Civil War: Beginning to the Battle of Gettysburg

Abraham Lincoln is elected President

Nov 6, 1860

Lincoln was the first Republican president. He recived 180 of 303 electoral votes. (40% of the popular vote)

South Carolina secedes from the Union

Dec 20, 1860

Within 2 months Mississippi, Flordia, Georgia, Louisiana, & Texas secede from the Union.

Jefferson Davis is the President of the Confederate States of America

Feb 9, 1861

Davis was a fromer U.S army officer & and was a West Pointe graduate. In March 4th, 1861 Liincoln was sworn into office for the first time.

Attack on Fort Sumter

Apr 12, 1861

At 4:30 am Confederates under General Pierre Beauregard opened fire with 50 cannons opon Fort Sumter in Charleston, South Carolina. The war begins.

Virginia secedes from the Union

Apr 17, 1861

Within 5 weeks Arkansas, Tennesse & North Carolina formed the 11 state Confederacy. (the population was 9 million with 4 million slaves) The Union will soon have 21 states with a population of over 20 million.

Lincoln issues the Proclomation of Blockade against Southern ports.

Apr 19, 1861

For the duration of the war the blockade didn't allow the rural south to be well supplied for the war against the industrialized north.

First Battle of Bull Run

Jul 21, 1861

Under General Irvin McDowell the Union army is defeated at Bull Run 25 miles southwest of Washington. Confederate General Thomas J. Jackson (Stonewall) and bridage resists Union attack. Union troops fall back to washington. Lincoln now realizes that the war will be long.

Capture of Fort Henry

Feb 6, 1862

Ulysses S. Grant captures Fort Henry in Tennesse, and 10 days later Fort Donelson.

Merrimac sinks wooden ships

Mar 9, 1862

The Cnfederate iornclad 'Mererrimac' sinks 2 Union Ships (wooden). The 'Merrimac' then battles the Union iornclad 'monitor' to a tie. This battle made iorn ships more useful than wooden ships. (March 8-9)

Confederate suprise attack

Apr 6, 1862

Confederate army attacks on General Grant's troops at Shiloh on the Tennessee River. 13,000 Union soldiers were killed and 10,000 Confederates. (April 6/7)

The Battle of Seven Pines

May 31, 1862

General Joseph E. Johnston's army attacks McClellan's troops in front of Richmond and almost defeats them. Johnston is badly injured.

Second Battle of Bull Run

Aug 29, 1862

General John Pope is defeated with 75,000 federals by 55,000 Confederates under General Stonewall Jackson and General James Longstreet in northern Virginia. The Union army retreats to Washington. (August 29-30)

Antietam

Sep 17, 1862

General Robert E. Lee and the Confederate Armies were stopped at Antietam in Maryland by McClellan and numerically superior forces. By nightfall 26,000 men were dead, missing, or wounded. Lee withdraws into Virginia. This was the single-most bloodest battle in U.S history.

Fredericksburg

Dec 13, 1862

Under General Burnside control the Army of the Potomac is defeated by the Confederacy. There was a loss of 12,653 Union men after 14 frontal assaults. The Confederacy lost 5,309 men.

Final Emancipation Proclamation

Jan 1, 1863

Lincoln frees all the slaves in territories of the Confederates. African Americanas enlist in the Union Army.

Chancellorsville

May 1, 1863

The Union Army is defeated by General Lee's smaller Confederate forces at the Battle of Chancellorsville. Union losses are 17,000 killed, wounded, or missing out of 130,000. The Confederates lose 13,000 out of 60,000 men. (May 1-4)

Gettysburg

Jul 1, 1863

This battle was the major turning point in the Civil War. This defeat to the south came with a tremendeous mistake by General Lee. (July 1-3)