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American Civil War
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Lincoln Election
This was said to be what started the Civil War. Lincoln carried all of the free states, and he won because the Democrats had two candidates, and they kept arguing with themselves. -
Fort Sumter
The Union Fort of Fort Sumter in South Carolina was a major fort in the South, and Confederate soldiers demanded that the Union surrender it. The Union refused, and the Confederates started shelling the Fort. Nobody was killed in the battle, but it signifies the start of the American Civil War. -
Southern Blockade
Lincoln ordered a blockade of the South to prevent cargo ships from getting supplies to the Confederacy. Blockade runners, mostly manned by Britsh naval officers on leave, made it through 5/6 times. The blockade was part of Winfield Scott's Anaconda Plan. -
1st Battle of Bull Run
This was the first major land battle of Virginia. Brig. Gen. Irving Mcdowell wanted to get Virginian Confederates, led by Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson. Stonewall Jackson's troops won, and the Union was forced to retreat. -
Battle of Shiloh
The Battle of Shiloh was one of the bloodiest battles of its time. The Confederates attacked Union lines near Pittsburgh Landing. The Union was forced to retreat, and form a defensive unit called the "Hornets Nest". The Union got reinforcements later, and were able to push back and defeat the Confederates. -
Monitor vs. Virginia
The CSS Virginia, the Confederates first ironclad ship, fights the USS Monitor, the Union's first ironclad ship. The battle lasted all day, and neither ship was able to sink the other, and they retreated at the end of te day in a draw. -
7 Days Campaign
This was an ongoing battle that lasted for a week, during which the Union army attacked the Confederate Capital of Richmond. They did not capture it, but they killed many Confederate troops. General Robert E. Lee and President Jefferson Davis were forced to rethink there war strategy. Instead of just an all-offensive strategy, they became more conservative and efficient. -
2nd Battle of Bull Run
Gen. Robert E. Lee decided to attack the Union supply base at Bull Run. The Confederates completely destroyed it and hid in the woods. They attacked again later and drove the Union out of Bull Run. -
Battle of Antietam
This battle marked the bloodiest single day in the war. It ended in a draw, with the Union unable to get Gen. Lee's forces out of Antietam. It was significant enough to give Lincoln the "victory" needed to issue the Emancipation Proclamation. -
Emancipation Proclamation
This document said that as of January 1st, 1863, all slaves will be free. This did not free any slaves, but it proved that the North would try to abolish slavery after it had brought the Confederacy back to th Union. -
Emancipation Proclamation takes effect
This is the day that the proclamation took effect. It was mainly to brand the Confederacy as a slave nation, because if all the Union wanted was unity, the Confederacy could be veiwed by outside forces as freedom fighters in need of help. The proclamation made sure that no one helped the Confederacy because most nations already abolished slavery. -
Battle of Chancellorsville
Gen. Robert E Lee was attacking a Union force nearly twice the size of his. Instead of using this to his advantage, Union Gen. Joseph Hooker fell back into defensive positions and his troops were wiped out. This was considered to be Gen. Lee's greatest victory during the war. However, the great Gen. Stonewall Jackson was killed by freindly fire during the battle. -
Battle of Gettysburgh
General Robert E. Lee tried to invade the North through Gettysburgh, Pennsylvania. The Union lost much ground, but they eventually regained it and repelled Lee's forces. This battle sustained the heaviest casualties of the American Civil War. -
Siege of Vicksburg
The Union army under Gen. Ulysses S. Grant wanted to take Vicksburg to take control of thd Mississippi River. They made a series of attacks in areas around Vicksburg, forces the Confederates to retreat into the city. Gen. Grant then lay siege to it, and after a long time, the Union won the city. -
General Sherman's March to the Sea
General Sherman started in Georgia and wanted to march towards the sea and burn towns, fields, and other tings that could be useful to te Confederates. The goal was to turn the population of Georgia against the war and against the Confederacy. While it didn't, it was incredibly destructive to the Confederacy, because they lost there central industrial hub of Atlanta. -
Gettysburgh Address
This was a speach dedicating the battle site of Gettysburgh to the people who died in that battle. It was a very short speach, but it signified that we would remember people who give there lives to a good cause. -
Battles for Chattanooga
This was a collection of battles known collectively as the Battles for Chattanooga. It pushed the Confederates back to Georgia, and gave control of the Chattanooga railroad junction to the Union. -
Ulysses S. Grant takes over the Union army
Abe Lincoln wanted to reinstate the rank of Lt. Gen. in order to distinguish a sole leader of the Union army, rather than several leaders of the same rank. He wanted to assign the rank to Henry Wagner Halleck, but Congress would only agree if the position went to Ulysses S. Grant. Lincoln agreed, and Grant went on to win the American Civil War. -
Fall of Savannah
This was a devastating loss to the Confederates because of the second loss of a major industrial hub, in the form of Savannah, Georgia. They had already lost Atlanta, and now they are down in railroads and supplies. This ultimately leads to the Confederacy losing the war. -
General Sherman captures Atlanta
General Sherman did not want to attack Atlanta directly, because it was a major city and too well defended. Instead, he cut off railway supply routes to weaken the city, and then marched in and took it. The mayor of Atlanta formally surrendered the city to General Sherman before there were too many civilian casualties. -
Lincoln re-elected
When Lincoln was re-elected, all hope for a compromise from the South was lost. Most of the North agreed with Lincoln's policies, though some disagreed with the Emancipation Proclamation, which turn the war into a "Crusade against slavery", rather than trying to make peace with the Confederacy and rejoin us into one country. -
Union Army takes Richmond
Gen. Grant had tried to capture Richmond, VA, the Confederate capital, for years. Finally, he dedided to make coordinated attack along Confederate defensive lines, and then attacked Richmond. The first group of men to get into Richmond were the 5th Mass. Cav., which was a black group. -
Robert E. Lee surrenders
After the Union army took Richmond, Robert E. Lee retreated and tried to join the surviving Confederate forces in North Carolina. General Grant's cavalry rode between them, and gave the bulk of the Union army time to catch up to Gen. Lee. Lee had no choice but to surrender his army. The American Civil War was over. -
Lincoln Assassination
Originally, John Wilkes Booth was supposed to kidnap Abraham Lincoln, but that attempt failed. He then followed Lincoln to Ford's Theater and waited. He hoped to shoot Lincoln while people were laughing to muffle the sound, but Maj. Rathbone, who was with Lincoln, tried to stop him. Booth jump down the balcony and broke his left leg. He shouted "Sic Semper Tyrannis", which means "Thus always to Tyrants", and ran away. He was later caught and hanged. -
13 Amendment
The 13th amendment was ratified by the states on this day. It basically states that there will not be slavery in the U.S. or any U.S. held territories, except as punishment from breaking the law.
