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Civil War
There were many factors which contributed to the Civil War. One of the major issues was
the debate over the expansion of slavery into new states. Congress came up with several
compromises in an effort to appease the interests of northern and southern states.
The Nullification Crisis
The Nullification Crisis was a conflict over states' rights. Congress enacted tariffs in 1828
and 1832 on imported goods in order to protect American factories. South Carolina
decided to declare the tariffs null and void within their state, which meant they refused to
follow the federal law. South Carolina thought that the tariffs were unfair because they
were forced to pay higher prices for goods. South Carolina threatened to secede if the
government tried to enforce the law, and President Jackson was getting ready to send
troops to South Carolina. Henry Clay introduced a new tariff, which lowered the tax rates
over a few years, and South Carolina did not secede.
Missouri Compromise
In 1819, Missouri wanted to be admitted the Union. At this time, there was an equal
number of free and slave states. