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Major Battles of the Civil War

By Emcdonald79

  • Battle of Bull Run/Manassas

    Battle of Bull Run/Manassas
    1st: Lincoln decides to attack south, Union gained the upper hand but Confederate held firm under Stonewall Jackson. By afternoon reinforcements arrive and force Union soldiers to retreat. South thought it would be a quick war
    2nd: George B. McClellan took command of the army, felt everything had to be perfect. The peninsula campaign was McClellan’s failed attempt to seize Richmond, could have ended the war. The union would have been restored but slavery would have survived.

  • Battle of Richmond

    Battle of Richmond
    Led by Major General Edmund Kirby Smith against Major General William “Bull” Nelson. Union were defending their territory. It was one of the most complete Confederate victory in the war.

  • Antietam

    Antietam
    Robert E. Lee decided to go north to invade Maryland. The north and south met. Union soldiers found a copy of Lee’s battle plans wrapped around a packet of three cigars dropped by a confederate officer. It revealed Lee and Stonewall Jackson’s armies were separated. It was the bloodiest single day battle of the war because it was an open field. (26,000 casualties). Lee retreats, McClellan fails to pursue which could have ended the war, therefore he was removed from command.

  • Battle of Gettysburg

    Battle of Gettysburg
    The Battle of Gettysburg was fought on Union soil and decided that the south would never be able to invade the north again. Union took defensive positions on hills and held the high ground. Robert E. Lee ordered an attack on cemetery ridge and later on orders artillery barrage in preparation for attack. Casualties: North: 23,000 South: 28,000

  • Appomattox

    Appomattox
    The Union corners Lee at Appomattox courthouse in Virginia. Ulysses S. Grant said “The war is over the rebels countrymen again.” Lee surrenders, over 650,000 soldiers die, cost over $15 million, and the south is destroyed. Grant admired Lee for backing down because Lee could have ordered his men to keep fighting as terrorists.

  • Pickets Charge

    Pickets Charge
    General George Picket lead the charge. There were 10,000 casualties. Lee decided to retreat, leaving them in severe defeat. This was the high tide of the confederacy.