Download Ch.19, Sec.1- The War Begins

Ch.19, Sec.1- The War Begins
Lincoln Faces a Crisis
• By early March 1861 the federal troops at Fort Sumter
were running low on supplies. Instead of ordering troops
to surrender, President Abraham Lincoln decided to
resupply them. Before the supply ships arrived, South
Carolina demanded that the Union troops leave the fort.
The fort’s commander, Major Robert Anderson, refused
to do so. On April 12, 1861, Confederate guns opened
fire on the fort, starting the Civil War. After 34 hours,
Anderson had no choice but to surrender. Lincoln
declared that the South was in rebellion and asked the
state governors to provide 75,000 militiamen to help put
down the revolt.
Choosing Sides
• Slave states that had not joined the Confederacy
had to choose sides. North Carolina, Tennessee,
Virginia, and Arkansas joined the Confederacy
soon after Lincoln’s request for troops.
Richmond, Virginia became the Confederacy’s
capital. 4 slave states did not secede: Delaware,
Kentucky, Maryland, and Missouri. These states
were called border states. The new state of
West Virginia also joined the Union in 1863.
The Volunteer Spirit
• At the start of the war, the Union army had only
16,000 troops. In the border states, members of
the same family often joined opposing sides in
the war. Lincoln’s wife, Mary Todd Lincoln, had
four brothers who fought for the Confederacy.
• Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell, the first woman to earn
a medical license, helped convince Lincoln to
form the U.S. Sanitary Commission in June
1861. They sent bandages, medicines, and food
to Union army camps and hospitals.
The North Versus the South
• At the beginning of the war, the North had several key
advantages over the South. The much larger population
of the North provided more soldiers. The North had most
of the nation’s factories and more shipyards. It also had
a better network of railways, which allowed for more
efficient transportation. Finally, the Union was able to
raise more money to spend on the war.
• The Confederacy also had advantages. The South’s
military tradition provided it with many skilled officers.
Also, the South needed only to defend itself until the
North grew tired of the war.
The North Versus the South cont.
• Union general Winfield Scott developed the Union’s twopart strategy. He wanted to destroy the South’s economy
through a naval blockade of southern seaports. Scott
also wanted to gain control of the Mississippi River to
divide the Confederacy and cut its communications. The
South tried to use cotton diplomacy, which was based on
the southern belief that the British government would
support them because cotton was important to Great
Britain’s textile industry. However, the British had a large
supply of cotton stockpiled when the war began. They
also got cotton from India and Egypt.
Sec.2- The War in the East
Two Armies Meet
• The first major battle took place in July 1861. President
Lincoln had General Irvin McDowell lead about 35,000
barely trained troops from Washington toward Richmond.
The 2 armies met at Manassas Junction, Virginia. 35,000
Confederate troops were lined along Bull Run Creek led
by General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson. Jackson’s
example inspired other Confederate troops, who said”
There is Jackson standing like a stone wall”. Fresh
southern troops soon arrived, driving the Union army
back to Washington. The Confederates might have
captured the Union capital if they were not so tired and
disorganized. The First Battle of Bull Run broke the
Union’s hopes of winning the war quickly and easily.
More Battles in Virginia
• Lincoln sent his new commander, General George B.
McClellan to capture Richmond. By April 1862 McClellan
and a huge force were camped near Yorktown, Virginia.
He didn’t attack though because he thought his troops
were outnumbered. This gave the Confederates time to
strengthen Richmond’s defenses. In early May,
McClellan finally took Yorktown.
• President Jefferson Davis put General Robert E. Lee in
charge of the Confederate army in Virginia in June 1862.
Lee had served in the Mexican War and led the federal
troops that captured John Brown at Harpers Ferry.
Lincoln even asked him to lead the Union forces in 1861.
Although Lee was against slavery and secession, he
was loyal to the South. When Virginia left the Union, Lee
resigned from the U.S. Army and returned home.
More Battles in Virginia cont.
