The Union in Crisis and Civil War

1850 – 1865

Unit 4: The Civil War and Reconstruction (1850-1877)

Daily Learning Target

• I can identify and evaluate the events of the Antebellum period that precipitated the secession crisis and the American Civil War.

The Sectional Conflict Widens (1820 – 1860)

• Sectionalism = N/S• Factory vs. Plantations• Immigration in the North• Railroads vs. Waterways• Free vs. Slave• $1.5 B North vs. $155 M

South GNP• Balance of Power?

The Missouri Compromise of 1820• Missouri wanted to enter

Union as a slave state.

• Problem = Balance of Power in Congress

• Henry Clay (KY) – proposed Maine enter as free state to balance out Missouri.

• 36*30’ N would be dividing line between slave and free.

The Mexican-American War1846 - 1848

The Compromise of 1850

• The Mexican War of 1846-1848 increased the size of the USA.

• Henry Clay (KY) proposed:

1. CA be admitted as a free state

2. NM and UT would vote on slavery

3. Slave trade abolished in D.C.

4. Fugitive Slave Law of 1850

Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1852)• Authored by abolitionist,

Harriet Beecher Stowe

• Described the cruelties of slavery

• Sold 300,000 copies in 1st year; only the Bible sold more copies during the era!

• Southerners were outraged!

Bleeding Kansas! (1854 – 1856)

• Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854) opened territories

• Free-soilers vs.Border Ruffians vied for control

• Abolitionist John Brown kills 5 pro slavers in KS

• Violence spreads to the Senate floor as Senator Charles Sumner is caned!

Dred Scott v. Sanford (1857)• Dred Scott, a Missouri slave, sued his

master’s widow for his freedom in 1846.• 1834-38 he lived in free state of Illinois

& thought he should be free• The Court said 5-4 (1) Scott was a slave

and had no right to sue (2) Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional because Congress couldn’t legally ban slavery in any U.S. territory (due process/ property rights)

• Abolitionist Frederick Douglas predicted this would actually expedite slavery’s end?

Chief Justice Roger B. TaneyDred Scott

John Brown Returns!• Oct. 1859 Brown comes

out of hiding

• Harpers Ferry, VA- attacks a federal arsenal with the hope of starting a slave rebellion

• Sentenced to death by hanging

• He became a martyr

Bell Ringer – A Nation Divided!1. T or F – California entered the Union as a free

state the result of the Compromise of 1850.2. T or F - Harriet Tubman wrote Uncle Tom’s

Cabin.3. T or F – “Bleeding Kansas” refers to the

violence that broke out in Kansas over slavery.4. T or F – Dred Scott was given his freedom by

the Supreme Court in the 1857 case Dred Scott v. Sanford.

The Election of 1860

• 1854 – Republican Party formed

• 1859 – John Brown’s raid on Harper’s Ferry and execution

• Democratic Party Split N and S

• Lincoln wins with 40% of popular vote

Secession! South Carolina leaves on Dec. 20, 1860

and 6 others follow to CSA by 1861.

Lincoln Takes Office• March 4, 1861 – President

Lincoln took a firm, but conciliatory tone toward the South.

• He didn’t want to bother slavery where it existed, but he did want to stop it from spreading into the territories.

• He pledged to preserve the Union - #1 Goal!

Southern War Strategy• After Fort Sumter (April

12, 1861) 4 more states joined the CSA.

• The CSA Generals and President Davis planned a defensive war.

• CSA hoped Europe would aid and had better leadership.

Northern War StrategyThe Union developed a

strategy called the Anaconda Plan. They hoped to:

1. Blockade all Southern Ports

2. Control the Mississippi River and divide the CSA in half

3. Capture and occupy the Confederate capital of Richmond, VA

From Bull Run to Antietam• July 21, 1861 –

“Stonewall” Jackson rallies CSA at Bull Run, VA

• Union General U.S. Grant wins costly US victory at Shiloh, TN on April 6-7, 1861

• CSA General R.E. Lee achieved a draw at Antietam, MD Sept. 17, 1862

• Stalemate in the East!

The Emancipation Proclamation

• Issued Fall 1862 and effective Jan. 1, 1863

• Freed all slaves in areas of the U.S. still under CSA control

• Although it was criticized by some, it meant the war would end slavery if Union indeed won

Exit Slip – The Civil War Begins1. How many electoral votes did President Lincoln receive in the

South?

a. 34 b. 21 c. 13 d. 0

2. Which side planned a defensive war?

a. Union b. Confederacy c. Mexico

3. At the end of 1862 __________.

a. the Union was winning

b. the Confederacy was winning

c. both sides were locked in a stalemate

4. This act by President Lincoln freed all slaves in states of the Confederacy not under Union rule?

a. Emancipation Proclamation b. 3/5 Compromise

c. 13th Amendment d. Homestead Act

1863: The Turning Point• July 1-3, 1863 – Lee

leads Army of N.VA North to PA

• 23,000 Union and 28,000 CSA casualties at Gettysburg, PA

• Lee would never invade Union again

• July 4, 1863 – Grant takes Vicksburg on Mississippi River

Sherman’s March to the Sea and Total Warfare

• Sept. 2, 1864 – Gen. Sherman captures Atlanta, GA

• Marches to Savannah, GA – 300 mile-long and 50 mile-wide swath of destruction

• Turns north in Dec. 1864 to meet Grant

• Civilians and slaves suffer immensely

The Election of 1864• Capture of Atlanta

and “Bayonet Voters” aid Lincoln

• He was opposed by ex-General George McClellan – a peace candidate

• Lincoln and Andrew Johnson (VP and Democrat) won 212/233 electoral votes

Lee Surrenders! April 9, 1865• Richmond, the CSA

capital, was in ruins• President Davis and

officials fled from Grant• Lee was humble and

Grant was very generous at Appomattox, VA

• 640,047 Union and 483,026 CSA casualties of war

Lincoln is Assassinated!• John Wilkes Booth, an

actor, plotted to kidnap Lincoln and others

• April 14, 1865 at Ford’s Theatre he shoots Lincoln

• Booth is later killed near Port Royal, VA

• Four of ten co-conspirators were hanged

Exit Slip – The Civil War1. Who was the commander of all Confederate forces

after 1862?a. Longstreet b. Bragg c. Lee

2. This battle of July 1863 was turning point of the Civil War?

a. Antietam b. Gettysburg c. Chickamauga3. This city was totally destroyed during Sherman’s

March? a. Atlanta b. Savannah c. Charleston4. Which side won the Civil War? a. Union b. Confederacy c. It was a draw