Civil War

Part I: Antebellum America

19th Century America

Sectionalism
Two distinct regions or
sections had developed
since 1790
Each section had unique economic and cultural
distinctions
French author Alexis de Tocqueville traveled America
1831
Observed Northern enterprise (business
oriented)
as opposed to Southern aristocracy
(wealthy ruling
class)

North (New England, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana,
Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota)
More urban (9 of 10 largest cities)
More diverse (Irish and German immigrants)
Population twice as large (21 million vs. 9 million in
South)
More industrialized
More factories (110,000 by 1860 vs. 20,000 in South more workers/more
product- $1.6 billion worth of goods vs.
$155 million in South)
Northwest was agricultural but businesses developed to handle processing of
farm products (slaughterhouses, shipping companies, distilleries, banks)
By 1860, 70% of railroad track in America in North
(21,000 miles of railroad
track)
Led to birth of Chicago as important central transport hub between east and west
Better communications
Telegraph (1844 Samuel B. Morse) sent messages over wires using pulses of
electricity and code of dots and dashes (Morse Code)
Telegraph wires strung along railroad tracks

South
Rural (agricultural)
200-290 days/year frost-free (ideal for farming)
Plantations used slave labor to produce cash crop
1860- King Cotton amounted to 2/3 of total
American exports
Virginia and North Carolina continued
mainly tobacco producing
states
1850- 60% of slaves in South lived on
plantations
Cities in South (New Orleans, Charleston, Richmond)
had smaller populations than those in North
1850s- Total length of railroad track doubled
Led to growth of Atlanta as
Still less developed than North
Midwest)

to be
cotton

in South
railroad hub
(New England and

Divisions that lead to disunion:

1) Slavery
By 1804, all Northern States had either banned slavery or passed laws to end it gradually
1808- Slave trade banished (further import of slaves to United States banned)
1850- 3.7 million slaves (12% free)
By 1860, slaves made up more than population of South Carolina and Mississippi and 2/5 population of
Florida, Georgia, Alabama, and Louisiana
Southerners feared slave revolts
Turners Rebellion (August 1831)
Nat Turner
Preacher
Led slaves on raids in southeastern
Attacked four plantations and killed
50 white people
20 slaves captured and hung
Slaves states reacted by tightening restrictions on slaves
Virginia and North Carolina passed laws against teaching slaves to
from moving freely or meeting

Virginia
more than
(including Turner)
read; some states prevented blacks

Abolitionist Movement
Movement to abolish slavery (begun in 17 th century with antislavery protests of the
Mennonites (German immigrants)) gained momentum in 1830s and led to increasing
tension between North and South

William Lloyd Garrison

Radical abolitionist
Beginning in 1831, published antislavery newspaper The Liberator
Denounced moderation in the fight for
emancipation (freedom) of slaves
I do not wish to think, or speak, or write, with
moderation I am in
earnest- I will not equivocateI will not excuse- I will not retreat a
single inchand will be heard.
First issue of The Liberator, 1831
1833- Founded American Anti-Slavery Society
By 1835, 1,000 Chapters of Society with 150,000 members
Agents distributed more than one million antislavery pamphlets a year

Frederick Douglass
Key leader and representative of Anti-Slavery Society
Son of white father and slave mother
Slave in Maryland
Owners wife educated Douglass despite laws against
education of slaves
Sent to slave breaker at age 17; subjected to whippings,
etc. but fought back and escaped
Described experiences to antislavery convention in 1841
and launched career with Anti-Slavery Society
Published autobiography (Life and Times of Fredrick
Douglass) and raised money to purchase freedom
Disagreed with Garrison over treatment and role of African Americans in Abolition
movement (black reformers felt inferior even though movement held greater urgency
for black reformers)
Broke with Garrison and Antislavery Society and published abolitionist
newspaper The North Star from 1847-1860 with fellow African American
Abolitionist Martin Delaney

Grimke Sisters
Sarah and Angelina Grimke
Prominent speakers at antislavery meetings
Carolina
Quakers
support of

Originally from South

Moved Moved north and became
1836- Published pamphlets in
abolition
An Appeal to the Christian Women of
the South and Epistle to the Clergy of
the Southern States
Pamphlets banned and burned in South

Sojourner Truth
Born Isabella Baumfree in New York, 1797
Freed 1827
Became involved in religious and reform movements
1843- Joined abolitionist movement and changed name to
Sojourner Truth because
believed lifes mission was to travel (sojourn) across land preaching truth about God,
abolition and womens rights

The Underground Railroad

Some abolitionists resorted to
helping slaves escape to freedom
Underground Railroad provided
protection and transportation for
slaves escaping north to freedom
Not an actual
routes
or wagon into

railroad but
(river routes, mountain
routes, etc.) traveled
by foot
North and Canada
(where slave-hunters could not go)
Pennsylvania

Center of Underground Railroad was Ohio, Indiana,

(refuge of Quakers, antislavery activists)
Conducters were guides that supplied homes as
depots/stations, money, supplies, and medical attention
Most famous conducter or guide was Harriet Tubman
-Former slave
-Escaped from Maryland 1849
-Returned to rescue family members in 1850
-Rescued more than 300 slaves
Nicknamed The Black Moses

Uncle Toms Cabin

Written by Harriet Beecher Stowe
Daughter of Lyman Beecher (New England
evangelist; took message of Second Great Awakening
west)
Published 1852
Became bestselling novel of 19th century (second
bestselling book of 19th century after Bible)
Story of evils of slavery set in antebellum America
Slave Eliza avoids sale of her child by escaping
north along Underground Railroad
Slave Uncle Tom is sold and killed
by brutal master, Simon Legree
Presented vivid picture of slavery in South
Exaggerated but believable to many Northerners who
became convinced that slavery would be the ruin of
the country (not just African Americans but American
society in general) and needed to be abolished