• After scouting Union positions, Lee attacked on June 26,
1862. During the next week, the two armies fought five
separate times in what came to be known as the Seven
Days’ Battles. The Confederates suffered more than
20,000 casualties, and the Union suffered nearly 16,000.
However, Lee forced McClellan to retreat from the area
around Richmond.
• Lincoln then ordered General John Pope to advance
directly on Richmond from Washington. This battle
became known as the Second Battle of Bull Run. Caught
off guard, Pope’s army fell apart. By the end of August
1862, Lee had pushed most of the Union forces out of
Virginia. He then decided to take the war into the North.
The Battle of Antietam
• Confederate leaders hoped a victory on northern soil
might break the Union’s spirit and convince European
powers to aid the South. On September 4, 1862, about
40,000 Confederate soldiers entered Maryland. Union
soldiers had found a copy of Lee’s battle plan, which
General McClellan used to plan a counterattack. On
September 17, 1862, the armies met at Antietam Creek
in Maryland. The Battle of Antietam lasted for hours, and
by the end of the day, the Union had suffered more than
12,000 casualties and the Confederates more than
13,000. Antietam was the bloodiest single-day battle of
the war, but the Union won a key victory. Antietam cost
Lee many of his troops and stopped his northward
advance. However, McClellan allowed Lee to retreat to
Virginia. Two months later, Lincoln was tired of
McClellan’s delays and he took the command in the East
away from him.
The War at Sea
• The Union navy blockaded the South,
cutting off trade and hurting the economy.
The blockade was hard to maintain
because the Union navy had to patrol
thousands of miles of coastline from
Virginia to Texas. The South used small,
fast ships called blockade runners to
outrun the larger Union warships and
reach trading ports.
The War at Sea cont.
• The Confederacy began using a new type of warship
called the ironclad, which was heavily armored with iron.
The Confederates had turned a captured Union ship into
an ironclad, renamed the Virginia. In March 1862, the
ironclad sailed into Hampton Roads, Virginia, where
Union ships guarded this waterway. The ironclad easily
sank 2 of the Union’s wooden ships. The Union had
already built their own ironclad as well, called the
Monitor. When the Virginia returned to Hampton Roads
on March 9, 1862, the Monitor was waiting. After several
hours of fighting, neither ship was seriously damaged,
but the Monitor forced the Virginia to withdraw, thus
keeping the blockade going.
Sec.3- The War in the West
Western Strategy
• Union strategy in the West focused on controlling the
Mississippi River, which would allow the North to cut off
eastern states of the Confederacy from sources of food
production. Ulysses S. Grant was the most important
figure in the war in the West. He had served in the
Mexican War, and later resigned from the army. When
the Civil War broke out, he quickly volunteered to serve
with the Union Army. By September 1861, Lincoln made
him a general.
• On April 6, 1862, the Confederates began the Battle of
Shiloh. Catching Grant by surprise, they pushed his
army back. Grant ordered his troops to hold their ground.
During the night, more Union soldiers arrived. On April 7,
Grant began a counterattack. By that evening, the
Confederates were in retreat, and the Union had won
greater control of the Mississippi River Valley. The Battle
of Shiloh was one of the first major battles of the war.
Fighting for the Mississippi River
• Flag Officer David Farragut sailed past the forts guarding
New Orleans. On April 24, 1862, he ordered his warships
to advance through the Confederate gunfire. His ships
arrived the next day, and New Orleans surrendered on
April 29. He then continued up the Mississippi River and
took Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and Natchez, Mississippi.
All that was left to take was Vicksburg, Mississippi.
• John C. Pemberton led the Confederate forces at
Vicksburg. In the Spring of 1863, General Grant blocked
southern forces from aiding Vicksburg. He then
surrounded the city with his troops. The Siege of
Vicksburg lasted about 6 weeks. As supplies ran out, the
residents and soldiers in the city survived by eating
horses, dogs, and rats. Pemberton surrendered
Vicksburg on July 4, 1863, giving the Union control of the
Mississippi River.
