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civil war timeline
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The Fire Eaters
Fire-Eaters were a group of extremist pro-slavery Southern politicians who urged the separation of southern states into a new nation, which became known as the Confederate States of America. The dean of the group was Robert Barnwell Rhett of South Carolina. They sought to reopen the international slave trade, which had been illegal since 1808. -
Alabama's Joint Resolutions on Secession
The General Assemby of Alabama passes Joint Resolutions, to take effect the election of a Republican to the presidency, including a call for a convention "to consider, determine and do whatever in the opinion of said Convention, the rights, interests, and honor of the State of Alabama requires to be done for their protection." -
Lincolns Speech at Cooper Insitute
Abraham Lincoln addresses gathering at the Cooper Institute in New York, attacking slavery and insisting that the Federal government has "the power of restraining the extension of the institution." -
Lincolns Speech at New Haven
Abraham Lincoln gives speech in New Haven, Connecticut: "Whether we will or not, the question of Slavery is the question, the all absorbing topic of the day. It is true that all of us—and by that I mean, not the Republican party alone, but the whole American people, here and elsewhere—all of us wish this question settled, wish it out of the way". -
Democratic Convention
Delegates from all fifty U.S. states and from American dependencies and territories such as Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands attend the convention and cast their votes to choose the Party's presidential candidate. Like the Republican National Convention, the Democratic National Convention marks the formal end of the primary election period and the start of the general election season. -
Yancey's Equal Rights Speech
William Lowndes Yancey delivers his "Equal Rights in a Common Government" speech in Washington, D.C. The fiery Yancy says, "Revenues have been raised at the rate of two or three dollars in the South to one from any other section for the support of this great Government, but the South makes no complaint of mere dollars and cents. Touch not the honor of my section of the country, and she will not complain of almost anything else you may do; but touch her honor and equality and she will stand up i -
Abraham Lincoln elecetd President
Abraham Lincoln, who had declared "Government cannot endure permanently half slave, half free..." is elected president, the first Republican, receiving 180 of 303 possible electoral votes and 40 percent of the popular vote. -
Southern Manifesto
Twenty-three representatives and seven senators from the South issue "a manifesto which urged secession and the organization of a Southern Confederacy." This Southern Manifesto was authored by Louis Trezevant Wigfall. -
South Carolina secedes
South Carolina secedes from the Union. Followed within two months by Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana and Texas. -
South Carolina calls for Southern Confederacy
The South Carolina Secession Convention proposes that a convention meet in Montgomery, Alabama, to create a constitution for the new Southern Confederacy. -
The Confederate States of America is Formed
The Confederate States of America is formed with Jefferson Davis, a West Point graduate and former U.S. Army officer, as president. -
Abraham Lincoln President
Abraham Lincoln is sworn in as 16th President of the United States of America. -
Fort Sumter Attacked
At 4:30 a.m. Confederates under Gen. Pierre Beauregard open fire with 50 cannons upon Fort Sumter in Charleston, South Carolina. The Civil War begins. -
President Lincoln issues a Proclamation
President Lincoln issues a Proclamation calling for 75,000 militiamen, and summoning a special session of Congress for July 4. Robert E. Lee, son of a Revolutionary War hero, and a 25 year distinguished veteran of the United States Army and former Superintendent of West Point, is offered command of the Union Army. Lee declines. -
Virginia secedes from the Union
Virginia secedes from the Union, followed within five weeks by Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina, thus forming an eleven state Confederacy with a population of 9 million, including nearly 4 million slaves. The Union will soon have 21 states and a population of over 20 million. -
President Lincoln issues a Proclamation of Blockade against Southern ports
President Lincoln issues a Proclamation of Blockade against Southern ports. For the duration of the war the blockade limits the ability of the rural South to stay well supplied in its war against the industrialized North. -
Robert E. Lee resigns his commission in the United States Army.
Robert E. Lee resigns his commission in the United States Army. "I cannot raise my hand against my birthplace, my home, my children." Lee then goes to Richmond, Virginia, is offered command of the military and naval forces of Virginia, and accepts. -
The First Bull Run
The Union Army under Gen. Irvin McDowell suffers a defeat at Bull Run 25 miles southwest of Washington. Confederate Gen. Thomas J. Jackson earns the nickname "Stonewall," as his brigade resists Union attacks. Union troops fall back to Washington. President Lincoln realizes the war will be long. "It's damned bad," he comments. -
The Congress authorizes a call for 500,000 men.
