Date

1-14-2026

Department

College of Arts and Sciences

Degree

Master of Arts in History - Thesis (MA)

Chair

Seth Bartee

Keywords

Second Republic, Constitution, Civil War, Reconstruction, Gilded Age, New Deal, Progressive Era, Transition, Transitionary Era, American Empire, Imperialism, Civil Rights, Suffrage, American history, New Republic, Amendment, Thirteenth Amendment, Fourteenth Amendment, Fifteenth Amendment, Constitutional law, Politics, Second Constitution

Disciplines

History

Abstract

The United States of America celebrates the writing of the Declaration of Independence, the country’s statement of sovereignty from her former colonizer, Great Britain, every fourth of July. France, nearly four-thousand eight hundred miles away, celebrates their own form of Independence Day, Bastille Day, every July fourteenth. Since July fourth, 1776, the United States has boasted a proud history of unity and continuity that was only interrupted by four bloody years, the American Civil War (1861-1865). However, France is unable to make such claims. Having five separate Republics, an Empire, and a Reich define their history since that fateful day on July fourteenth, 1789, the French continue to celebrate their united fight sparking the French Revolution. Each time the French Republic was remade a new Constitution was created, marking the beginning of their new government. The United States, as mentioned earlier, is spoke of as a continuous Republic that has lasted the test of time since its inception. What if, perhaps, this was not the case? Between the Gilded Age and the Civil Rights Era, nearly a century, the United States underwent a series of changes that saw the Republic transform. Transitioning from its First Republic to her Second Republic. Resulting from the remade Constitution of Reconstruction, the United States was forced to reckon with issues of equality within its Republic, evidently leading to the adoption of several progressive principles by both citizens and government leaders. Ultimately, the result was a country evolved. From a limited government made of well-educated individuals chosen by a select few within society, to a popular Republic remade by a constitution whose ideals focused on equality, the United States entered into its Second Republic.

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