Divisions that lead to disunion:

2) Expansion of slavery into territories and equal representation in Congress
Westward expansion reveals sectionalism of nation
By 1819 country had equal number of slave and free states (11 free;
11 slave)
1819- Population of Missouri surpasses 60,000 (minimum established by
Northwest Ordinance), including approximately 10,000 slaves
Missouri applies to be admitted as slave state
Additional slave state would increase power of southern states in
Senate
New York Congressman James Tallmadge, Jr. introduces amendment to
Missouri statehood bill that will gradually end slavery in Missouri
House of Representatives passes bill on strictly sectional vote
(House representation based on population, North is more populous, so measure
passes)
In Senate, several Northern Senators join in Southern opposition to measure and
resolution is defeated

Missouri Compromise 1820

Maine comes to the rescue
Former colonial province of Massachusetts applies for statehood
Senate links Maines application with Missouris and votes to admit Maine as
free state and Missouri as slave state
Compromise is further extended by amendment to continue slavery in
Arkansas
Territory but exclude slavery from remainder of Louisiana Territory north of
36-30 line

Divisions that lead to disunion:

3) States rights
Nullification crisis
Tariff of 1828
Congress passes tax on imports
Benefits American manufacturing (industry) but forces
farmers to pay higher prices for manufactured goods
Southerners call tariff the Tariff of Abominations:
Led by John C. Calhoun, South Carolina legislature declares states
have
right to judge when federal government has exceeded its authority and
nullify (reject) actions that are judged unconstitutional
States created federal government and have right to nullify actions of
federal government
States rights (such as nullification or even secession) are rights or
powers the Constitution does not grant to the federal government nor denies
to the states (Tenth Amendment rights)

1832- Additional tariff passes Congress

South Carolina declares the tariff null and void and threatens to secede
(withdraw from Union) if federal government does not respect nullification of
tariff
At urging of President Jackson, Congress passes Force Bill (1833)
preventing South Carolina from blocking collection of the tariff
In support of Force Bill, Jackson threatens to send troops to enforce the
law
Compromise is reached when some of import duties are reduced and South
Carolina withdraws nullification (but nullifies Force
Bill)
John C. Calhoun
Early supporter of nationalism following War of 1812
Congressman from South Carolina; Vice-President
under Adams and Jackson
Became strong advocate for South and states rights
against growing power and influence of North (defended
nullification in Senate)
Resigned as Vice-President following Nullification crisis

Civil War
Part II: Disunion
The Mexican War
1820s Americans migrated into Mexican territory
1822- Mexican government granted permission for
Americans led by Stephen Austin to found colony in
east Texas
By 1825, 1,800 American immigrants growing cotton
on coastal plains of Texas and by 1830, American
immigrants outnumbered Mexicans in the territory
Mexico passes law prohibiting further settlement and
slavery in the territory Americans continued to cross
border and demanded more political control,
including slavery in the territory

1833 General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna took

power as dictator of Mexico

October 1835- Americans and

Mexican settlers in the territory
demanded self-government and
clashed with Mexican troops
beginning Texas War of
Independence

1836- Santa Anna and army of

several thousand marched north
toward ruined Spanish mission in
San Antonio (The Alamo), where
they eventually forced their way in
and killed the defenders, including
Jim Bowie, Davey Crockett and
William Travis

Texas
Texans rallied, captured Santa Anna and forced him to sign treaty
recognizing the Republic of Texas (later repudiated)
Texans elected Sam
Houston president and voted to be annexed (attached, joined) to the
United States
Democrats supported annexation of additional slave state
Whigs opposed to addition of slave state that would shift the balance of
power in Congress
Santa Anna warned that annexation would amount to declaration of war
with Mexico
1844- President John Tyler signs treaty of annexation;
Whig-controlled Senate defeats treaty
Democrat James K. Polk (supporter of expansion)
elected President 1844
1845- Congress approves annexation and Texas
becomes 28th state

War
Southern boundary of Texas in dispute
Americans
claimed Rio Grande as southern border
Polk and southern Democrats wanted to acquire
lands stretching from Texas to Pacific and sent
Ambassador James Slidell to Mexico
with offer to purchase New
Mexico and California
Mexican government refused offer and Polk sent
troops under Zachary Taylor into disputed southern
border; Mexicans responded and United States
declared war on May 13, 1846

California
In California, American settlers launch surprise attack at Sonoma on June 14, 1846
Settlers under command of Captain John C. Fremont drove Mexican Army out of
northern California
New Mexico
July, 1846- U.S. troops cross into New Mexico and occupy Santa Fe, then cross
into California and join forces with Fremont to defeat Mexican army and take
control of California and New Mexico
Texas
February, 1847- Taylor crosses Rio Grande and defeats Santa Anna at Battle of
Buena Vista
Polk dispatches forces under command of General Winfield Scott to Mexico City
Scott captures port city of Vera Cruz and defeats Santa
Annas forces to capture Mexico City on September 14

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (February 2, 1848)

ends the war

Mexico gave up claims to Texas and

recognized Rio Grande as southern border

Mexico gave up New Mexico and California

(2/5 of Mexican territory)

United States paid $15 million

1853- Gadsden Purchase
Mexico sells United States 30,000 square miles of
territory which includes southern New Mexico and
Arizona

