Download Chapter 13 – Civil War

Chapter 13 – Civil War
NOTES AND INFORMATION
Causes of the War
 Slavery was a major issue
 But it wasn’t the only issue
 There were two types of causes to the war:
 Fundamental- developed over a long period of time
 Immediate-came into being just before the war itself
Fundamental Causes
 Differences between the north and south
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Economics
States’ rights
Slavery
These causes led to the breakup of our nation in the 1860s.
Immediate Causes
 Abolitionist John Brown’s 1859 raid at Harper’s
Ferry in Virginia
 Abraham Lincoln’s election as president of the
United States in 1860
 Secession of southern states
Republicans
 Supported high tariffs (taxes)
 Free land in the West
 Abolishing slavery in America
Georgia’s Reaction
• Georgian’s were shocked by Lincoln’s win in the election
of 1860.
• Governor Brown predicted that within a few years of
Lincoln’s election the south would be in utter ruin and
slavery would be abolished.
• On January 16, 1861, delegates met in Milledgeville for a
secession convention
• Alexander Stephens wanted to wait and see what Lincoln
would do before seceding from the Union.
Ordinance of Secession
formal action or declaration taken by a special convention
 Repealed the ratification of the US Constitution.
 Declared Georgia an independent nation.
 It dissolved Georgia’s membership in the United
States.
 South Carolina was the first state to secede from
the Union.
The Declaration of the Causes of Secession
 Georgia explained why it would secede from the
Union.
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Lincoln’s election
Limiting adding slave states to the Union
Not all Georgian’s were happy about secession.
Those from the mountain areas of Georgia were still
loyal to the Union.
Slaves were not affected very much by secession
(those changes would come later)
New Nation is Formed
• On February 4, 1861, delegates from Georgia, South
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Carolina, Alabama, Mississippi, Florida, and Louisiana
met in Montgomery, Alabama.
Montgomery was the first capital of the new nation
formed by the southern states that had seceded.
The nation was called the Confederate States of America
(or simply the Confederacy).
Jefferson Davis- president.
Alexander Stephens-vice-president (from Georgia)
Adopted in 1861, new Confederate flag referred to as the
Stars and Bars.
New Nation = New Constitution
• Thomas R. R. Cobb –Athens lawyer and UGA
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professor drafted new constitution.
Modeled the Confederate Constitution after the US
Constitution.
Gave individual states more power than the central
government.
Prohibited Confederate Congress from passing any
anti-slavery laws.
South prepared for a “short” war – north did not
think war would last long either.
Fighting Begins
• Union forces remained stationed at Fort Sumter, in
Charleston, SC.
• Confederates wanted to take control of the base since
it was in the new CSA.
• When Union forces refused to leave, the Confederacy
opened fire and took back Fort Sumter and raised
the Stars and Bars.
• The Civil War officially began on April 12, 1861.
Reaction to Fort Sumter
• Lincoln declared a naval blockade of all southern
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ports.
Southern states joined the Confederacy: Virginia,
Arkansas, North Carolina, Tennessee.
Confederacy then moved its capital to Richmond,
Virginia because of its location, size, and resources.
Four border states: Delaware, Kentucky, Maryland,
and Missouri-stayed in the Union.
They were known as border states because they
bordered free states.
Truth About the War
 Northerners felt they had a huge advantage in the
war because of all their resources.
 The Civil War lasted 4 years.
 Over 600,000 soldiers were killed. More men were
killed in Civil War than any other war.
 Another 400,000 were wounded.
Georgians in the War
 Georgian soldiers, often called “Johnny Reb” or
“Rebels” would face Northern soldiers, or “Billy
Yank” or “Yankees” on the battlefield.
 The South had superior military leadership at the
beginning of the war.
 The South was outnumbered by northern soldiers, so
a draft (law requiring civilians to join the army) was
put in place.
Battle at Virginia’s Manassas Junction
 First major battle of Civil War.
 Near Bull Run Creek.
 Confederate forces won in a stunning upset.
The Naval Blockade
 Food shortages
 Fewer manufactured goods
 Higher prices on food and other goods
Slaves during the Civil War
 At the beginning of the war, slaves lived much as
they did before.
 As time went on, some slaves were assigned to build
forts and prisons.
 They also repaired railroads.
 They even worked as cooks and blacksmiths for the
Confederate army units.
Single Bloodiest Day of the War
• September 17, 1862
• Battle at Antietam, Maryland
• Neither side won
• Lincoln then issued the Emancipation Proclamation
• Document stated on January 1, 1863, all slaves in
Confederate states would be freed
• Also welcomed all slaves to join the Union army
• 186,000 African Americans enlisted as Union
soldiers (half came from Confederate states)
• 38,000 died during the Civil War
Heart of the Confederacy
 Georgia was the “heart of the Confederacy”
 Strategic
location
 Extensive railroad network
 Ability to supply food and equipment
Battle of Gettysburg
• Of over 2,000 land battles of the Civil War, the Battle
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of Gettysburg was the most important.
July 1, 1863, it was the greatest battle ever fought on
the continent of North America.
Three days of terrible fighting and over 50,000
killed, wounded, or captured.
Lincoln dedicated a portion of battlefield as cemetery
for fallen soldiers.
Delivered Gettysburg Address and pushed for
preservation of the Union.
Andersonville Prison
• Held Union prisoners of war.
• Associated with horror and death.
• By August 1864, there were 33,000 Union prisoners.
• Conditions were horrible
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Polluted water
Prisoners starved
Henry Wirz was prison commander
Almost 13,000 prisoners died in the prison
Battle at Chickamauga
 September 1863
 Confederate army turned back the Union soldiers in
a bloody battle.
 All eyes were now on Atlanta.
 Atlanta became the most important military target in
Georgia because of its industrial and transportation
resources.
Sherman’s March to the Sea
• Atlanta’s destruction begin in 1864.
• June 27 – Battle at Kennesaw Mountain-then moved
onto Atlanta.
• Destroyed resources, especially railroads, and
Confederate supplies.
• Sherman’s troops destroyed $100 million worth of
food and other resources.
• Sherman’s march through Georgia ended in
Savannah.
The End of the War
 General Robert E. Lee surrendered to General
Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse in
Virginia on April 9, 1865.
 The Civil War officially came to an end for Georgia
when Johnston surrendered to Sherman in North
Carolina on April 26, 1865.
 The North had won the war.