Download The Civil War - Saddleback College

The Civil War
(1861-1865)
Segment 15
History 16
The Election of Lincoln
• Wins Northern, Pacific States Only. No Southern or
Border States
• Opposition Fragmented into Three Parties: Southern
Democrat, Northern Democrat, Constitutional Union
• Wins only 39.8% of the Popular Vote.
President Lincoln
“On the Territorial Question,
I am inflexible”
Lincoln’s Positions
• “House Divided Cannot Stand”
• Firm Stand on Territories
• Will not touch Slavery in South
• Supports USC Amendment
Guaranteeing Slavery in South
• Slavery will die natural death
• Early Believer in “Back to
Africa”. Douglas changes him.
Electoral College Results of the 1860 Election
• Strong Believer in Union. Begs
South not to Secede
Lincoln Letter to The South
Practically Begging For Peace
To Alexander H. Stephens
For your own eye only.
Springfield, Ills.
Dec. 22, 1860
Hon. A. H. Stephens-President Lincoln
My dear Sir:
Your obliging answer to my short note is just received, and for which please
accept my thanks. I fully appreciate the present peril the country is in, and the
weight of responsibility on me.
Do the people of the South really entertain fears that a Republican
administration would, directly or indirectly, interfere with their slaves, or with
them, about their slaves? If they do, I wish to assure you, as once a friend, and
still, I hope, not an enemy, that there is no cause for such fears.
The South would be in no more danger in this respect than it was in the days of
Washington. I suppose, however, this does not meet the case. You think slavery is
right and should be extended; while we think slavery is wrong and ought to be
restricted. That I suppose is the rub. It certainly is the only substantial difference
between us. Yours very truly
A. Lincoln
Alexander Stephens
Georgia Politician
The South Rejects Lincoln
• Radical Southerners Use Election as Pretext for Secession
• South Carolina votes to Secede: December 20, 1860
• Deep South Votes to Secede in January
• Border States in April/May
• Lincoln Demonized by Southern Politicians and Press
Gov. Francis Pickens
South Carolina
• Lincoln Overtures Mocked, Ignored, Not Reported in Press
“They have thus combined a party
exclusively in the Northern States,
whose avowed objects, not only
endanger the peace, but the very
existence of near one-half the States of
this Confederacy. And in the recent
election for President and Vice-President
of these States, they have carried the
election upon principles that make it no
longer safe for us to rely upon the powers
of the Federal Government or the
guarantees of the Federal compact”
Sequence of Secession: 1860-1861
The Secession Crises Comes to a Head
EARLY NORTHERN STRATEGY
(Dec 1860-March 1861)
• Split Rebellion: Appeal to Border
States
• Ignore Existing Secession Votes
• Search for Compromise
• Galvanize Northern Opinion
SECESSIONISTS TAKE ACTION
• Rebels Seize Federal Land, Property,
and Institutions
• Border States Vote to Secede
• Rebels Surround Federal Military
Installations: Demand Surrender
• Rebels Meet to form Government
• Actions Force Lincoln’s Hand
LINCOLN’S ACTIONS
• Do Not Surrender Fort Sumter; Resupply
• Force Rebels to Fire First: Gain Moral Ground
• Holdout, Then Surrender Fort
CONSEQUENCES OF SECESSION
• War Between the States
• West Virginia Secedes from Virginia
• Northern Public Opinion Turns on South
LINCOLN’S CHOICES
• Evacuate Military Installations
• Pre-emptive Strike on Rebels
• Attempt to Supply Installations
• Refuse Surrender, Force Rebels to Fire
Rebel Forces Shell Fort Sumter
Charleston Harbor – April 12, 1861
The Southern War Strategy
The Political Strategy
• Form Government
• Gain European Recognition
• Build Southern Empire
• Obtain Independence
• Drive Lincoln from office
in 1864 Election
Rebel Government Forms in Alabama State House, 1861
• Turn Northern Public
against the War
The Military Strategy
• Fight Defensive War
• Avoid Major Engagements
if possible. Simply Survive
Federal Assault Against Fixed Rebel Fortifications – Fredericksburg, VA 1862
• Inflict Casualties on North
