TEST REVIEWThe American Civil War

and

Reconstruction

INSTRUCTIONS: Go through the slides and answer each question in the packet

In the packet, the slide numbers are listed for each question, so you know where to look to find your answers

If you answer each question correctly and thoroughly, you will be prepared for the test

TEST REVIEW

In the American Civil War, the two sides in the conflict were the United States of America (the Union, located in the North) and the Confederate States of America

(the Confederacy, located in the South)

UNION (NORTH)

CONFEDERACY (SOUTH)

Cotton was the main product grown in the Southern states; it was so important to the

Southern economy, it was called “King Cotton”

“King Cotton” had transformed the South into a rural region with many plantations, but with

little manufacturing and few railroads

The Southern plantation owners depended heavily

on slavery to harvest and

process cotton

While the South was very rural, the Northern states were more industrialized and urban;

the North did not have a great need for slaves

The South, however, DID

rely on slavery; this

issue of slavery would create tension between the

North and South

The differences between the North and South led to sectionalism, which is placing the

interests of a region (or section) of a country above the interests of the whole country

Between 1820 and 1850, sectionalism between the North and South was mild;

their differences were solved by compromise

In 1846, Northern Congressmen tried to pass the Wilmot Proviso: this stated that slavery would be

illegal in any new lands the U.S. gained from Mexico

Anti-slavery Northern states were in favor of the Wilmot Proviso, while the pro-slavery

South was against it

The “Free Soil Party” were not abolitionists because they did not think Congress had the

power to end slavery; Free Soilers were against the expansion of slavery into the West

“Abolitionists” are people who want to completely get rid of (or abolish) slavery

Arguments about slavery between

the North and South began to

get more heated in the 1850s

In the state of Illinois, an unknown Republican named Abraham Lincoln ran against Democrat

Stephen Douglas for a Senate seatThe topic of their debates was over the spread

of slavery in the new territories; Lincoln adopted the policy of the Free Soil Party and

was against the spread of slavery

The idea of “popular

sovereignty” means that the

people of a state or region make

decisions for themselves by

voting

The Compromise of 1850 settled the sectional dispute over slavery for a time; with the Compromise, Henry

Clay was hoping to avoid civil war over slavery

THE COMPROMISE OF 1850(1) The slave trade

ended in Washington DC (NORTH LIKES THIS)

(2) Following the idea of popular sovereignty, the people of Utah and New

Mexico could vote to allow or ban slavery

(SOUTH LIKES THIS)

(3) California entered as a free state

(NORTH LIKES THIS)

(4) A stronger Fugitive Slave Law was created that allowed

Southerners to recapture slaves in the North

(SOUTH LIKES THIS)

“The Underground Railroad” was not actually

underground nor was it a railroad;

it was the nickname for the network of safe houses to help Southern slaves escape North to

freedom

Harriet Tubman was the most famous “conductor” of the Underground Railroad, making 19 trips South to lead 300 slaves to freedom using the network of safe houses

In 1852, Harriet Beecher Stowe

wrote “Uncle Tom’s Cabin”, a book that

depicted slavery as a terrible moral evil

“Uncle Tom’s Cabin” inspired many

Northerners to join the abolitionist

cause

“A house divided against itself cannot stand.

I believe this government cannot endure, permanently half slave and half free.”

—Abraham Lincoln, 1858

RESULTS OF THE DRED SCOTT LAWSUIT

(1) Southerners were pleased because the court said that Blacks were not citizens and

had no rights, including the right to sue

(2) The Missouri Compromise was ruled

unconstitutional

(3) Northern abolitionists were furious

STEPHEN DOUGLAS’ KANSAS-NEBRASKA ACT OF 1854

This law used popular sovereignty to allow residents of the new territories (Kansas and

Nebraska) to vote on banning or approving slavery; the old Missouri Compromise was ended by this

Northerners were outraged by the Kansas-

Nebraska Act, since Congress allowed slavery

to spread in an area where it had been

outlawed

Northerners formed the Republican Party and became committed to

the “Free Soil” movement

Abolitionist John Brown wanted to

lead a slave rebellion in the South

Brown and his people raided an armory at

Harper’s Ferry to get the weapons for the rebellion

He was caught and executed

Brown was seen as martyr in the North and as a criminal in the

South

Southerners believed all Northerners were like Brown and would use

violence to end slavery, so Southerners made life even tougher

for their slaves

The election of the Republican Abraham Lincoln as President of the U.S. made Southerners push for secession from the

Union

“Secession” is when a state breaks away from the country

Southerners feared Lincoln would make slavery illegal, so

they seceded from the U.S.

South Carolina seceded first; by early 1861, seven Southern states had seceded and formed the

Confederate States of America

The South justified

secession with the North by

saying that since each state

voluntarily had joined the Union,

states had the right to leave the

Union if they wanted to

These seven states seceded by February 1861: Texas,

Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida,

and South Carolina

Lincoln viewed Southern secession as illegal and promised to “preserve the Union”; he would not

allow the South to break away without a fight

Fort SumterIn April 1861, Union soldiers refused Confederate demands to vacate Fort

Sumter in South Carolina

When Lincoln sent aid to those Union soldiers at Fort Sumter, the

Confederates fired on the fort

The attack on Fort Sumter proved to be the beginning of the Civil War

NORTHERN ADVANTAGES IN THE WAR

(1)The larger population in the

North meant more troops

(2) The North had far greater industrial capacity (to make

more weapons, ammunition, etc.)

