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The Compromise of 1850 and the Fugitive Slave Act
The Compromise of 1850 accepted California as a free state, New Mexico and Utah would decide on the issue of slavery using the concept of popular sovereignty, and the South was appeased with the passing of the Fugitive Slave Law. The Fugitive Slave Law was significant because it cause many ¨neutral¨ Northerners, feeling that this was unjust for blacks, as well as feeling that slavery had now come to their door, suddenly became ardent supporters of abolition. -
Kansas Nebraska Act
Douglass proposed that both these territories should decide on the issue of slavery based on popular sovereignty. The act was significant because it would dismiss the Mason Dixon line, the line which indicated that slavery could not go beyond that point, which was part of the Missouri Compromise of 1820; as well as help form the Republican Party. The conflict between abolitionists and those who supported slavery would pave the road to civil war. -
The Election of 1860
The attack on Harpers Ferry and the hanging of John Brown intensified the raging debate on slavery; thus the election would be largely decided on by the issue of slavery. For the first time, the election had four candidates. The election was significant because Lincoln eventually won the election. The South, who feared that their new president would interfere with slavery, kept their promise and almost immediately left the Union. The election would allow the Civil war to begin. -
Formation of the Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was formed in February 1861 when Southern states seceded from the United States in order to protect slavery from the encroachment of President Lincoln and Northern abolitionists. The first state to leave the Union was South Carolina, which would be followed by six other states: Alabama, Texas, Mississippi, Florida, Georgia, and Louisiana. This date is important as it sent a clear message of Southern intentions to leave the Union. -
South Caroline fires on Fort Sumter
Fort Sumter was manned by the Union army and is famous for being the place where the first shots of the Civil War were fired, following South Carolina`s secession. When President Lincoln decided to resupply the fort, Confederate armies began bombarding the fort until, after 34 hours, the Confederates had won the battle and were now in control of Fort Sumter. The significance of this event cannot be overlooked as the first shots were fired on this day -
The Trent Affair
A crisis between Britain and The United States that arose when the US navy arrested two Confederate envoys that were sailing to Europe on board of a British ship. The purpose of these envoys was to negotiate terms with European powers in hopes that they would help the South defeat the North. The British, who were neutral during the war, were outraged and said that the arrest of these envoys on a neutral ship was a violation of international law. President Lincoln, avoiding further conflict, free -
Battles at Fort Henry and Fort Donelson
The battles at Fort Henry (fought February 6 1862) and Fort Donelson (February 11 1862), were significantly important to the Union. Grant`s triumph in Tennessee secured Kentucky more firmly for the Union, and it opened up the gateway to the strategically important region of Tennessee, as well as to Georgia. If not for Grant`s heroics in Tennessee, General Sherman could never have made his march on Georgia and the war would have lasted far longer. -
The Peninsula Campaign
McClellan believed that moving his troops closer to Richmond, the South`s capital, and mounting their offense from there would prove a better strategy. The climax of the campaign, the Seven Days Battles, ended it McClellan retreating; it would also allow Lee to push forward into Virginia. Although the campaign proved to be a failure, and McClellan was removed temporarily as General, it is important because the Peninsula Campaign was the Union`s first major offensive attack on the Confederacy. -
The Battle of Antietam
General McClellan and General Lee faced off near Antietam Creek in what remains the bloodiest day in American history. With well over 22,000 casualties, the result of the battle was inconclusive, however McClellan had halted Lee`s northern advance. In addition, the draw, which was claimed as a victory by the Union, gave Lincoln the justification he needed to pass the Emancipation proclamation, making the battle of Antietam extremely important to the Civil War. -
The Emancipation Proclamation
While the war had initially been fought for Union, on January 1st 1863 President Lincoln would alter the war to preserve the nation into a battle against slavery when he issued the Emancipation Proclamation. After the battle of Antietam, Lincoln believed that abolition was a strong enough cause for war, as thousands of slaves had joined Union armies. The Emancipation Proclamation was significantly important to the Civil War as it changed the reason the war was fought. -
Conscription Act of 1863
The United States` Congress passed the Conscription Act which brought about the first wartime draft in the United States. The expemtion from conscription, a $300,000 fine, angered New Yorkers who thought that they were only offered to the wealthy. The Conscription act was important not only because it was the first of its kind in America, but because it aided the North in the recruitment of soldiers without which they could not have succeeded. -
The Battle of Gettysburg
The battle of Gettysburg, fought for three days until the Union eventually won, was one of the most important Union victories during the war. Lee, who had defeated Union troops in their past encounters, wanted to push north again, though this time through Pennsylvania. Lee hoped that capturing Pennsylvania would serve as a catalyst for peace and would encourage foreign intervention. However his defeat, a result of Pickett`s charge, marked the last real chance the Confederates had to win the war. -
The Wilderness Campaign
Fought May 5-7 of 1864 the Wilderness Campaign, saw some of the most devastating battles in the Civil War. The campaign ended in a Union victory and finally ended the war when Grant, who had pushed forward into Richmond regardless of casualties, finally forced Lee to surrender at the Appomattox Courthouse. This campaign was significant as it marked the end of the war and would led to the reconstruction period. -
The Election of 1864
The election of 1864 was pivotal for Lincoln. Though it seemed he would not be reelected, a succession of Northern victories, and bayonet votes, the votes of soldiers who were brought back simply to vote for Lincoln, gave Lincoln the victory and assured that the Civil War would be fought till its end. The reelection of Lincoln signaled the last hope the South had for peace, for if McClellan had won there would be a chance for compromise; thus desertions in the Confederate army increased sharply. -
Sherman`s March
Sherman was chosen to lead the conquest of Georgia, and his brutal methods struck terror in Confederate soldiers and granted him Georgia by Christmas. He later pushed into South Carolina, where he was even more vicious believing that this state had started the war. His march, from November 1864 to April 1865, was important because Sherman`s tactics, brutal as they were, shortened the war and would cause complications during reconstruction (the tracks they twisted could not be fixed). -
Assasination of Abraham Lincoln
Lincoln`s death made him into a martyr for all but the South. He was killed at the pinnacle of fame, and the death of their beloved president increased Northern resentment towards the South. This new resentment would make reconstruction much more difficult, as the Northern Congress would become wary of readmitting Southern states, thus placing stringent conditions and eventually passing the Reconstruction Act. -
Ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment
The 13th amendment was a landmark in American history. Passed eight months after the war had ended it proclaimed the end of slavery. The importance of the Emancipation Proclamation to the 13th amendment cannot be overlooked, as the Proclamation foreshadowed the end of slavery and prepared the states for total emancipation. -
The Reconstruction Act
The act was passed by a Republican Congress on March 2 1867. The Legislation divided the South into 5 military districts, each commanded by a Union General and policed by Union armies. It set down the conditions for readmission into the Union. The states had to ratify the Fourteenth amendment and they had to give full suffrage to adult male slaves. The act was important because it was the first step towards reconstruction that was passed by Congress, since they vetoed all of presJohnson`s bills. -
Fourteenth Amendment adopted into the Consitution
The 14th amendment granted citizenship and equal civil and legal rights, except for franchise, to African Americans. The act also reduced the representation of a state in Congress and in the Electoral College if it denied blacks the ballot. The amendment was significant because it reinforced the Emancipation Proclamation and marked the end of slavery in the United States. -
Fifteenth Amendment
The 15th amendment was admitted into the Constitution on March 30 1870, prohibted denial of the right to vote for citizens. In giving African Americans the right to vote, the republicans could now control the Southern states once they were readmitted. However African Americans were did not vote until 1965, as Southerners placed restrictions on voting.
