Download Fort Sumter and War Strategies

Chapter 11
Lesson 1
I.
Beginning of Civil War
- As the Southern States seceded, they seized United States arsenals, forts,
mints, and other property within their borders.
A. Fort Sumter
1. Located in the harbor of Charleston, SC.
2. One of only 2 Southern forts under Federal control left.
3. Lincoln decided to resupply the fort (running low) and told SC authorities of
his intention to do so.
4. Jefferson Davis (newly elected President of the Confederacy), had two
choices.
a. Allow the fort to re-supply and appear weak.
b. Fire on the fort or relief ships and risk war.
5. Jefferson chose the latter option. After 36 hour bombardment, the fort
surrendered (loss of one life – accident).
B. Preparing to Fight
1. Lincoln calls for 75,000 volunteers for 90 days to suppress the rebellion.
a. More than could be trained and equipped responded.
2. Jefferson Davis calls for 100,000 men.
a. Young men are dying to fight (biggest adventure of their lives)
3. More Southern States secede (4)
a. Virginia, Arkansas, N.C., and Tennessee
b. Virginia secession puts Washington D.C. in danger. If Maryland seceded;
DC would be in enemy terr.
4. Riots in Baltimore
a. 1 week after Fort Sumter, Federal troops are attacked by a mob in
Baltimore.
b. Lincoln placed Baltimore under Martial Law, (Military Rule w/
suspension of Bill of Rights Protections).
c. Also arrests Pro-Southern leaders w/o trial.
d. Imposed martial law in Kentucky to stabilize it and supported rebellions
by Pro-Unionists in Missouri.
C. Strategies and Advantages
1. South
a. Better Army early in the war.
b. Strong military tradition.
c. Most top Federal officers were Southerners who resigned.
o Lee rejected Lincoln’s offer to lead the Union Army.
d. Strategy
o Long defensive struggle. North would lose interest if death toll got too
high.
o Bring in European help (England). Why???
2. North
a. Superior in almost every type of resource.
o Over 80% on the manufacturing, most of the merchant ships, railroads,
banks, minerals, grain crops, and meat.
o Also had more than 2x as many people.
b. Strategy
o Blockade, close off Southern ports (ruin economy)
o Invade and split Confederacy into 1/3rds at Miss. River, through Tenn.
and Georgia.
o Capture Confederate capital at Richmond, VA.
o Anaconda Plan
D. Wartime Diplomacy
1. North
o Job was to keep Europe out of the war.
o France and Britain openly sympathetic to South due to cotton.
2. South
o Expected Brit. aid because Brit. needed Southern cotton.
o Lincoln reminded Brit. they needed Northern wheat as well.
o Brit. allowed South to build navy in Britain but it was too small and
weak to break the Union Blockade.
o Brit. colonies in India and Egypt picked up the cotton shortfall and
South lost the opportunity to gain Britain’s support.
o Also, Brit. had long ago sworn off slavery, and had for years patrolled
the Atlantic to end the slave trade, the Brit. people would never have
supported a South that had the institution of slavery.