Wilmot Proviso
With addition of new territories, question of slavery in the territories is again at
forefront of American politics
At stake was balance of power between North and South in Congress
1846- Proviso (amendment) written by Pennsylvania Congressman David Wilmot
attached to bill providing funds for purchase of Mexican territory states that as an
express and fundamental condition of the acquisition of any territory from the
Republic of Mexico neither slavery nor involuntary servitude shall ever exist
in any part of said territory.
Prohibited slavery in territory acquired from Mexico (California and
New Mexico)
Congress did not approve amendment
Northerners continued to attach proviso to all bills related to territories but
proviso never became law
Revealed growing gap between North and South over issue of slavery in territories

Three efforts to settle dispute over slavery in the territories:

1. Missouri Compromise (1820)
Addressed issue of slavery in territories by prohibiting slavery
north of 36-30 line of latitude
Most of territory won or acquired from Mexico was south of 3630 line and Northerners feared it would become slave states
giving South majority in the Senate and advantage in Electoral
College
In election of 1848 Democrats and Whigs sought to avoid issue
by nominating candidates who avoided discussing issue
Angered some party members who opposed slavery in
territories and formed Free Soil Party
Third party helped Zachary Taylor (Whig) to narrow
victory

2. Compromise of 1850
1850- California (flooded with migrants during Gold Rush) requests to join
Union as free state
Led to one of the most dramatic Congressional debates in United States history
Three Senior Senators (Calhoun, South
Carolina; Clay, Kentucky;
Webster,
Massachusetts) engaged in debate over
Clays proposal of a
compromise:
1. California would be admitted as free state
2. People of territories of New Mexico and
Utah would decide issue
of slavery for
themselves (popular sovereignty)
3. Congress would abolish sale of slaves (but not slavery) in
Washington, D.C.
4. Fugitive Slave Act would require citizens
of U.S. to assist in return
of escaped slaves and deny escaped slaves a jury trial
President Taylor threatened to veto but died in July (Millard Fillmore became
President)
Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois took place of exhausted Clay and
worked with Congress to pass the Compromise of 1850

3. Kansas-Nebraska Act
Compromise of 1850 did not settle issue of slavery in territory
acquired from Mexico and Fugitive Slave Act angered
Northerners
Stephen A. Douglas
Democratic Senator from Illinois
Wanted Chicago to benefit as rail hub from
development of Midwest Kansas and Nebraska
territories
Wanted to be President and needed support of
Southern Democrats
Pushed for statehood for Kansas and Nebraska
Kansas and Nebraska north of 36-30 line
Under terms of Missouri Compromise, Kansas and Nebraska would enter Union as free states
which would benefit North in Congress with addition of four free state Senators
To benefit North and South, Douglas introduced Kansas-Nebraska Act in January 1854
Allowed for popular sovereignty (letting people of territories decide issue of slavery) in Kansas
and Nebraska
Believed slavery could not take hold on Great Plains (weather was too harsh for growing cotton)
Would require repeal of Missouri Compromise

Republican Party
Congress passes Kansas-Nebraska Act effectively
repealing Missouri Compromise
Northerners protested and launched new
Republican Party (Whigs had declined after
rejecting Fillmore and his support of Compromise
of 1850 and nominating Winfield Scott, who lost to
Franklin Pierce by landslide in election of 1852)
Demanded repeal of Kansas-Nebraska Act and
Fugitive Slave Act

Bleeding Kansas
1854-1855 Antislavery groups
(Abolitionists) send free soilers to fight
slavery in Kansas; Proslavery settlers
organize to oppose free soilers;
Proslavery settlers cross into Kansas to
vote
illegally in territorial elections
Resulted in two capitals:
antislavery Topeka and
proslavery
Lecompton
1856- Southerners loot newspaper offices
in Lawrence (center of free soil movement)
John Brown
Stern evangelical
Believed himself to be Gods chosen instrument to end slavery
May 24- Leads attack and slaughter of proslavery settlement near Pottawatomie Creek
Violence sparks summer of raids and counter raids
1857- Proslavery settlers convene and in Lecompton and produce proslavery constitution
(Lecompton Constitution) for Kansas
Antislavery settlers refuse to vote in referendum on constitution but President Buchanan
(Democrat, 1856) hoping to end issue of slavery in Kansas, endorses constitution
Congress rejects Lecompton Constitution but Kansas is territory where slavery is legal
according to Supreme Court

Violence in Congress
May, 1856- Senator Charles
Sumner of Massachusetts gives
speech attacking Southerners for
forcing slavery on Kansas
(The Crime Against Kansas)
Insulted Senator Andrew
Butler of South Carolina
Representative Preston Brooks
(nephew of Butler) attacks and
beats Sumner with his cane at his Senate seat two
days after speech
Sumner never fully recovered
Northerners leave seat empty as reminder of the violence
of
Southerners
Brooks resigns but is reelected
Southerners send Brooks gifts (cane inscribed Hit him again)
Incident is example of depth of division between sections of country

Scott v. Sanford
Dred Scott
Slave in Missouri
Filed suit for freedom against his owner
because he and his wife had once lived in free
states and territories
Supreme Court ruled against Scott
Held that Scott (and all slaves) was not a citizen and had no right
to sue in court
Ruled that living in free state or territory did not free Scott from
slavery
Ruled that Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional
Slaves were property and Congress could not deprive people of
property without due process of law (Fifth Amendment)
Congress had no power to ban slavery anywhere, including territories
Buchanan endorsed decision hoping that the government would no longer
be required to deal with slavery issue

