights★★★★★

Question 3. What is the 14th Amendment (1868) best known for?

  1. ① Giving women the right to vote
  2. ② Creating the federal income tax
  3. ③ Ending slavery
  4. ④ Granting citizenship to people born in the U.S. and promising equal protection of the laws
▼ Show answer and explanation▲ Hide answer and explanation

Answer: ④ Granting citizenship to people born in the U.S. and promising equal protection of the laws

Key point: 14th Amendment: citizenship and equal protection

The 14th Amendment made all people born or naturalized in the United States citizens, including formerly enslaved people. It also says states may not deny any person due process or "the equal protection of the laws." Many later civil rights cases rely on it.

Wrong choices

  • Giving women the right to vote: Women gained the right to vote through the 19th Amendment.
  • Creating the federal income tax: The income tax was allowed by the 16th Amendment.
  • Ending slavery: Slavery was ended by the 13th Amendment.
Practice 5 questions from this unit →

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