Proclamation 146, Ending Martial Law in Kentucky

What it is

This is a proclamation issued by Andrew Johnson as President of the United States. It modifies an earlier proclamation of 5 July 1864, which had made the suspension of habeas corpus effective in Kentucky and had established martial law there. Johnson states that the danger from insurgent raids into Kentucky had substantially passed away, so martial law should no longer be in force in the state from the date of the proclamation. The text is preserved on Wikisource. The listed 1877 date is likely the date of publication, not the date of the proclamation.

Why it matters

Martial law places civilian life under military rule. During the Civil War, Kentucky was a border state with both Union and Confederate sympathies, and the government kept it under special measures because of raids from insurgents. Ending martial law there shows how wartime emergency powers were lifted once officials judged the threat over. It also shows Johnson using his office to change orders that had been issued by an earlier president.

Look closer

• What reason does the proclamation give for ending martial law, and what evidence for that claim does it provide?
• Why was the proclamation issued in the name of the President rather than by the military commanders in Kentucky?
• Who in Kentucky would have felt the effects of this change most directly, and which voices are missing from this official text?