(3) The North had a huge railroad network, so they could move troops and supplies to where they were needed

much faster than the South could

NORTHERN PROBLEMS IN THE WAR

(1) To win this war, the North had to invade the South; the South

had “home field” advantage

(2) It was difficult to maintain enthusiasm and support among

the Northern population over a long

period of time

SOUTHERN ADVANTAGES IN THE WAR(1) Confederate President Jefferson Davis knew that the South

did not have to win the war by conquering the North; they only had to drag out the war and make the North quit fighting

(2) The South had better fighters and better leaders; they also had motivation to

protect their homes

(3) Because they wanted Southern cotton, France and

England appeared more likely to support the South

Robert E. Lee “Stonewall” Jackson J.E.B. Stuart

SOUTHERN PROBLEMS IN THE WAR

(1) The South is badly

outnumbered by the North

(2) The South did not have the industrial

capacity or railroad system the North had

(2) Blockade the Southern coast, cutting off Confederate trade with England and France

(1) Take control of the

Mississippi River, splitting the Southern

states from the Western

territories

(3) Take the Confederate capital at Richmond

THE “ANACONDA” PLAN

NEW WEAPONS AND OLD TACTICS

New weapons included long-range

artillery and the Gatling gun (the first

machine gun)

Cone-shaped bullets and grooved rifle

barrels led to better accuracy

NEW WEAPONS AND OLD TACTICS

Ironclad ships were a new

innovation in naval warfare

(the battle between the

Union’s Monitor and the

Confederacy’s Virginia was the

first battle between

ironclad ships)

The ironclad ships could ram wooden ships, resist cannon fire,

and resist burning… but they were much slower than wooden ships

NEW WEAPONS AND OLD TACTICS

Old tactics (like massed formations and frontal assaults) combined with these newer, deadlier

weapons led to massive loss of life on both sides

New Orleans, 1862 (USA)

The Battle of New Orleans was a crushing blow

to the South; from that point, the Union forces

controlled the Mississippi River

and split the Southern forces from each other

The Battle of Antietam was the single bloodiest day of the Civil

War, with neither side gaining

ground but both sides having a total of 23,000

casualties

After this battle, Lincoln decided the time was right to issue the Emancipation Proclamation,

which stated that the North’s goal was to free all slaves in the Southern states

Battle of Gettysburg, 1863:Robert E. Lee decided to take

advantage of his victory at Chancellorsville and attack

Northern soil; Lee wanted to end the war quickly by crushing Union morale

The Confederates lost the Battle of Gettysburg, which

proved to be the turning point of the war: Lee was halted,

the South gave up on the idea of invading the North

After this battle, Lincoln made an inspirational speech that would be called the Gettysburg Address

“The Declaration of Independence shows the principles of freedom that our government was founded upon.”

“This Civil War is a test to see if these principles will last, because other

republics have failed.”

“We need to make sure that the Union wins the Civil War in order to preserve our form of government.”

Clara Barton worked as a nurse on the battlefield during the Civil War; she later founded the American Red Cross, which helps victims of wars and disasters

Abraham Lincoln suspended the writ of

“habeus corpus” (which protects

people from unlawful imprisonment) during the Civil War; he did

so to prevent the border slave state of

Maryland from leaving the Union

Confederate President Jefferson Davis had a difficult time during

the war: because state rights were so strong in the South,

the Southern governors could

refuse Davis’ requests to draft soldiers or

send money

To finance the war, Lincoln began

the first ever income tax on

Americans’ earnings

Black soldiers fighting for the Union Army in Civil War faced discrimination, were paid less than

White soldiers, and were more likely to be killed than Whites (higher mortality rate)

General Grant and General Sherman considered “total war” necessary to defeat the South;

Sherman targeted not only Southern soldiers, but civilians, too

Using the “scorched earth” policy, Sherman’s forces left a trail of

destruction as they advanced; the Battle of Atlanta ended in the city’s destruction

The victory in the Battle of Atlanta gave Northern morale a huge boost and led to

Lincoln being re-elected

Robert E. Lee, the Confederate general, surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant, the Union general, at Appomattox

Courthouse in Virginia; this ended the Civil War

The North’s celebration was cut short when John Wilkes Booth, a well-known stage actor and pro-slavery

Southerner, shot Lincoln in the head as he watched a play; Lincoln died several hours later

The 13th Amendment

abolished slavery, making it illegal

The 14th Amendment

defined citizenship and established civil rights for all citizens

The 15th Amendment gave

all African-American males the

right to vote

PRESIDENTIAL RECONSTRUCTION

(1) Southern states must ratify

the 13th Amendment

(2) Southern states must ratify

the 15th Amendment

(3) Southern states must

rewrite their state constitution

CONGRESSIONAL RECONSTRUCTIONThis was also known as

“Radical Republican Reconstruction”

Its goals: (1) divide the South into military districts occupied by Union soldiers

(2) The South had to ratify the 14th Amendment

(3) The Freedman’s Bureau was established

THE COMPROMISE OF 1877In the 1876 election, neither candidate won a majority of

the electoral college vote

Democrats in Congress agreed to vote for the

Republican Rutherford B. Hayes if Union troops would be removed from the South

Both sides agreed, and the Compromise of 1877 ended

Reconstruction

IF YOU HAVE CORRECTLY ANSWERED ALL OF THE QUESTIONS ON YOUR REVIEW PACKET,

YOU WILL BE READY FOR THE NEXT TEST

Review created by

Christopher Jaskowiak