Lincoln-Douglas Debates
Following Kansas-Nebraska, Douglas faced difficult reelection in Illinois in 1858
Republicans in Illinois nominated Abraham Lincoln to oppose Douglas
Candidates met in series of seven debates that focused on issue of slavery in the territories
Douglas supported popular sovereignty (majority of people in territory should decide issue for their
territory)
Lincoln argued that majority should not have power to deny minority right to life,
liberty, pursuit of
happiness
Did not support racial equality
Did not believe federal government had power to abolish slavery in the South
Wanted to confine slavery to the states in which it already existed, believing that it would eventually die
out
Douglas won election but debates brought Lincoln national attention (covered by newspapers
throughout the country)

John Browns Raid

October, 1859- John Brown and a group of followers
(including 5 African Americans) attack and capture the
federal arsenal (weapons storage area) at Harpers Ferry,
Virginia
Hoped to seize weapons and arm slaves for a
rebellion that would end slavery, punish
slaveholders and morally renew the country
U.S. troops under command of Colonel Robert E.
Lee (hero of Mexican War) surround arsenal and force
surrender of Brown and followers (half were killed)
Brown is convicted of treason and sentenced to be
hanged
Prior to hanging, Brown scribbles note he passes to
executioners: I John Brown am now quite certain that
the crimes of this guilty land will never be purged away
but
with blood.
Divisions deepen
Brown is hailed as martyr in cause of justice in North
Outraged Southerners who denounced Brown as a
criminal and tool of Republican abolitionists

Election of 1860
Elections of 1796 and 1800 led to passage of 12 th amendment (1804) which required
electors to cast votes for President and Vice-President (ticket)
Panic of 1819 led to evolution of nomination process
Old method of nominating presidential candidate by Congressional party caucus
evolved from nomination via state legislatures into nomination via
national party
conventions in 1840
Democratic Party met in Charleston
Debate over issue of slavery in the territories led delegates from eight Southern states
to walk out and nominate their own candidate, John C. Breckinridge who supported
expanding slavery into the territories
Northern Democrats nominated Stephen Douglas, who supported popular sovereignty
Moderate Democrats (former Whigs and politicians from Border States
like
Delaware and Kentucky) met in Baltimore, formed Constitutional
Union Party
and nominated John Bell (moderate slaveholder from
Tennessee)
Republican Party met in Chicago
Expected to nominate William Seward of New York
Seward judged too extreme in his antislavery views
Abraham Lincoln offered more moderate views but firm in his opposition to
the
spread of slavery into the territories
Lincoln wins nomination

Election of Lincoln and Secession

Parties were no longer national parties but divided along sectional lines
Divisions among Democrats allowed Lincoln to win election without winning a single electoral vote in
the South (his name was not on the ballot in many southern states) and only 39% of the popular vote
Lincoln won majority of electoral votes (180) in North
Breckenridge, Bell
and Douglas split southern electoral votes
Southerners viewed Lincolns election as evidence that their voice did not matter in national government
Secessionists (those who supported the secession or withdrawal of the South from the
Union)
argued that since states had chosen to join Union, they could also choose to leave
it
Fire-eaters (Radical Secessionists) such as Edmund Ruffin of Virginia
warned that Republican
control of federal government would lead to degradation and ruin of the South.
December 20, 1860 (one month after election)South Carolina legislature votes to secede
Six other Lower South states (Mississippi, Florida,
Georgia, Louisiana, Texas) secede in
February 1861- Delegates from seven states meet in Montgomery,
and create new nation- Confederate States of America
Elect Jefferson Davis (former Senator from Mississippi)
president

Alabama,
January, 1861
Alabama

Lincolns First Inaugural

March 4, 1861
Lincoln addresses crisis and speaks directly to Southerners:
In your hands, my dissatisfied countrymen, and not in mine,
is the momentous issue of Civil War. You have no oath to
destroy the government, while I have the most solemn one to
preserve, protect, and defend it. We are not enemies. We must not be
enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our
bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory, stretching
from every battlefield and patriot grave to every living heart will
yet swell the chorus
of the Union
when again touched, as surely
they will
be, by the better angels of our
nature.
Does not mention slavery
Lincoln is committed to Union

Civil War
Part III: War
Fort Sumter, South Carolina
Federal (U.S.) troops still occupied federal fort in Charleston harbor, South Carolina
January, 1861- Federal ship carrying supplies to fort fired on and forced to turn back
Troops in fort under command of Major Robert Anderson running out of supplies
Lincoln had taken oath to preserve, protect, and defend but had also told Southerners that
the government will not assail you. You can have no conflict without being yourselves the
aggressors.
-Sending troops would be act of aggression
-Abandoning fort would be acknowledgement of Confederate government
Lincoln chose to send supplies (no troops, no arms) to Fort Sumter
April 10, 1861- Confederate President Jefferson Davis orders General P.G.T. Beauregard to
demand surrender of fort and take it by force if necessary
Anderson refused to surrender
April 12, 1861- Confederate guns open fire on Fort Sumter
Act of open rebellion against United States
Lincoln calls for volunteers to defend country against rebellion
Southerners view call for troops as declaration of war against South
Upper South (Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Arkansas) secedes
Border states (Missouri, Kentucky, Delaware, Maryland) remain neutral

Northern military strategy

General Winfield Scott, commander of U.S. Army, presented Lincoln with strategy for
suppressing rebellion in the South:
Raising and training army to invade and conquer South would take time
Scott proposed naval blockade of South and use of troops and gunboats to gain
control of Mississippi River, which would cut the Confederacy off
from much
needed supply routes and force South to seek peace
Lincoln ordered naval blockade along Atlantic Coast and Gulf of Mexico in order to
shut down Confederate shipping of cotton to Europe and importation of manufactured
goods but Northern newspapers scornfully called Scotts plan The Anaconda Plan after
snake that slowly coils and chokes its victim
Newspapers and Northern public clamored for quick and decisive victory

