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The Battle of Fort Sumter was the first battle of the Civil War. This battle started on April 12, 1861. The two main sides of this battle were the militia in South Carolina and the US Army. These two sides can also be seen as the Confederate States of America in which believed that slavery should be kept, while the Union fought to eradicate slavery. The Confederates won and claimed Fort Sumter although nobody was killed.
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The First Battle of Bull Run or The Battle of Manassas was the first major battle of the Civil War. The battle began when 35,000 Union troops marched from Washington, D.C to strike a Confederate force of 20,000 at a river called the Bull Run in Manassas Junction, Virginia. After fighting on the defensive, the rebels rallied and were able to break the Union right flank. This lead to the retreat of the Unions. The Confederate victory gave the South confidence and shocked the people in the North.
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In late December, the Union and Confederate forces clashed at the Battle of Stones River, Tennessee. The Confederates successfully attacked 42,000 Union soldiers from General William Rosecrans but the Union continued to stay defensive. The Confederates couldn't break the Union's defense and were forced to retreat. With around 23,000 total casualties, Stones River was one of the deadliest battles of the war. The Union won and their morale rose from the defeat in the Battle of Fredericksburg.
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The Battle of Fort Henry was a victory for the Union. To gaining control of rivers and supply lines west of the Appalachians, the Union launched an attack on the lightly defended Fort Henry in Tennessee. After a fierce naval bombardment, Confederate Lloyd Tilghman secretly evacuated his troops to nearby Fort Donelson before surrendering to the Union. The fall of Fort Henry opened up both the Cumberland and Tennessee rivers to Union control and the Confederates losing access to the rivers.
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The Battle of Fort Donelson was one of the Union’s first major victories in the Civil War. A week after capturing Fort Henry on the Tennessee River, Ulysses Grant began his assault on Fort Donelson a key gateway to the Confederacy. After Confederate forces under General John Floyd failed to break through Ulysses Grant’s lines. Grant’s victory ensured that Kentucky would remain in the Union and helped open up Tennessee to future Union advances.
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The Battle of the Ironclads or The Battle of Hampton Roads was between the U.S.S. Monitor(Union ironclad ship) and the Merrimack (Confederates ironclad ship). This naval fight was history’s first naval battle between ironclad warships. It was part of a Confederate effort to get into the Union's blockade of Southern ports. Though the battle itself was inconclusive, it began a new era in naval warfare.
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Uncle Tom's Cabin or Life Among the Lonely is a novel written by Harriet Beecher Stowe. This book was of large significance within the Civil War because it was about how slaves were being treated and convinced many people about the harms and effects of slavery on African Americans.
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The Battle of Shiloh or The Battle of Pittsburg was an early attack from the Confederate's side. After the Union succeeding to defend themselves, the Confederates were forced to leave. Both sides faced large damage with about 23,000 casualties from each side.
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The Battle of Antietam or the Battle of Sharpsburg was a battle that stopped the Confederate invasion of Maryland. This was an important battle to the victory of the Union because if they had lost, it would leave the Union at a large disadvantage compared to the Confederates. The name of this battle came from Antietam Creek from the North but through the south was considered part of Sharpsburg.
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The Battle of Fredericksburg was the largest concentrated amount of soldiers with about 200,000 and was the largest during the Civil War. Ambrose Burnside, the new commander of the Army of the Potomac was able to flank Robert Lee's soldiers and take over Fredericksburg in North Virginia. This helped raise the morale of the Confederates after their first meeting with Robert Lee and demoralized the Unions.
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The Battle of Chancellorsville was a huge victory for the Confederates and General Robert E. Lee. It is famous for being the battle in which Confederate General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson was fatally wounded. Robert Lee’s daring decision to face a force twice his size—Union General Joseph Hooker’s Army of the Potomac—by splitting his own army in two made the Battle of Chancellorsville go down in history as Robert Lee’s most significant tactical victory.
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The Siege of Vicksburg was an important victory for the Union because if it weren't for their victory in Vicksburg, the Confederates would have won the war. This battle was able to create a large reputation for the Union as well as General Ulysses S. Grant that helped with this battle who later became the 18th president of the United States. This 47-day siege helped the Union win the Missipi River which was a critical trade line for the Confederates.
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The Battle of Gettysburg is located in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. This battle had a total of 51,000 casualties and was the largest one during the Civil War. This was a turning point for the Union because Lee's plan revolved around taking over Gettysburg which had failed for the Confederates.
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The Confederates defeated a Union force in the Battle of Chickamauga. After Union troops pushed the Confederates out of Chattanooga early that month, the Confederates called for reinforcements and launched a counterattack on the banks of the Chickamauga Creek both receiving large casualties. Ulysses S. Grant soon arrived with reinforcements, allowing the Union to reverse the results of Chickamauga and score a lasting victory in the region that November.
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The Battle of the Wilderness marked the first stage of a major Union offensive toward the Confederate on Richmond, ordered by the newly named Union General Ulysses S. Grant. Two days of bloody and often chaotic combat followed, ending in a tactical draw and heavy casualties, especially on the Union side. Grant refused to retreat, however, and instead ordered his battered troops to continued southward in what would be a long and costly but ultimately successful.
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The Battle of Cold Harbor or The Battle of Gaines' Mill, The First Battle of Cold Harbor, was a horrible defeat for the Union with a total casualty of 18,000. This battle was the last major bloodbath that Robert E. Lee won during the Civil War. This large battle for the Union's attempt to gain the Cold harbor failed horribly as the Confederates continued to keep their ground.
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Atlanta was a major strategic city for the Confederacy for the purpose of transporting supply and manufacturing hub. With the Confederacy having a large advantage in Atlanta, Georgia with their supplies, the Union fought to capture the city from the Confederacy and successfully did so.
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The Lincoln Assassination was an important event during the Civil War as the 16th President of the United States. Abraham Lincoln agreed with the Union's conviction of slavery. Therefore as the president, Abraham was able to protect the Union through the power of the U.S government power. This deterrent of power disappeared after Abraham Lincoln was shot by a Confederate sympathizer, actor John Wilkes Booth. This clearly shows that the union lost a major power on their side.
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The Appomattox Court House was the court where the decision of the Civil War was decided. During the battle at Appomattox, Virginia Robert Lee surrendered, and was decided that the Union won the Civil War. This also leads to the freedom of slaves and the banning of slavery.