Lincoln, in a speech to Congress, states the war is..."a People's contest...a struggle for maintaining in the world, that form, and substance of government, whose leading object is, to elevate the condition of men..." The Congress authorizes a call for 500,000 men. -
George B. McClellan rises up
President Lincoln appoints George B. McClellan as Commander of the Department of the Potomac, replacing McDowell. -
Ulysses S Grant
Victory for Gen. Ulysses S. Grant in Tennessee, capturing Fort Henry, and ten days later Fort Donelson. Grant earns the nickname "Unconditional Surrender" Grant. -
President Lincolns son dies
President Lincoln is struck with grief as his beloved eleven-year-old son, Willie, dies from fever, probably caused by polluted drinking water in the White House. -
Shiloh
Confederate surprise attack on Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's unprepared troops at Shiloh on the Tennessee River results in a bitter struggle with 13,000 Union killed and wounded and 10,000 Confederates, more men than in all previous American wars combined. The president is then pressured to relieve Grant but resists. "I can't spare this man; he fights," Lincoln says. -
Union ships up the Mississippi River
17 Union ships under the command of Flag Officer David Farragut move up the Mississippi River then take New Orleans, the South's greatest seaport. Later in the war, sailing through a Rebel mine field Farragut utters the famous phrase "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!" -
The Battle of Seven Pines
The Battle of Seven Pines as Gen. Joseph E. Johnston's Army attacks McClellan's troops in front of Richmond and nearly defeats them. But Johnston is badly wounded. -
Gen. Robert E. Lee assumes command
Gen. Robert E. Lee assumes command, replacing the wounded Johnston. Lee then renames his force the Army of Northern Virginia. McClellan is not impressed, saying Lee is "likely to be timid and irresolute in action." -
he Seven Days Battles as Lee attacks McClellan
The Seven Days Battles as Lee attacks McClellan near Richmond, resulting in very heavy losses for both armies. McClellan then begins a withdrawal back toward Washington. -
Second Battle Of Bull Run
75,000 Federals under Gen. John Pope are defeated by 55,000 Confederates under Gen. Stonewall Jackson and Gen. James Longstreet at the second battle of Bull Run in northern Virginia. Once again the Union Army retreats to Washington. The president then relieves Pope. -
Antietam
The bloodiest day in U.S. military history as Gen. Robert E. Lee and the Confederate Armies are stopped at Antietam in Maryland by McClellan and numerically superior Union forces. By nightfall 26,000 men are dead, wounded, or missing. Lee then withdraws to Virginia. -
Fredericksburg
Army of the Potomac under Gen. Burnside suffers a costly defeat at Fredericksburg in Virginia with a loss of 12,653 men after 14 frontal assaults on well entrenched Rebels on Marye's Heights. "We might as well have tried to take hell," a Union soldier remarks. Confederate losses are 5,309. -
Emancipation Proclamation
President Lincoln issues the final Emancipation Proclamation freeing all slaves in territories held by Confederates and emphasizes the enlisting of black soldiers in the Union Army. The war to preserve the Union now becomes a revolutionary struggle for the abolition of slavery. -
The U.S. Congress enacts a draft
The U.S. Congress enacts a draft, affecting male citizens aged 20 to 45, but also exempts those who pay $300 or provide a substitute. "The blood of a poor man is as precious as that of the wealthy," poor Northerners complain. -
Chancellorsville
The Union Army under Gen. Hooker is decisively defeated by Lee's much smaller forces at the Battle of Chancellorsville in Virginia as a result of Lee's brilliant and daring tactics. Confederate Gen. Stonewall Jackson is mortally wounded by his own soldiers. Hooker retreats. Union losses are 17,000 killed, wounded and missing out of 130,000. The Confederates, 13, 000 out of 60,000. -
Stonewall Jackson dies
The South suffers a huge blow as Stonewall Jackson dies from his wounds, his last words, "Let us cross over the river and rest under the shade of the trees." "I have lost my right arm," Lee laments. -
Gettysburg
The tide of war turns against the South as the Confederates are defeated at the Battle of Gettysburg in Pennsylvania -
Vicksburg
Vicksburg, the last Confederate stronghold on the Mississippi River, surrenders to Gen. Grant and the Army of the West after a six week siege. With the Union now in control of the Mississippi, the Confederacy is effectively split in two, cut off from its western allies. -
The president meets with Frederick Douglass
The president meets with abolitionist Frederick Douglass who pushes for full equality for Union 'Negro troops.' -