Battle of Bull Run/First Manassas* (Virginia, 1861)

Confederate capital moves from
Montgomery
to Richmond, Virginia
35,000 90 day volunteers training in
Washington, D.C.
Northern newspapers urge Union Army
Forward to
Richmond! believing
capturing Confederate
capital will end war
July 16, 1861- Lincoln orders General
Irvin McDowell to march poorly prepared army
toward Richmond
First objective is capture of railroad junction at Manassas, Virginia, where Confederate army under
Joseph E. Johnston and Beauregard were camped along Bull Run, stream to north of Manassas
South of Manassas lies road to Richmond
Slow tedious march to Manassas allows Confederates to strengthen army via railroad (first time in
history troops moved to battlefield via train)
July 21- Union army attacks but advance is stalled by Virginia company under command of
Confederate General Thomas J. Jackson
Confederates rally around Jacksons men and Union army is pushed back by
Confederate
counterattack
Union army retreats to Washington and stampedes crowd of spectators
Jacksons actions earn him sobriquet (nickname) Stonewall
*North names battles after closest body of water/South names battles after closest town
*Called First Manassas because Battle of Second Manassas will be fought in same location in summer of 1862

Bull Run convinces many that war will not be as easy as expected and preparations for war begin in earnest

North

Better prepared for war

Abundance of railroad track provided for better movement of troops and supplies
Factories provided for better production of munitions, shoes and clothing
North had established government and army and navy
Greater population meant more men available to Union army while still allowing for sufficient labor force in
factories and on farms

South
Better generals
Most military colleges located in South
Majority of
trained officers were Southerners who sided with Confederacy
Confederacy did not need to be aggressor or initiate military action
Needed to
maintain territory and keep armies in field in order to declare victory
Defensive war/War of Attrition (inflicting losses on enemy until enemy loses will to fight and gives up)
Did not take Northern resources into account and North would eventually
wage War of Attrition
against South)
Southern planters stop growing cotton in order to bring about cotton shortage and pressure British and
French to intervene on the side of the Confederacy (Europeans turned to India and Egypt for cotton and
Northern blockade eventually choked cotton exports)
Goal of North was Union
Goal of South was maintaining/preserving way of life and right to self-government

Improvements in warfare
Most Civil War Generals trained in 18th century military tactics (concentration of forces, charging enemy
positions en masse, etc.)
18th century tactics had been successful in Mexican War
Commanders on both sides slow to recognize improvements in weaponry
18th century weapons (muskets) were inaccurate beyond range of 100 yards
Improvements in rifling (spiral groove in barrel of gun) and ammunition (bulletshaped as
opposed to round minie ball shape) made weapons more accurate at greater ranges
Improvements in artillery (canon) included use of shells (exploded in air or on impact as opposed
to iron cannon balls) and canister (shells filled with bullets,
shards of glass, etc.)
Medical Care
Health and medical care was not advancing at same pace as weaponry
Sterilization was lacking (surgeons sometimes went for days without cleaning instruments)
Disease killed most Civil War soldiers (three times more likely to die in camp or hospital than on
battlefield)
1 in 5 Union soldiers died from wounds received in battle
Poor nutrition, contaminated food, lack of sanitation led to dysentery and typhoid
Thousands of women on both sides served as nurses
Clara Barton provided first aid to Union troops in camp and during battle
Angel of the Battlefield
Founded American Red Cross after war

War in the West, 1862 (East of the Mississippi; west of Appalachians)

Goal of Union forces in West was control of Mississippi River
February, 1862- Union forces and gunboats under command of General
Ulysses S. Grant advance south along Tennessee River and capture Fort
Henry (February 6) and Fort Donelson (February 16)
Forts protected Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers as gateways or
water routes into western Confederacy
Loss of forts exposes region to further attacks

Battle of Shiloh
Grants forces advance south
Mississippi

toward Corinth,
(rail center near
Tennessee-Mississippi

border)
April 6, 1862- Confederate
Sidney Johnston

General Albert
attacks Grant at Shiloh Church
just outside Pittsburg Landing,
Tennessee and drives Union army
back toward Tennessee River
Hornets Nest at Shiloh where Union Army held off
Reinforcements arrive overnight and Grant
Confederate attack for 6 hours
counter-attacks on April 7 and defeats Johnstons army
General Johnston is killed in the battle
Shiloh was bloodiest battle to date in North America
13,000 Union casualties/11,000 Confederate casualties
Shattered any remaining illusions that war would be over quickly
New Orleans
April, 1862- U.S. Naval forces under David Farragut sail north from Gulf of Mexico up Mississippi
River and force surrender of New Orleans, capture Baton Rouge and Natchez, Mississippi
Only remaining Confederate strongholds on Mississippi are Port Hudson, Louisiana and
Vicksburg, Mississippi

War in East
Confederates develop Merrimack, iron-plated ship to
combat Union blockade of eastern seaboard
March 1862- Merrimack destroys and damages three
ships off coast of Virginia
March 9, 1862- Union iron ship the Monitor arrives
engages Merrimack in several hours of fighting
Merrimack withdraws
Confederates destroy Merrimack in dock rather
than allow it to fall into enemy
hands
Monitor sinks during storm in December
Single encounter between iron ships forever changes naval warfare
Peninsula Campaign
Lincoln names General George McClellan
Union forces in East
Great organizer, excellent strategist, but
too cautious
March 1862- Launches plan for capturing Richmond
Send 100,000 by boat to Virginia peninsula
southeast of Richmond
Army marches up peninsula and
Confederates under Joseph E. Johnston
to just outside Richmond
Johnston is wounded in
of Seven Pines outside Richmond

