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Lincoln elected
Abraham Lincoln is elected President. His controversial election is the result of a fractured south and all but seals the inevitability of secession for some southern states. -
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Secession from the Union
South Carolina is the first state to succeed from the Union. In the following four months Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Texas, Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina, making an eleven state confederacy comprised of 7 million less people than the 21 state Union. -
Fort Sumter attacked
Confederate Gen. Pierre Beauregard attacks Fort Sumter in Charleston, South Carolina. This marks the first military action of the Civil War and is seen as its official beginning. -
Battle of the Merrimac and Monitor
In confederate waters two ironclad ships collide in battle, for the Confederates, the Merrimac, for the Union, the Monitor. Despite the fact that the battle emerged with no victor, naval warfare was forever revolutionized in the first battle involving metal ships as opposed to the traditional wooden fleets -
The Battle of Shiloh
This two day battle would prove to be one of the bloodiest of the Civil War. The tide turned several times in this two day campaign ending in a Union victory. The battle however resulted in nearly 23,000 casualties -
Bull Run
At the first Bull Run, General "Stonewall" Jackson earns his nickname as he repels waves of Union soldiers on the way to victory. Afterwards, Lincoln commented that he believed that this would be long war according to History Place.com, when he states, "It's Damned Bad." -
The Battle at Antietam
This would prove to be the bloodiest day in American military history. With 26,000 casualties in one day, the clash between major military leaders Gen. Robert E. Lee for the Confederates and Gen. George B. McClellan for the Union stands as one of the most recognizable examples of the brutality of the Civil War -
Emancipation Proclamation
President Lincoln issues the Emancipation Proclamation. This historic event gives the Civil War a new purpose, now both about preservation of the Union and the moral fight to abolish slavery. It also must be concidered, that this was a move by Lincoln to encourage emlistment of black males -
The Battle at Gettysburg
The Battle at Gettysburg would prove to be the most memorable of the war. After three days of fighting the Confederates had suffered 28,000 casualties and the Union had incurred 23,000. On November 17, Lincoln would give his famous "Gettysburg Address" on the hollowed ground, commemerating the sacrifices made on the battlefield. The battle proved to turn the tide of the war for the North and ended the last offensive by the South. -
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March to The Sea
General Sherman's "March to The Sea" led a path of destruction from Atlanta to Savannah, Georgia. His destructive campaign would lead to the naming of the Sherman Tank, recalling on the destruction that his march applied to the South. -
Lee Surrenders at Appomattox
General Robert E. Lee surrenders his Confederate forces at Appomattox court house. His surreneder effectively ends the war for the South as the remaing Confederate forces surrendered in the following month. -
Lincoln Assassinated
While attending a play at Ford's Theatre in Washington, President Abraham Lincoln is shot by John Wilkes Booth. He would die the following morning. Andrew Johnson would assume the Presidency, a moment that would greatly influence the coming years as reconstruction unfolds. -
The Thirteenth Amendment
The thirteenth amendment to the constitution is passed, abolishing slavery
