Ironclad Oath
E735339
Ironclad Oath was a stringent loyalty oath used during the American Civil War and Reconstruction that required individuals to swear they had never previously supported the Confederacy.
Statements (39)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
United States historical concept
ⓘ
loyalty oath ⓘ |
| appliedInJurisdiction | United States NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| appliedTo |
clergy in some contexts
ⓘ
jurors ⓘ lawyers ⓘ officeholders ⓘ voters in some Union and reconstructed states ⓘ |
| graduallyWeakenedBy |
Supreme Court decisions limiting retrospective loyalty requirements
ⓘ
amnesty acts ⓘ |
| hasAlternativeName |
iron‑clad test oath
ⓘ
test oath ⓘ |
| hasConsequence | contributed to political dominance of loyal Unionists in some Southern states during early Reconstruction ⓘ |
| hasEffect |
barred many ex-Confederates from holding office
ⓘ
disenfranchised many white Southerners ⓘ limited the practice of law by former Confederates ⓘ |
| hasPurpose |
to ensure loyalty to the Union
ⓘ
to exclude former Confederates from public life ⓘ |
| influencedBy | Union concerns about loyalty after secession ⓘ |
| isCharacterizedAs |
punitive toward ex-Confederates
ⓘ
retrospective ⓘ stringent ⓘ |
| legalBasis |
federal legislation during the Civil War and Reconstruction
ⓘ
state constitutions and statutes in reconstructed states ⓘ |
| notableRelatedCase |
Cummings v. Missouri
GENERATED
ⓘ
Ex parte Garland GENERATED ⓘ |
| opposedBy |
former Confederates
ⓘ
many Democrats ⓘ |
| relatedTo |
amnesty policies for former Confederates
ⓘ
oath of allegiance ⓘ |
| requiresStatement |
that the oath-taker had never given aid or comfort to enemies of the United States
ⓘ
that the oath-taker had never supported the Confederacy ⓘ that the oath-taker had never voluntarily borne arms against the United States ⓘ |
| supportedBy | Radical Republicans NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| timePeriod |
1860s
ⓘ
early 1870s ⓘ |
| usedIn |
American Civil War
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Reconstruction era NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| wasPartOf | Radical Republican Reconstruction policies NERFINISHED ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.