Union
and
until

commander of
(Army of Potomac)

retreat
Battle

Seven Days Battles

Robert E. Lee
Johnston is replaced by Robert E. Lee
Old and distinguished family included two signers of Declaration of
Independence
Graduated second in class from West Point (1829); recognized for
outstanding service in Mexican War
Offered command of Union forces at beginning of war but turned it
down because he could bring himself to fight against his home state of
Virginia
Lee willing to take chances
Sends troops to Stonewall Jackson in Shenandoah Valley and Jackson
feigns attack against Washington, which forces Lincoln to withhold
reinforcements for McClellan
June, 1862- Jackson eludes Union forces in Valley and joins Lee outside
Richmond to attack McClellan in series of battles (Seven Days Battles) that
force McClellan to retreat from Richmond
Second Manassas
August, 1862- Lee sends Jackson north to strike Union army now under
command of John Pope marching south from Washington toward Richmond
Jackson strikes Union supply stores at Manassas; Union army turns
and strikes Jackson
Lee marches main army north and combines with Jacksons forces to
strike Union army and force retreat
Lee decides to invade North

Antietam
September, 1862Hoping that victory
in North will bring
European recognition
and turn public opinion
in North against war,
Lee marches north into
Maryland
McClellan does not
know where Confederate
army is until one of his soldiers finds copy of Lees orders
wrapped around cigars near abandoned Confederate camp
Two armies met at Antietam Creek outside Sharpsburg, Maryland on
September 17
In twelve hours of fighting, nearly 30,000 casualties (bloodiest day of
Civil War; bloodiest single day in American history)
Lee returns South

Emancipation Proclamation
Lincoln used Northern victory at Antietam as catalyst he needed to
Emancipation Proclamation
Had resisted pressure from Radical Republicans and Abolitionists to
free slaves:
My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union
save the Union without freeing any slave, I would do it;
save the Union by freeing all the slaves, I would do
by freeing some and leaving others alone,
Did not believe Constitution gave him legal authority to abolish
Also worried that abolishing slavery would alienate border states like
Maryland and Kentucky

issue

If I could
and if I could
it; and if I could save it
I would do it.
slavery

Gradually began to recognize value of slavery to Southern war effort and ability to abolish slavery in
South under expanded wartime powers:
-Every slave working fields freed white Southerner to fight war
-Ending slavery could be part of strategy for hurting Southern war effort and ending war
Emancipation Proclamation declared that on January 1, 1863, all slaves in areas of rebellion against the
government of the United States would be free
Had little direct impact because it applied to area under Confederate control
Did not free slaves in border states
Ended any chance of European intervention because made war conflict to end slavery (gave Union
Army a higher cause)

Northern opposition to Lincoln and war

Length of war forced North and South to institute draft in order to raise troops
Wealthy citizens could buy their way out of service
Resulted in four days of rioting in New York City in July 1863
Copperheads
Political opposition to war came in form of Democrats in Congress (Copperheads after poisonous
snake) who warned that Republican policies would bring flood of freed slaves North who would then
take jobs from white citizens
Radical Copperheads urged resistance to draft and encouraged Union soldiers
to desert army
Expansion of presidential power in time of war or rebellion
To deal with opposition to war, Lincoln used army to shut down opposition newspapers and deny
use of mail services to opponents
In border state of Maryland where support for secession was strong, Lincoln ordered all disloyal
members of legislature arrested in order to prevent vote on secession (if Maryland seceded,
Washington would be surrounded by Confederate states)
In some places, Lincoln suspended writ of habeus corpus (legal protection that requires court to
determine if person is being lawfully imprisoned) to imprison 13,000 Americans (including
newspaper editors, elected officials, Southern sympathizers, those who aided Confederacy) who
objected to governments policies during war
Constitution allowed for suspension of habeus corpus during time of rebellion

African American Soldiers

Black volunteers not allowed to join Union Army when war began
July 1862- Congress authorized use of African American troops in military following
defeats in Virginia (Peninsula Campaign)
By 1865 180,000 African Americans had enlisted in Union Army (1/2 were black
Southerners freed from slavery by fighting in the South)
Service of African Americans was also factor in convincing Lincoln to issue
Emancipation Proclamation
Fighting for freedom of those still enslaved held special meaning for African
American troops
July 1863- 54th Massachusetts Infantry
African American regiment commanded
by Colonel Robert Gould Shaw leads
attack on Fort Wagner (fortress protecting
Charleston, South Carolina)
Charge across narrow pit of sand cost the
regiment half its men
National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC
Survivors included Sergeant William Carney
and two sons of Frederick Douglass
Carney became first African American to win Congressional Medal of Honor

Vicksburg, 1863
Vicksburg and Port Hudson stood in way of
Union control of Mississippi River
Vicksburg, Mississippi sat on high bluff above
in river
Prevented Union ships from
as Confederate

sharp bend
approaching city
cannon could fire down on ships in
river below city

Surrounded by swamps
Only dry land approach to city was
from
east (Confederate controlled
territory)
December 1862-April 1863 General Grant made
several unsuccessful attempts to capture city
April 1863- Marched army south down Louisiana side of river, crossed river at Briunsburg marched
east and attacked Confederates at Jackson
Confederate forces in Vicksburg were drawn out of city to assist Confederates in Jackson
Grant captured Jackson then turned against Confederates marching east to
defend Jackson
May 16- Armies clashed at Champions Hill, Confederates retreated to Vicksburg and Grant laid siege to city
(surrounded and bombarded city in order to force surrender)
Bombarded city for a month until July 4, when Confederates surrendered city
Four days later, Port Hudson surrendered and the Mississippi River was under Union control
Control of Mississippi River cuts Confederacy in two (cut Confederacy off from supply lines to
west)

