Download Chapter Eleven, Section One

Chapter Eleven, Section One
The Civil War Begins (p. 338 -345)
Confederates Fire on Fort Sumter
(The confederate attack on Fort Sumter signaled the start of the Civil War)



Reminder: Seven seceded states had formed the Confederate States of America in
February 1861
By the time President Lincoln was inaugurated (March 4), only two southern forts
were still part of the Union – one of those being Fort Sumter (located on an island
in the Charleston, SC, harbor
Major Anderson – the Union commander of Fort Sumter
o He sent President Lincoln a message – HELP! (Confederacy had delivered
him an ultimatum – and he had very little food & ammunition left)
Lincoln’s Dilemma
 Lincoln had to be careful because he didn’t want to give orders to go in and
reinforce Fort Sumter because then he would be responsible for initiating
hostilities and that might prompt the remaining slave states to leave
 If he just ordered the fort to be evacuated, it would be acknowledging the
Confederacy as a legit nation and threat, and he wasn’t going to do that
First Shots
 So what did Lincoln decide to do? Feed the hungry
 So now it was on Jefferson Davis to act or let it go because Anderson was clearly
not surrendering at Fort Sumter
 Davis chose war.
 April 12, 1861, Confederates began the attacks and 4,000 rounds of ammunition
later, Major Anderson surrendered
Virginia Secedes
 The fall of Fort Sumter seemed to strengthen the North
 President Lincoln needed 75,000 volunteers to serve for 3 months – he got way
more than that (Iowa alone – 20 times more)
 The upper South did not react well to Lincoln’s call for volunteers, specifically
Virginia
 Virginia wasn’t going to fight its fellow southern states, so it seceded from the
Union just a few days after Fort Sumter – big deal because of Virginia’s
population and industrialization
 Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina followed Virginia, so now there are 11
states in the Confederacy
 Maryland, Delaware, Kentucky, and Missouri – all slave states – remained in the
Union, but many of their citizens chose to fight for the South