The Far West
• In August 1861, Confederate forces from Texas marched
into New Mexico, but were defeated by the Union forces
at Glorieta Pass, near Santa Fe, New Mexico. This
ended Confederate hopes of controlling the Southwest.
• The Confederates also tried to take Missouri, but were
turned back when they tried to siege the federal arsenal
at St. Louis in the summer of 1861. In March 1862,
Union forces and pro-Confederate Missourians met at
the Battle of Pea Ridge in Arkansas. Some American
Indians, mainly Cherokee, fought on the side of the
Confederates hoping for greater independence than the
Union had given. In addition, slavery was legal in Indian
Territory, and some American Indians who were
slaveholders supported the Confederacy. Despite being
outnumbered, the Union forces won the Battle of Pea
Ridge, giving the Union the upper hand in Missouri.
Sec.4- Life During the War
Freeing the Slaves
• President Lincoln supported freeing the slaves if it would
help the North win the war. He feared that northern
prejudice against African-Americans might weaken support
for the war if emancipation became a goal. He was afraid
some northerners would consider slaves to be property that
southerners had the right to keep. In addition, the
Constitution did not give him the power to end slavery.
Lincoln decided to issue a military order freeing slaves only
in areas controlled by the Confederacy. Lincoln did not
want to anger citizens in the border states. After the Battle
of Antietam, on September 22, 1862, Lincoln called for all
slaves in Confederate controlled areas to be freed. The
Emancipation Proclamation went into effect on January 1,
1863. This loss of slave labor hurt the southern economy
and the Confederate war effort. Many northern Democrats
opposed the Emancipation Proclamation, wanting only to
restore the Union, not end slavery.
African Americans and the War
• Congress allowed the army to sign up African American
volunteers as laborers in July 1862 because the Union
needed soldiers. The War Department also gave
contrabands, or escaped slaves, the right to join the
Union army in South Carolina. By the spring of 1863,
African American units were fighting in the field with the
Union army. The 54th Massachusetts Infantry consisted
mostly of free African Americans. The 54th became the
most famous African American unit of the war. About
180,000 African Americans served with the Union army
during the war. For most of the war, African American
soldiers received less pay than white soldiers. They were
usually led by white officers. They also faced greater
danger from Confederate troops, who often killed African
American prisoners of war or sold them into slavery.
Problems in the North
• Northerners were growing upset by the length of the war
and the increasing number of casualties. A group of
northern Democrats led by Clement L. Vallandigham
began to speak out against the war. War supporters
called them Copperheads. Lincoln believed they were a
threat to the war effort, so he suspended the right of
Habeas Corpus, or the Constitutional protection against
unlawful imprisonment. By ignoring this protection, Union
officials could put their enemies in jail without either
evidence or trial. This angered the Democrats.
• More debate arose in March 1863, when Congress
passed a law allowing men to be drafted into military
service. Wealthy people could legally buy their way out
of military service. In July 1863, riots targeting African
Americans and draft officials broke out in New York City.
Many of the rioters were poor immigrants afraid of losing
their jobs to freed African Americans.
Southern Struggles
• In the spring of 1863, food riots broke out in several
southern cities, including Richmond. Southern officials
ordered local newspapers not to mention these riots
because they feared the news would embarrass the
South and encourage the North to keep fighting.
• There was also controversy among southerners over
their new draft law, approved by Davis in 1862 despite
much criticism. One problem was that the southern draft
did not apply to men who held many slaves. This
angered poor southerners who generally held few if any
slaves. They then began calling this “rich man’s war,
poor man’s fight.” Some southerners even took up arms
against Confederate officials.
Life on the Home Front
• Women played an important role in providing
medical care for soldiers. Dorthea Dix headed
more than 3,000 women who served as paid
nurses in the Union army. Clara Barton worked
as a volunteer, organizing the collection of
medicine and supplies for delivery to Union
troops on the battlefield. Her work formed the
basis for what would become the American Red
Cross. About twice as many Civil War soldiers
died of disease than died in combat.