Road to Gettysburg
Lincoln replaced too cautious McClellan with General Ambrose Burnside
December 13, 1862- Lee defeats Burnside at Battle of Fredericksburg (Virginia)
Lincoln replaces Burnside with General Joseph Fighting Joe Hooker
Hooker marches army from around Fredericksburg to behind Confederate defenses near
Chancellorsville
Lee marches part of army to meet Hooker, then
divides army again and sends Jackson on 12-mile
flank march to behind Hookers lines
Jacksons army surprises Hookers army on
May 2, 1863
Attack is halted by darkness and Jackson
wounded trying to advance attack
from his own soldiers
May 10- Jackson dies of complications

is
by gunfire
from wound

Without Jackson, Lee again invades north by marching army into Pennsylvania:
Fighting in Virginia has depleted resources for supplies for army and Lee hopes to resupply army in
Pennsylvania
In addition, victories at Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville put Northern morale at all time low
Some Northern leaders talking of making peace with South
Lincoln: If there is a worse place than hell, I am in it.
A Confederate victory in North might convince Union to abandon war effort

Gettysburg (July 1-3, 1863)

July 1, 1863- Confederate troops enter town of
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania seeking supply of shoes
rumored to be stored in town
Encounter and skirmish with Union
cavalry
Beginning of greatest battle fought in North
America
Day One (July 1, 1863)
Armies rush to scene of fighting and clash near
Gettysburg
Hooker has been replaced by General
George Meade as commander of Union Army
Confederates drive Union forces out of town
and both armies take positions on hills south of
town
Confederates to west along
Seminary
Ridge
Union
army to east along
Cemetery Ridge

Day Two (July 2, 1863)

Confederates attack Union forces
on Cemetery Ridge
Attack is delayed giving
Union Army time to reinforce position
Confederate General James Longstreet is
opposed to idea of attacking
supposedly strong Union position
Confederate army lacked cavalry
support and was unaware of true strength
of Union position
Delays in carrying out orders
cost Confederates victory

may have

Little Round Top

One hill (Little Round Top) at southern end of Union position is undefended
Alabama regiment rushes to take hill but 350 Maine soldiers under command of Colonel Joshua
Chamberlain (college professor) arrive on hill just prior to Confederates and defend hill against
attacks
Union troops run out of ammunition defending hill
Chamberlain orders
bayonet charge that forces Confederates to retreat and saves Union Army from defeat
Fighting in fields between lines (Peach Orchard, Wheat Field, and Devils Den (mass of boulders))
but at end of day, armies remained in position along hills south of town

Day 3 (July 3, 1863)

Confederates attack northern end of
Union line without success
Picketts Charge
Lee decides to attack center of Union
line along Cemetery Ridge
Confederate and Union artillery
exchange gunfire across open field
between lines prior to
Confederate attack
Union guns cease fire and Confederates
believe Union guns have been silenced (Union guns are saving ammunition for anticipated charge/attack of
Confederates)
15,000 Confederate soldiers form line one mile long and three rows deep and march then charge
center of Union lines (Picketts Charge; General George Pickett was commander of one of the Confederate
divisions involved in charge)
-March/charge over mile of open ground
-Union artillery opens fire
then Union soldiers along lines pour rifle
fire into few hundred Confederates that reach Union lines
-Less than half Confederate force returns to Seminary Ridge
Gettysburg is bloodiest battle of Civil War
More than 50,000 casualties
1/3 of Lees
Army lost
July 4, 1863- Lees Army retreats to Virginia
Gettysburg would be last attempt to gain victory on Union soil

Gettysburg Address
November 19, 1863
At dedication of Gettysburg battlefield cemetery honoring Union soldiers who died in battle, Lincoln
delivers two-minute speech (remarks) that eloquently summarize Northern war effort:
Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived
in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. Now we are engaged in a
great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long
endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field,
as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether
fitting and proper that we should do this.
But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate -- we can not consecrate -- we can not hallow -- this ground.
The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to
add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget
what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they
who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great
task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for
which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these dead shall
not have died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that
government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.
Expressed in simple terms the grief and cost of a war being fought to preserve Union and principles for
which it stands
Featured speaker Edward Everett delivered two hour speech at dedication but praised Lincoln for speech
that came as near to the central idea of the occasion in only two minutes

Southern economy
Decline in food production and food shortages
Invading armies decimated Southern countryside
Confederate draft removed large numbers of white farmers from their farms
Desertion rates increased as soldiers returned home to work farms and
provide for families
Planters resisted government pleas to shift from cotton to food crops even though
unused cotton piled up in warehouses as result of Union blockade
Food riots erupted in Southern cities
April 1863- 1,000 women loot bakeries and shops in Richmond
Shortage of manufactured goods
Confederate government instituted program of construction of factories for
production of war materials (railroad track, guns and ammunition)
Printing money and lack of non- war related manufactured goods led to inflation
and profiteering
Profiteers would buy up supplies of certain goods and hold them from public
until price climbed (Example: nails purchased at $4/keg by
profiteers were sold
for $10/keg)