Meanwhile, the western counties of Virginia were antislavery, so they weren’t
willing to leave the Union – they broke off and became West Virginia – a free
state – and West Virginia was admitted to the Union in 1863
Americans Expect a Short War
 Both sides felt good about winning.
 Bands played and they had parades as they left to go fight in the war and come
back as heroes
Union and Confederate Strategies
 Advantages for the Union:
o Resources – more fighting power, more factories, greater food production,
more extensive railroad system
o Lincoln was a decisive and patient leader
 Advantages for the Confederacy:
o Cotton was a world-wide market
o First-rate generals & strong military tradition, as well as soldiers who were
motivated to defend their cause
Union’s Strategy:
 It was a three-part plan, known as the Anaconda Plan (after the snake), to conquer
the South:
o (1) The Union Navy would blockade southern ports, so they couldn’t
export cotton and they couldn’t receive manufactured goods (which they
relied heavily upon)
o (2) Union riverboats and armies would move down the Mississippi River
and split the confederacy in two
o (3) Union armies would capture the Confederate capital – Richmond,
Virginia
Confederacy’s Strategy:
 Survival – it was mostly defensive, though Southern generals were encouraged to
go on the offensive whenever possible
Bull Run
 Three months (July) after Fort Sumter was when the real fighting/bloodshed
began
 30,000 INEXPERIENCE Union soldiers were on their way to Richmond, when
they encountered an equally INEXPERIENCED Confederate army, camped out
by Bull Run, a little creek 25 miles from Washington D.C.
 Lincoln ordered Gen. McDowell to attack because both sides were inexperienced,
so the playing field was even
 It was a see-saw affair
o Union seemed to have the advantage early, but it was General Thomas
Jackson of the Confederacy who held firm and inspired/rallied the rest of
his troops (got his nickname Stonewall Jackson here, because he stood
there like a stone wall!)
o By the end of the day, the Union troops were retreating back to D.C
o What’s up with the picnic?
o So with the Confederate victory at Bull Run, many Confederates felt good
and also felt that not only was the war over, but they could just leave the
army and go home
Union Armies in the West
 Lincoln’s reaction to Bull Run: called for 50,000 men to sign up to serve for 3
year stints; three days later, called for another 50,000 – appointed Gen. George
McClellan to lead this new Union Army (Army of the Potomac)
Fort Henry and Donelson
 Feb. 1862 – Union Army, led by Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, invaded western
Tennessee
o Captured two Confederate forts that held strategic positions on rivers
 Fort Henry – Tennessee River
 Fort Donelson – Cumberland River
 “unconditional surrender” was the only option – becomes known as
“Unconditional Surrender” Grant – U.S. Grant
Shiloh
 March 1862 – Grant had his troops stationed near a small Tennessee church –
Shiloh (close to Mississippi border)
 April 6 – Confederates surprise-attacked the Union soldiers – who were making
coffee, still in bed, etc.
 Grant regrouped and counterattacked the next morning
 Battle of Shiloh – basically a draw (tie)
o Made it clear that the generals needed to dig trenches, forts, and send out
scouts ahead of time to make sure their next destination is a wise one
o Almost 25% of the 100,000 troops were casualties (killed, wounded, or
captured)
 Long-term effect of Battle of Shiloh – showed the Union’s goal of splitting the
Confederacy by taking the Mississippi might be realistic.
Farragut on the Lower Mississippi
 Union fleet of 40 ships was heading for the mouth of the Mississippi River in
Louisiana, under direction of Commander David Farragut (60 years old)
 Farragut’s assignment: seize New Orleans – the Confederacy’s largest city and
busiest port
 He did so and soon a US flag flew over New Orleans
 Union commanders and soldiers continued to try and capture all the major cities,
so that places like Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Tennessee would be cut off
 Port Hudson (Louisiana) and Vicksburg (Mississippi) still stood in the way
because they were perched high on a bluff above the river
A Revolution in Warfare
Ironclads
 A new type of war machine contributed to the success of Grant and Farragut: the
Ironclad Ship
 What’s so good about the ironclad?
o Splinter little wooden ships
o Withstand cannon fire
o Resist burning
 March 9, 1862 – two ironclad ships traded fire
o Union’s ship – the Monitor
o South’s ship – the Merrimack (was a Union ship recovered by the
Confederates after it had seemingly sunk off the coast in Virginia –
Confederate navy worked to plate it with iron, turning it into an ironclad
o Era of wooden fighting ships is over (fought to a draw btw)
New Weapons
 Invention of the rifle and the minie ball- rifles more accurate and the soft lead
bullet was more destructive than earlier bullets (Video)
 New technology changed military strategies as well
o Soldiers, with rifles, fighting from inside trenches or behind barricades
were at a better advantage than those in mass infantry attacks
The War for the Capitals
 The 3rd part of the Anaconda Plan (capturing the capital – Richmond) was
faltering because of General McClellan – he was extremely patient and cautious –
wanted more men, etc.
o Lincoln even said he would like to “borrow McClellan’s army if the
general himself was not going to use it”
“On To Richmond”
 Finally in spring of 1862, McClellan got his troops moving and on their way to
Richmond, they encountered a Confederate army – led by Gen. Johnston.
 Gen. Johnston was injured, so Robert E. Lee took over
 Gen. Lee was quite different than McClellan
o Robert E. Lee had actually opposed secession, but he was a Virginian
more than anything, so he refused to head a Union Army, and instead
fought with the Confederates
 Lee was going to do everything in his power to save Richmond from being taken
over
 Lee and McClellan exchange moves in the Seven Days’ Battles – June 25 – July
1, 1862
o Confederates had less soldiers and more casualties, but such unorthodox
tactics by Lee confused and bewildered McClellan, so the Union army left
Antietam
 Gen. Lee is now heading toward the US capital.
 Confederacy won the Second Battle of Bull Run (remember just 25 miles from
DC)
 Few days later, the Confederate troops arrived in Maryland, crossing the Potomac
– starving and ragged
 Then the Union got lucky – a corporal was looking around an area where the
Confederates had camped (a common practice) and found a copy of Lee’s orders
wrapped around a bunch of cigars – it revealed that Lee and Jackson’s armies
were separated at the moment
 McClellan surprisingly acted upon the news – and attacked Lee’s troops at
Antietam
 Battle of Antietam – bloodiest single day battle in American history – casualties
were 26,000+ (as many as War of 1812 and War with Mexico combined)
 It was a draw once again, but instead of going in for the kill, McClellan went back
to usual ways and did nothing
 The confederates retreated the next day back to Virginia
 Response to McClellan’s non-response: Lincoln fired McClellan
 President Lincoln took care of one problem, but will soon face new problems with
Britain and abolitionists