Chickamauga
A decisive Confederate victory by Gen. Braxton Bragg's Army of Tennessee at Chickamauga leaves Gen. William S. Rosecrans' Union Army of the Cumberland trapped in Chattanooga, Tennessee under Confederate siege. -
General Grant
The president appoints Gen. Grant to command all operations in the western theater. -
Chattanooga
The Rebel siege of Chattanooga ends as Union forces under Grant defeat the siege army of Gen. Braxton Bragg. During the battle, one of the most dramatic moments of the war occurs. Yelling "Chickamauga! Chickamauga!" Union troops avenge their previous defeat at Chickamauga by storming up the face of Missionary Ridge without orders and sweep the Rebels from what had been though to be an impregnable position. "My God, come and see 'em run!" a Union soldier cries. -
Union Army Campaign
The beginning of a massive, coordinated campaign involving all the Union Armies. In Virginia, Grant with an Army of 120,000 begins advancing toward Richmond to engage Lee's Army of Northern Virginia, now numbering 64,000, beginning a war of attrition that will include major battles at the Wilderness (May 5-6), Spotsylvania (May 8-12), and Cold Harbor (June 1-3). -
Cold Harbor
A costly mistake by Grant results in 7,000 Union casualties in twenty minutes during an offensive against fortified Rebels at Cold Harbor in Virginia. Many of the Union soldiers in the failed assault had predicted the outcome, including a dead soldier from Massachusetts whose last entry in his diary was, "June 3, 1864, Cold Harbor, Virginia. I was killed." -
Union misses an oppurtunity
Union forces miss an opportunity to capture Petersburg and cut off the Confederate rail lines. As a result, a nine month siege of Petersburg begins with Grant's forces surrounding Lee. -
Democrats nominate George B. McClellan for president
Democrats nominate George B. McClellan for president to run against Republican incumbent Abraham Lincoln. -
Atlanta is captured by Sherman's Army
Atlanta is captured by Sherman's Army. "Atlanta is ours, and fairly won," Sherman telegraphs Lincoln. The victory greatly helps President Lincoln's bid for re-election. -
A decisive Union victory
A decisive Union victory by Cavalry Gen. Philip H. Sheridan in the Shenandoah Valley over Jubal Early's troops. -
Abraham Lincoln is re-elected president
Abraham Lincoln is re-elected president, defeating Democrat George B. McClellan. Lincoln carries all but three states with 55 percent of the popular vote and 212 of 233 electoral votes. "I earnestly believe that the consequences of this day's work will be to the lasting advantage, if not the very salvation, of the country," Lincoln tells supporters. -
March to Sea
After destroying Atlanta's warehouses and railroad facilities, Sherman, with 62,000 men begins a March to the Sea. President Lincoln on advice from Grant approved the idea. "I can make Georgia howl!" Sherman boasts. -
Hood's Rebel Army
Hood's Rebel Army of 23,000 is crushed at Nashville by 55,000 Federals including Negro troops under Gen. George H. Thomas. The Confederate Army of Tennessee ceases as an effective fighting force. -
Sherman reaches Savannah
Sherman reaches Savannah in Georgia leaving behind a 300 mile long path of destruction 60 miles wide all the way from Atlanta. Sherman then telegraphs Lincoln, offering him Savannah as a Christmas present. -
Thirteenth Amendment approved
The U.S. Congress approves the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, to abolish slavery. The amendment is then submitted to the states for ratification. -
Inauguration ceremonies for President Lincoln
Inauguration ceremonies for President Lincoln in Washington. "With malice toward none; with charity for all...let us strive on to finish the work we are in...to do all which may achieve and cherish a just, and a lasting peace, among ourselves, and with all nations," Lincoln says. -
The last offensive for Lee's Army
The last offensive for Lee's Army of Northern Virginia begins with an attack on the center of Grant's forces at Petersburg. Four hours later the attack is broken. -
Grant's forces begin a general advance
Grant's forces begin a general advance and break through Lee's lines at Petersburg. Confederate Gen. Ambrose P. Hill is killed. Lee evacuates Petersburg. The Confederate Capital, Richmond, is evacuated. Fires and looting break out. The next day, Union troops enter and raise the Stars and Stripes. -
Gen. Robert E. Lee surrenders his Confederate Army to Gen. Ulysses S. Grant
Gen. Robert E. Lee surrenders his Confederate Army to Gen. Ulysses S. Grant at the village of Appomattox Court House in Virginia. Grant allows Rebel officers to keep their sidearms and permits soldiers to keep horses and mules.