Defeat of Lee at Gettysburg in East and capture of

Vicksburg in West mark turning point of Civil War

1864
Election year
If South could hold out, Northern voters weary of war
and casualties might replace Lincoln with President
willing to end war and let South go (grant South
independence)
March- Lincoln names Grant (hero of Henry, Donelson,
Vicksburg, Chattanooga) commander of all Union forces
Grant puts William Tecumseh Sherman in charge of
Union armies in West and oversees Union armies in
East (Meades Army of Potomac)
Strategy is to destroy/wear down remaining Confederate
armies and destroy capacity of South to continue war
Total War
against opposing armies and civil resources of
enemy

War

Grant vs. Lee

May 1864- Army of Potomac marches south
across Rapidan River into Virginia toward
Richmond and clashes with Lees Army of
Northern Virginia at Battle of Wilderness near
Chancellorsville (May 5), Spotsylvania Court
House (May 8), and at Cold Harbor outside
Richmond (June 3)
Union and Confederate armies
suffer
massive losses in battles
Northern public protests loss of life but
Grant (unlike predecessors McClellan,
Pope, Burnside, Hooker) does not retreat
Army of Potomac (Union Army) marches south
of Richmond and to Petersburg in order to cut
off rail supply route to Confederate capital
Lees army arrives in time defend
Petersburg and armies settle in for nine-month
siege
Grant send General Phil Sheridan and Union
cavalry to destroy railroads and crops in
Shenandoah Valley (breadbasket of South)

Sherman in West
In West, Shermans Army moves south from Chattanooga toward rail hub of Atlanta
Opposed by General Joseph E. Johnston and Confederate Army encamped near Dalton
Johnstons strategy is to prevent Sherman from reaching Atlanta but keep army in field
in order to
affect outcome of Northern presidential election
Confederates delay Shermans advance but retreat to just outside Atlanta
Seeking a more aggressive commander, Confederate President Jefferson Davis replaces Johnston with General
James Bell Hood
July, 1864- Hood attacks Sherman in series of battles outside Atlanta, but Confederate losses force Hood to
retreat into city
August, 1864- Shermans Army lays siege to and bombards Atlanta, forcing Confederates to retreat from city
in September
Sherman orders city evacuated and burned (part of strategy to destroy Southern capacity to
make war)
War is hell.
Sooner
Southerners understood ultimate cost of rebellion, sooner they would end rebellion
Shermans March to the Sea
November, 1864- Sherman leaves Atlanta in ruins and marches army south across Georgia to Savannah,
destroying bridges, factories, rail lines, seizing and slaughtering livestock, etc., cutting a 300-mile long path of
destruction across the Confederate state
December 21- Shermans Army enters Savannah without a fight
I beg to present to you, as a Christmas gift, the city of Savannah
Shermans message to Lincoln, December, 1864

Atlanta Campaign and March to the Sea

Election of 1864
Lincoln opposed in election by Democratic candidate (McClellan) who promised
to negotiate an end to the war and by members of his own party
Radical Republicans committed to punishing South for making war
supported Wade-Davis Bill which placed strict requirements on Southern states
for re-admittance into Union after war (majority of state population required to
take Ironclad oath of disloyalty to Confederacy; to swear that they had never
voluntarily borne arms against Union or given aid to those in rebellion)
Lincoln preferred Ten Percent Plan whereby 10% of population took oath of
loyalty to Union and agreed to abide by Emancipation
Proclamation
Lincoln angered Radical Republicans when he pocket-vetoed (took no action)
Wade-Davis Bill
Radicals nominate John C. Fremont for Republican nomination
Fremont eventually withdraws
Capture of Atlanta and siege of Petersburg signal end to war and voters reelect Lincoln

13th Amendment and Second Inaugural

Reelection signals public acceptance of Republican war
policies including Emancipation
February, 1865- Lincoln and Congress pass
13th Amendment ending slavery in the United States
Ratified by states December 1865
March, 1865- In Second Inaugural Address, Lincoln
states his support for a fair and generous peace

With malice toward none, with charity for all,

with firmness in the right as God gives us to
see
the right, let us
strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation's wounds,
to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow
and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and
lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.

The End
February, 1865- Shermans Army marches north from Savannah into South Carolina (heart of the rebellion)
continuing destruction of Southern resources (including civilian homes)
Confederate army (under Joseph Johnston) retreats from Shermans advance
February 17- Union soldiers enter capital city of Columbia and city burns to the ground (source of fire still
disputed)
Sherman marches north into North Carolina (demolition of civilian property ceases)
April, 1865
No longer able to defend Petersburg due to desertions for lack of supplies, Lee tries to escape Petersburg and join
Johnston in North Carolina (Richmond is abandoned and burned)
Grants Army follows and cuts off Lees Army until it reaches small village of Appomattox Court House in
southern Virginia
Surrounded by larger Union force, Lees officers suggest guerilla warfare (dismiss and scatter army), but
Lee fears more devastation and agrees to meet with Grant to discuss terms of surrender
Grant is generous in terms offered to Lee:
Allows soldiers to
take horses and go home
Will not be punished
as traitors
Feeds starving
Confederate
army with Union
supplies and captured resources
Lee signs terms and surrenders army
In North Carolina, Johnston
surrenders his army to Sherman
For all intents and purposes, war is over

Postlude
April 14, 1865
Five days after Lee surrendered to Grant
at Appomattox, Lincoln is assassinated at
Fords Theater in Washington, D.C. by
actor and Southern sympathizer John
Wilkes Booth
Booth is part of plot to murder top
Union officials, including Grant and
Vice-President Andrew Johnson
President dies following morning
Funeral train takes 14 days to
travel from D.C. to burial site at
Springfield, Illinois (hometown)
Millions line tracks to pay respects
Lincoln never lives to see result of war:
united and emancipated nation
Leaves behind a united but
unreconstructed nation