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The first shots of the Civil War were fired during this battle. Major Robert Anderson refused to evacuate the fort, and due to this, southern ships fired on the fort. It was later evacuated at noon on April 14th. This battle was the first major hostility from the south, and was the point of no return for the South. -
Union forces created a naval blockade which surrounded all southern ports as a part of the "Anaconda Plan". This blockade successfully limited southern access to weapons and supplies.
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The first full scale battle of the Civil War. Over 60,000 troops engaged, and 5,000 were killed during the battle. The Confederate army outnumbered the Union army during the battle, and the Union suffered 900 more casualties than the South. -
Charles Wilkes, a Navy Officer, captured two confederate representatives aboard a British ship, "The Trent". This caused a diplomatic crisis between the U.S. and Britain during the Civil War. -
This battle is also known as Battle of Pittsburg Landing, and resulted in a victory for the Union. With an estimated 23,000 casualties, this battle was absolute carnage, and was lead by Ulysses S. Grant, who later became the 18th U.S. president. -
This battle was the culmination of General Robert E. Lee's attempt to invade the North. This battle was very tense because President Lincoln had the Emancipation Proclamation on board and ready to go. General George McClellan won the battle, and allowed Lee to retreat without any struggle, preventing a confederate win on Northern soil. -
The Emancipation Proclamation was a major point during the war because it stated that all slaves that were being held in the seceding states shall be free. Although this didn't fully eliminate slavery in the nation, it was the beginning of legal action against slavery in the U.S. -
This battle was a major defeat for the Union army, and despite outnumbering the south, they suffered twice as many deaths. This battle signified a low point for the Union, and put President Lincoln in a lot of hot water politically. -
One of the biggest successes for the Union during the war. Ulysses S. Grant prepared his army for a long siege, building 15 miles of trenches, surrounding 29,000 confederate troops. They surrendered on July 4th, 1863.
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Another big victory for the Confederate Army, led by Robert E. Lee. Again, the South had 50,000 troops less than the North, but Lee's superior strategy allowed him to kill "Stonewall" Jackson, and win the battle. -
This was a major turning point for the Union, mainly due to the fact that General Lee's plan to quickly end the war had failed. Over 170,000 soldiers battled there, resulting in a Union victory. -
This two hour speech was given by Abraham Lincoln, addressing the crowd of 15,000 people. In this speech, he connected the lives lost at the Battle of Gettysburg to a "new birth of freedom". Lincoln also expressed that the Civil War was the greatest test to see if the Union created in 1776 would survive or not. -
This battle resulted in a Union Victory, after over a month and a half of bloodshed. Although General Lee had better strategies and more advantageous movements with his army, illness prevented him from ending the battle. This allowed Grant to siege Petersburg and eventually led to General Lee's surrender.
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This march started from Atlanta, a Union captured city, to the port of Savannah. General Sherman followed a scorched earth policy, and disrupted the Southern economy by burning and destroying land, buildings, and factories.
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This campaign resulted in another Union victory, and held another face-off between Grant and Lee. The confederate army was suffering from hunger, and illness. Meanwhile, the Union outnumbered, and was doing very well compared to the Confederacy. Lee's army was going to resupply in Lynchburg, Virginia and was cut off and defeated by the Union.
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Lee was forced out of the Confederate capital of Richmond, and unable to make way to the other forces station in North Carolina, he was forced to surrender. This act effectively ended the Civil War, despite not being officially ended 16 months later.