1861-1865

The issue of slavery Political division Social impacts Lincoln-Douglas Debates

Slave States

Slave StatesFree States

Territories

Lincoln 180 1,870,000

Douglas 12 1,380,000

Breckenridge 72 840,000

Bell 39 590,000

Candidate Electoral Votes Popular Vote

What Southerners feared was now a reality – a man had won the presidency based on his dedication to antislavery

December 20, 1860 - South Carolina met in convention and unanimously adopted an ordinance of secession

February 1861- delegates from seven states met in Alabama to adopt a new constitution and elected Jefferson Davis president

South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas

The upper South was undecided on secession

Republican party refused to do anything to bring these Southern states back in

South did not have the constitutional right to secede

Federal authority in the South silently collapsed as officials took positions under the Confederacy

Two forts were built to protect the U.S. against foreign enemies; Ft. Pickens in Pensacola, Florida and Ft. Sumter in Charleston, South Carolina

Both garrison commanders retained allegiance to the Union and would not lower their flag!

Reinforcements were sent to Sumter but never made it

Lincoln only sends food, not weapons or men

S.C. and the Confederacy felt pressure to prove that they were an independent nation

April 12, 1861 – Confederates fire on Ft. Sumter

April 15, 1861 – Lincoln issued a proclamation that an insurrection existed in the boundaries of the U.S

Lincoln called for 75,000 troops for 3 months

Arkansas, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia all joined the Confederacy = 11 states total

Yet, the Confederate flag has 13 stars….???

These states were key to both the Union and the Confederacy

Maryland (surrounds Washington, D.C.) and Kentucky(industry/resources) were the most important

Kentucky

Missouri

Maryland

Delaware

1. Had double the Confederacy’s population2. North out produced the South in corn and

wheat3. Twice as many horses as the South4. 9/10s of nation’s industrial capacity5. Twice as many railway lines

1. Union was on the offensive2. South was fighting for their

families and way of life3. Fought on their own

terrain near supply lines4. Just had to resist long

enough to win5. Superior military

leadership

July 1861 – Union and Confederate troops meet at Manassas junction

Both armies are unseasoned and unorganized

The Confederacy claimed victory when the Union troops ran away

This battle let both sides know that it was going to be a long war

No more fighting in 1861 while both sides built up their armies

The Civil War is often referred to as the first modern war because of the use of the rifled musket

July 1863 Union stood strong for three days Great Union victory Bloodiest battle of the war

Promoted to General during the Mexican War

Took command of Confederate forces in the Shenandoah Valley

Lee’s greatest Lieutenant until he was shot at Chancellorsville and died of pneumonia shortly after

First to be offered field command of UNION troops by Lincoln, but refused

Successful in many early battles, but his defeat at Gettysburg constituted the turning point of the war

Commander of the Northern Virginia troops, but he became commander of all Confederate armies in Feb. 1865

Hero of the West Became supreme

commander of the Union forces March 1864

He wore down Lee’s forces forcing thesurrender at Appomattox, VA on April 9, 1865

After Shiloh was promoted to major general

Captured Atlanta then began his “March to the Sea” to capture Savannah, Georgia (1864)

Took command of U.S. army in 1869 after Grant became president

To retain the loyalty of the border states Lincoln had resisted demands of the radical Republicans for abolition

The Proclamation declared that slaves in all areas still in rebellion were “then, henceforward, and forever free.”

Helps the war effort by offering a moral reason to fight

Sherman led 62,000 men without supplies

Orders were to live off the country and destroy war supplies, public buildings, railroads and factories

Sherman’s actions here are the reason he is often referred to as the first modern general

Start

Union soldiers surround Lee in Virginia – no possible escape route

Confederate troops desperate – many starving

April 9, 1865 Appomattox Court House, Virginia

Lincoln Assassinated!• April 14, 1865 - Lincoln

was shot by John Wilkes Booth, a radical Confederate supporter, while watching a performance of Our American Cousin

• He was carried unconscious across the street where he died the next morning

600,000 dead South devastated Slavery ended with the Thirteenth Amendment,

December 18, 1865Many questions unaswered… Who will be responsible for deciding how to

deal with the rebellious South? Congress? The president?

Will the new president, Andrew Johnson, a southerner, follow Lincoln’s Plan for Reconstruction?

What will the status of the freemen be?