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Fort Sumter
The battle of Fort Sumter was the first battle of the war. It was one of the last southern forts in the unions position and was a major point of hostility. The Confederates attacked first and started the war. They eventually took the fort. There were no casualties. -
Secession of Virginia
After a call for troops from Lincoln, Virginia didn't want to fight against other southern states so it seceded. It was the most populated southern state so this was a major loss to the Union. -
The Battle of Bull Run
This was the first real battle between army's in the war. It was between two equally inexperienced army's that met at Bull Run. The Confederates won and forced the Union to retreat. There were 2,680 casualties. -
Battle of Shiloh
Grant attacked the north at a church named Shiloh. Despite the fact that Grant caught them by surprise, the Northern army managed to force them to retreat. There were 100,000 casualties. -
The battle of Richmond
After military control shifted to General Lee, the battle of Richmond took place. He pushed agents the quickly moving union and stopped them from taking Richmond. There were 5,353 casualties. -
The battle of Antietam
The battle at Antietam was the single bloodiest day of American history, with over 26,000 casualties. McClellan pushed forward and attacked Lee at Antietam. After forcing the south to retreat, McClellan refused to attack any further resulting in Lincoln firing him. -
Emancipation Proclamation
This proclamation legally freed all slave in the southern, seceded states. This didn't actually free any slaves immediately but more served as a symbolic gesture for abolitionists and European country's. -
The battle of Gettysburg
The battle of Gettysburg was the turning point of the war. It crippled General Lees army to the point where he couldn't make any more attacks towards the north. There were 23,049 casualties. -
The Gettysburg Address
Lincoln gave The Gettysburg Address after the battle of Gettysburg. It is known as one of the best and most influential speeches in American history. It highlights the fallen soldiers and what they did for the country. -
The surrender at Appomattox
After the south had no hope of winning the war, Lee and Grant met to negotiate terms of confederate surrender in Appomattox. The war was finally over. -
African Americans fighting in the war
At the beginning of the war, African Americans were not accepted as soldiers, but after the Emancipation Proclamation they were accepted. In the end, about 10% of the Union army was African American. African Americans didn't get equal pay as soldiers until 1864. -
New Technology/Weapons
Some new technology included the rifle and the minie ball. These allowed soldiers to be much more accurate when shooting. Also ironclad ships were make, these allowed more cannon balls to be deflected and had a stronger frame.