Download Civil War Begins

Mobilizing for War
Critical Thinking Questions:
•What makes a civil war different
from a foreign war?
•How might a civil war affect
society and the U.S. economy?
1
Long Term Causes
Sectional differences - economic + cultural
 Debate over expansion of slavery
 Political compromises don’t solve problems
- MO Compromise, Compromise of 1850, KS-NE
Act
 Laws + court decisions increase tension
- Fugitive Slave Act, Dred Scott decision
 Growth of antislavery movement
 Uncle Tom’s Cabin

Pierre Beauregard led the bombardment
of Fort Sumter for the Confederacy
The bombardment
amazingly killed
zero Soldiers
Reactions to Fort Sumter
Northerners united and Lincoln’s call for
troops received overwhelming volunteer
support
 Virginia seceded from the Union to join the
Confederacy on April 17th
 Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina
also seceded in May 1861 bringing the
total to 11 Confederate states
 Both sides expected a short war

Union Leaders
Abraham Lincoln: President of the Union
-Main reason for war was to preserve the
Union
“I believe I have no lawful right to [free
the slaves], and I have no inclination to
do so.”
Confederate Leaders

Jefferson Davis:
President of the
Confederacy
The Union
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Advantages
Big population
Industrialized: produce
more ammunition, arms,
medical supplies
Larger railroad network
Small, well-organized
navy
Established government
Leadership of Lincoln

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Disadvantages
Must travel farther to
reach battles
Fighting in enemy
territory
Difficult to find good
military leader
The Confederacy
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Advantages
Fighting for survival –
more passion for war
Strong military leaders
(Robert E. Lee)
Strategic advantages –
a defensive war on
familiar ground
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Disadvantages
Smaller population
No navy – vulnerable
to naval blockades
New, inexperienced
gov.
Very little
industrialization
(supplies)
Military Strategies
Union
Anaconda Plan: Idea to
coil around the South
and squeeze it to death
(like a snake)
 Naval Blockade
 Get control of the Miss.
River to split
Confederacy in two
 Capture the Confederate
capital at Richmond, VA
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Confederacy
Do enough damage to
break Union’s will to
fight
Get military support
from Britain and France
(they rely heavily on
southern cotton)
The Anaconda Plan
First Battle of Bull Run
aka First Manassas
July 21, 1861
First major battle of the Civil War
 Two very inexperienced armies met in VA
 Reinforcements turned the tide in favor of the
South on the third day
 Union soldiers retreated in chaos
 Picnic lunches were disturbed as DC society
people had gathered for lunches near the
battlefield

A Legend is Born at Bull Run
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Another Confederate
general made a
comment about
Thomas Jackson
during the Battle of
Bull Run that he was
“standing like a stone
wall.”
Thus, he earned the
nickname ‘Stonewall
Jackson’
Bull Run
Battlefield
Photo taken
in July 1861
Reaction to Bull Run
Confederates score the first victory
 Many Southerners returned home believing that the
war was over
 Lincoln called for 500,000 more
troops for a three year
enlistment
 Lincoln named General
George McClellan to lead
the new Union Army
 Grant having success in the
West

Battle of Antietam
“Bloodiest Single Day of the War”
September 17, 1862
Casualties numbered as
many as in the War of
1812 and the MexicanAmerican War combined.
23,000 killed or
wounded in one day!
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For over 4 hours, Union and Confederate infantry fought for this sunken country
road resulting in over 5,000 casualties. Today it is known simply as “Bloody
Lane”.
Battle of Antietam
Impact of Antietam
September 17, 1862
Union Army wins?
 Tactical Victory: CSA, Strategic Victory: USA
 Stopped Lee from forcing Lincoln to ask for
peace
 Allowed Lincoln to use the “victory” to
announce in 1863 the Emancipation
Proclamation
 Discouraged England and France from joining
the war on the Confederate side
 Caused Lincoln to fire McClellan for not
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The
Emancipation
Proclamation
All persons held as slaves within any
State or designated part of a State the
people whereof shall then be in
rebellion against the United States,
shall be then, thenceforward, and
forever free… And upon this act,
sincerely believed to be an act of
justice, warranted by the Constitution
upon military necessity, I invoke the
considerate judgment of mankind, and
the gracious favor of almighty God.
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The Emancipation Proclamation
Who Said It?
Abraham Lincoln
When?
Issued Sept. 22, 1862
Effective Jan. 1, 1863
What did it
say?
It freed slaves in the “rebelling states” – so only
slaves in the South (outside Union control).
Why did
Hoped it might convince some southern states
Lincoln do it? to surrender.
Reactions
1.
Northern
•
Many were excited
•
Some said it was not enough- that we needed total
abolition of slavery
2. African Americans
•
Now wanted to join Union Army
3. Democrats said it would anger the south making the
war last longer
Union Change of Command

General Ambrose
Burnside
reluctantly
replaced General
McClellan on
November 9, 1862
General George B. McClellan
Disaster for Burnside
Battle of Fredericksburg leads to defeat for
Burnside’s Army of the Potomac in late 1862
 Following a ‘mud march’ through VA
swamps, Burnside experiences
insubordination from many of his senior
officers
 Ultimatum: Court-martial and relieve many
of the officers or accept Burnside’s
resignation
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