The Civil War

Fort Sumter
As Southern states seceded they seiszed federal
forts, armories and property.
Ft. Sumter is located in Charleston harbor and
remains in the hands of the federal government.
South cant allow it to remain. By firing on the fort the
Southerners commit an act of war.

Rebels take the fort on April 12, 1861. Four additional

states secede brining the CSA up to 11 states.
Border States MD, KY, DE, MO are slave states but
remain in the Union. Lincoln establishes martial law
to keep them.

The Union
Immense advantages in materials,
numbers and logistics.
Poor military leadership until Grant takes
over in 1864.
The Anaconda Plan
Blockade Southern ports
Seize the MS River and cut Confederacy in
half.
Capture Richmond.
Exhaust the South, eventually Total War.

The Confederacy
Superb military leaders and motivate, competent soldiers. Fighting
for their homes.
Defense no need to invade the North.
Involve France and Britain need them to keep cotton flowing and
economy rolling. Purchase weapons and supplies. Eventually seek
them as allies.
The Trent Affair

First Bull Run

July 1861 Bull Run stream outside Washington D.C.
The North expects an easy victory and a short war picnickers
comes from DC to watch the battle.
The South initially begins to collapse, but under the leadership of
General Stonewall Jackson they hold for reinforcement and rout
the Union.
South wins decisively.

Effects of the battle: The North realizes this will not be a short
war.

The First Modern War

Better guns and bullets
Gatling Gun
Better Artillery
Submarine
Ironclads
Telegraph
Balloons

The Monitor and Merrimack

The battle of the ironclads
The Merrimack (now the CSS Virginia) rams and destroys Union warships
in the Chesapeake Bay. It is a new type of warship, fully armored.
Cannons cannot penetrate its thick belt armor and just bounce off.

The USS Monitor arrives to fight.

The two ships circle and attempt to ram each other.
The Battle ends with the retreat of both ships, but the message is
clear, the age of wooden ships is over.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmnnqJm_4Pc

Second Bull Run

August 1862 same place, same result.
Significance: Lee is now emboldened to invade the North.

Antietam
September 1862 - Antietam Creek in MD.
Single bloodiest day in US history.
Lee has invaded the North hoping that a victory will get the Europeans
into the war.
The Union discovers the Confederate plans and attacks a divided Confederate force.
The North wins, but casualties are horrific 25,000 in a single day.

The Confederates retreat, and Lincoln moves to issue the Emancipation

Proclamation.
http://www.history.com/topics/american-civil-war/battle-of-antietam

The Emancipation Proclamation

Frees the slaves in TERRITORIES CURRENTLY IN REBELLION
Three reasons:
Damage the economy of the South
Give the war a moral imperative
Keep the Europeans out they had abolished slavery, now if they support
the war they are supporting slavery.

Gettysburg
July 1-3 1863
Massive battle, initially favors the South, but the Union digs in on
Cemetery Ridge.
Confederate spend the next two days trying to dislodge them.

First major mistake Lee has made.

Ends in the spectacular and bloody Picketts Charge.
TURNING POINT OF THE WAR
South will never recover, will never again invade the North.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUHnL6R39VM

The Gettysburg Address

The speech contains only 272 words, but is considered by most
historians to be one of the greatest speeches in American
History.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_hYZFUsOuw

The Homefront
The Union
Booming economy
Growing industry troops well supplied
Many women workers
Invention of sewing machine by Elias Howe

Agricultural technology

The Confederacy

Inflation; high prices

Collapse of Souths transportation
Little industry
Many food shortages led to food riots
Southern morale down

Black Soldiers
Many join Union army & navy after the Emancipation Proclamation
Jan. 1863 MA Governor establishes one of first black regiments
54th Massachusetts led by Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, 25 year old
son of wealthy white, Boston abolitionists
Union, however, was reluctant to let them fight
and will use them primarily in what way?
manual labor

Exception: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7qwqVbZSqE

Conscription and the NY Draft Riots

Due to their enormous losses, both the Union and the Confederacy were forced to adopt
conscription what is it?
A military draft

Confederacy drafted all able-bodied men ages 17-50

Union drafted all able-bodied men ages 20-45
Any person in the Union could buy their way out of being drafted for $300

New York had thousands of immigrants living in the city who had no ties to either side of
the fighting
July 13-16, 1863 mostly Irish immigrants took to the streets in protest against the draft
They burned government buildings, newspaper offices and homes of rich citizens
By the end of the day on July 16, New York City lay in ruins

Shermans March to the Sea

Total War
Vowed to make GA howl
Cut a 60-mile wide, 300 mile long path of destruction from
Atlanta to Savannah Took Savannah in Dec. 1864
Sherman offers Savannah to Lincoln as a Christmas present
Sherman now heads through SC & NC to meet up with Grant in
VA and continues his path of total destruction

Appomattox Courthouse
Lee realizes the war is lost.
April 9, 1865 (Palm Sunday)
Appomattox Court House, VA
Generous surrender terms:
Men could go home if they promised to quit fighting
Officers could keep their pistols
Soldiers could keep their horses

The Assassination of Lincoln

1st President assassinated.
Killed on April 14, 1865 Good Friday - while attending a play at Fords
Theatre with his wife.
Shot in the back of the head by John Wilkes Booth while watching the
play Our American Cousin.
Booths original plan was a conspiracy to kidnap Lincoln & hold him for
ransom.ransom to be the release of Confederate POWs..failed & then
Lee surrendered on April 9 so Booth changes plan to assassination.
of Lincoln, Grant, Sec. of State Seward & VP Johnson

Cont.
Effect: Disastrous For the South
The war was already effectively lost.
Lincoln wanted to be generous in readmitting the South. Congress not so
much.
Booth and his co-conspirators are all captured half were executed. Booth
was killed as the federal army attempted to arrest him.