Sec.5- The Tide of the War Turns
The Battle of Gettysburg
• In the Battle of Chancellorsville, Jackson was
accidentally shot by his own troops. Doctors cut off his
left arm to try to save his life. Jackson still got worse, and
he died a few days after the battle ended. Lee said “He
has lost his left arm, but I have lost my right”.
• The victory at Chancellorsville and Fredericksburg
encouraged Lee to launch another offensive into Union
territory. His goals were to break the North’s will to fight
and capture needed supplies for his army. He hoped
another victory would turn the war in favor of the
Confederacy. When Lee went to Gettysburg,
Pennsylvania, he was unaware the Union forces were
just northwest of the town. The Battle of Gettysburg
began on July 1, 1863, with about 75,000 Confederate
troops against about 90,000 Union troops.
The Battle of Gettysburg cont.
• On July 2, Lee ordered an attack on the left side of the
Union line. The bold charge of Union Colonel Joshua
Chamberlin’s troops at Little Round Top turned back the
Confederates. Then General George Meade placed
more soldiers on the Union line. Lee planned to rush the
center of the Union line. Three divisions of Confederate
soldiers were to carry this out. General George Pickett
commanded the largest unit. Late that afternoon, about
14,000 men took part in Pickett’s Charge up Cemetery
Ridge. The attack was a disaster. Fewer than half of
Pickett’s troops reached the top of the ridge. All those
who reached the Union wall were captured or killed. Only
about 6,500 men returned to the Confederate rear.
A Turning Point
• Lee retreated from Gettysburg on July 4, and it was the
turning point of the war. Lee’s troops would never again
launch an attack on northern soil. This took place the
same day as the fall of Vicksburg. The Union lost about
23,000 soldiers in this battle to the Confederates 28,000.
• President Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address on
November 19, 1863. This is one of the most famous
speeches in American history. He spoke of the
importance of liberty, equality, and democratic ideals. He
reminded listeners that the war was being fought to
protect these principles. Lincoln dedicated himself and
the rest of the North to winning the war and preserving
the Union.
Grant’s Drive to Richmond
• From May through June in 1864, the two armies fought a
series of battles in northern and central Virginia. Grant
was now the head of the Union forces and was ordered
to capture Richmond. These series of battles was called
the Wilderness Campaign with about 100,000 Union
men against 70,000 Confederates. The Battle of Cold
Harbor was Grant’s worst defeat of the campaign,
ending Grant’s plans to advance to Richmond. Union
forces suffered twice as many casualties as the
Confederates in the Wilderness Campaign, but Grant
knew Lee was getting low on troops. Grant was winning
the war, but not capturing Richmond was discouraging
Lincoln.
Sherman Strikes the South
• General William Tecumseh Sherman’s goal was to take
Atlanta. The Confederate troops retreated as Sherman
held Atlanta under siege. Atlanta fell to Sherman on
September 2, 1864. Much of the city was destroyed.
Sherman ordered the residents to leave. This victory led
to Lincoln getting re-elected. Sherman then waged total
war in his quest to take Savannah, or destroying both
civilian and military resources. Sherman felt this would
ruin the South’s economy and ability to fight. He ordered
his troops to destroy railways, bridges, livestock, and
other resources. They burned plantations and freed
slaves. He reached Savannah on December 10, 1864.
The South Surrenders
• On April 2, 1865, Lee was forced to retreat from
Richmond. By the second week of April 1865,
Grant had surrounded Lee’s army and
demanded its surrender. Lee hoped to join the
remaining Confederates in North Carolina, but
Grant cut off his escape. Trapped in the small
town of Appomattox Courthouse, Lee signed the
surrender documents on April 9, 1865. Almost
620,000 Americans lost their lives in the 4 years
of fighting. It was the most costly conflict in
American history.