"After four years of arduous service marked by unsurpassed courage and fortitude the Army of Northern Virginia has been compelled to yield to overwhelming numbers and resources," Lee tells his troops.
General Lee surrendered in the parlor of this house. -
Lincoln shot
Lincoln and his wife Mary see the play "Our American Cousin" at Ford's Theater. At 10:13 p.m., during the third act of the play, John Wilkes Booth shoots the president in the head. Doctors attend to the president in the theater then move him to a house across the street. He never regains consciousness. -
Confederate Gen. Joseph E. Johnston surrenders
Confederate Gen. Joseph E. Johnston surrenders to Sherman near Durham in North Carolina. -
John Wilkes Booth shot
John Wilkes Booth is shot and killed in a tobacco barn in Virginia. -
Abraham Lincoln is laid to rest
Abraham Lincoln is laid to rest in Oak Ridge Cemetery, outside Springfield, Illinois. -
Slavery is abolished
The Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, passed by Congress on January 31, 1865, is finally ratified. Slavery is abolished. -
New Freedman's Bureau bill passed by Congress.
New Freedman's Bureau bill passed by Congress. President Andrew Johnson vetoes the bill that authorized military trial for those accused of "depriving Negroes of the Civil Rights" on the same day -
Texas repeals the actions of the Secessionist Convention
Texas repeals the actions of the Secessionist Convention -
President Johnson vetos the Civil Rights Act of 1866
President Johnson vetos the Civil Rights Act of 1866 on the grounds that it was unconstitutional -
Congress overrides President Andrew Johnson's veto
Congress overrides President Andrew Johnson's veto of the Civil Rights Act -
Thirty-ninth Congress approves the 14th Amendment to the Constitution
Thirty-ninth Congress approves the 14th Amendment to the Constitution -
Congress overrides Andrew Johnson's veto
Congress overrides Andrew Johnson's veto of the Freedman's Bureau bill -
Congress establishes "general of the armies"
Congress establishes "general of the armies" and Ulysses S. Grant is immediately promoted to 4-star general and put in this position. William Tecumseh Sherman assumes the rank of Lt. General. -
Ku Klux Klan
The U. S. Secret Service begins an investigation into the Ku Klux Klan -
A proclaimation of peace with Texas
A proclaimation of peace with Texas is issued by United States President Andrew Johnson -
South Carolina rejects the 14th Amendment
On the 6th anniversary of secession, South Carolina rejects the 14th Amendment -
Blacks in Washington D. C. gain the right to vote.
Blacks in Washington D. C. gain the right to vote in a bill passed over President Andrew Johnson's veto -
Nebraska becomes a state
Nebraska becomes a state -
Congress passes the Tenure of Office
Congress passes the Tenure of Office Act, denying the right of the President to remove officials who had been appointed with the consent of Congress. -
General Philip Sheridan assumes command of the 5th Military district
General Philip Sheridan assumes command of the 5th Military district encompassing Louisiana and Texas. He designates New Orleans as his headquarters. -
Congress passes the 2nd Reconstruction Act
Congress passes the 2nd Reconstruction Act over Andrew Johnson's veto -
William P. Seward signs a treaty with Russia
William P. Seward signs a treaty with Russia buying Alaska for 2 cents an acre. Democrats called it "Seward's Folly" -
Congress passes a bill admitting Arkansas, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, North Carolina, and South Carolina into the Union.
Congress passes a bill admitting Arkansas, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, North Carolina, and South Carolina into the Union. Virginia, Mississippi, and Texas, having refused to ratify the fourteenth amendment, were refused admission into the Union -
House Select Committee on Reconstruction is appointed
House Select Committee on Reconstruction is appointed -
President Andrew Johnson demands the resignation of Edwin Stanton, Secretary of War.
President Andrew Johnson demands the resignation of Edwin Stanton, Secretary of War. -
Ulysses S. Grant becomes ad interim Secretary of War
Ulysses S. Grant becomes ad interim Secretary of War