-
Abraham Lincoln is elected as the first Republican President. He received 180 out of 303 electoral votes and 40% of the popular vote.
-
South Carolina sucedes from the Union. Followed by Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisanna, and Texas.
-
Jefferson Davis becomes President of the Confederate States of America. He is a West Point graduate and former U.S. army officer.
-
The Civil War began with the first shots on Fort Sumter.
-
Four more states join the Confederacy.
-
General-in-Chief Winfield Scott to advanced on the South before adequately training his untried troops. Scott ordered General Irvin McDowell to advance on Confederate troops stationed at Manassas Junction, Virginia. McDowell attacked on July 21, and was initially successful, but the introduction of Confederate reinforcements resulted in a Southern victory and a chaotic retreat toward Washington by federal troops.
-
To blockade the coast of the Confederacy effectively, the federal navy had to be improved. By July, the effort at improvement had made a difference and an effective blockade had begun. The South responded by building small, fast ships that could outmaneuver Union vessels.
