Civil War Strategies8-4.5-- Compare the military strategies of the North & South during the Civil War & the fulfillment of these strategies in S.C. and in the South as a whole. This includes the attack on Fort Sumter, the Union blockade of Charleston, the capture of Port Royal, & the development of the Hunley submarine; the exploits of Robert Smalls, & Gen. William Sherman’s march through the state

Military Strategy for the North

Blockade southern ports to cut off supplies from Europe

Break the Confederacy into two at the Mississippi River

Destroy their communication system

Attack the Confederate capital in Richmond, Va

Military Strategies for the SouthFight a defensive war, using

supplies from Europe and funds from the sale of cotton until the North tired out

American Civil War Tactics(7:38)

Most of the fighting took place in northern Virginia & along the Mississippi River

The first shots of the war happen at Fort Sumter, SC

1st major Confederate setback- Union captured areas surrounding Port Royal around coast

Hilton Head, SC The Civil War: Fort Sumter (2:42)

Union Strategy in SCPrevent ships from importing &

exporting from SC portsUnion blockades hurt SC by forcing

Europeans to find new international cotton markets

Emancipation Proclamation (what it meant to plantation owners)

Union captured Charleston and laid siege to the area for over a year

45th Massachusetts unit of African American soldiers led the charge on Fort Wagner at the mouth of Charleston Harbor

Robert Smalls23 yr old slave piloting a Confederate shipWife & children escaped to a Union ship at a

blockadeWhile the white crew was ashore, Smalls

navigated the ship towards the Union blockade, giving the appropriate signals to the Confederate forts he passed, where he surrendered it

He provided the Union with information on the Confederate fortifications surrounding Charleston

After the Civil War: served as an officer in the SC militia & state legislator, also helped draft the constitution of SC & served 5 terms as a Congressman from SC

Video (11:34)

Sherman’s MarchSherman marched to SC after he

captured Atlanta in his “March-to-the-Sea” campaign

Goal: make total war & bring the war home to the civilians to convince the south to surrender

Direct impact on SC: destroyed homes, plantations, railroads, & towns along the way

He even shelled the current state house under construction at the time

Capital city of Columbia burned

Video 1 (1:50)Video 2 (6:47)