Make them sue for peace
• Invade North 2x to Increase
Alarm, Insecurity
• Use Small Size as Advantage
The Northern War Strategy
The Political Strategy
• Woo Pro Unionists in the South
• Exhaust Southerners; Make them
Renunciate Secession
• Isolate Southern States from Each Other
• Isolate Southern States from Europe
General George B. McClellan
Federal Army
Union Flag 1861
• Emancipate Slaves: Keep Europe Out
• Do not use the word “Confederacy”
The Military Strategy
• Take the Offensive
• Besiege Southern Cities – McClellan
• NO! Destroy the Rebel Army – Lincoln
• Emancipate Slaves – Open Second Front
• Control Mississippi River – Split South
• Naval Blockade of Southern Ports: Starve
South of Supplies, Trade, Food
• Use Numerical Superiority to Advantage
Richmond, Virginia Lay in Ruin - 1865
Northern Strengths, Southern Weaknesses
Northern Strengths
• 7 to 1 Population Advantage
• Industry: Iron, Steel, Textiles, Goods
• Self Sufficient Economy: Enough Farms
• Massive Production of War Material
• Large Navy – To Blockade the South
• Could claim moral high-ground in Europe
Charles Frierson,
15th MS Infantry
Rebel Army
Dwight Woodbury
4th MI Infantry
Federal Army
• New Immigrants: New Soldiers + Workers
• Excellent Equipment, Supplies for Troops
• Extensive Transportation Links - Rail
• Extensive Communication Links - Telegraph
Southern Weaknesses
• Trade Dependent Economy
• Economy in Ruins: Overprinted Money,
Can’t Get Credit, Can’t Sell Goods
• Poorly Equipped Troops
• Weak, Bickering, Ineffectual Government
Northern Industry + War Production - 1861
Lincoln Expands The War Aims
WAR AIM -OUTSET OF WAR - 1861
• War to Preserve the Union
• Most Northerners cared not about Slavery
Gettysburg
Address
• Most Northerners believed blacks inferior
• Northerners Felt Southerners were Traitors
WAR AIM AFTER 1862
• Emancipates the Slaves in Union
Controlled Parts of South
• Begins Talking about War as Moral Crusade
to end Slavery
• “Dedicated to the Proposition that All Men
Are Created Equal”
MOTIVES FOR THE CHANGE
The
Emancipation
Proclamation
• Open Second Front by Releasing Slaves
• Increase Recruitment Efforts for Blacks
• Keep Europeans from Recognizing South
• Lincoln Becomes a Changed Man
RISKS OF STRATEGY
• Risk Alienating Northern Whites who fight
only to restore The Union
The South Surrenders
Ground Down by War of Attrition
• Army Destroyed
• Economy Ruined
• Cities and Infrastructure Destroyed
The Appomattox Courthouse - Virginia
• Slave and Plantation Life Destroyed
• Secession Fever Evaporates
• Political Will to Fight Disintegrates
1864-65 Southern Politicians Approach North
about Re-Entering The Union
1865 The Army Surrounded and Exhausted
General Lee Surrenders to General Grant
Overprinting Causes Hyper-Inflation
1865 Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia Surrenders
The Effects of the War
THE HIGH PRICE
• 558,052 Dead (Mostly From Disease)
• 412,475 Wounded – Many Amputees and Invalids
• $5.2 Billion Cost (in 1865 Dollars)
• The South Lay in Total Ruin
Rebel Dead at Antietam, Maryland, October 1862
WHAT WAS GAINED
• The South is Defeated and would re-enter the Union
• 13th Amendment to USC Ends Slavery in 1865
• The Secession Question is Resolved in the “Negative”
Federal Dead at Cold Harbor, Virginia - 1865
Atlanta in Ruins - 1865
Discussion Topic 1: The South and The Civil War
• How did the South Miscalculate by attempting secession from the Union?
• Despite the risks and odds against success, why did the South proceed with
secession?
Discussion Topic 2: Suspending Habeas Corpus
Was the Civil War justifiable cause for Lincoln to suspend the Writ of Habeas Corpus?
What does the Constitution say about suspending Habeas Corpus?
Discussion Topic 3: The War after 1864
Was there any point in the South prolonging the war after Lincoln's 1864 reelection?
Having failed in their goal of making a war-weary North vote out Lincoln, should
Jefferson Davis have ordered Lee to surrender?
Discussion Topic 4: The Civil War and The U.S. Economy
In what ways did the Civil War damage the U.S. economy for years after the war?