What was the significant requirement of the Wade-Davis Bill regarding the loyalty oath?

The Wade-Davis Bill, proposed in 1864, outlined a more stringent approach to Reconstruction than that advocated by President Abraham Lincoln. One of its significant requirements was that at least 50% of the white males in a state’s voting population had to take a loyalty oath before a state could be readmitted to the Union. This was aimed at ensuring that those who had been part of the Confederacy affirm their loyalty to the Union, thus providing a stricter framework for the restoration of Southern states.

The emphasis on a majority rather than a smaller percentage reflects the belief among its authors, Senator Benjamin Wade and Representative Henry Winter Davis, that true loyalty could not simply be assumed. They sought to reshape Southern society and governance fundamentally, requiring broader support for a return to Union governance. This strict threshold was part of a broader context of tension between Congress and the President regarding how to address the challenges of Reconstruction after the Civil War.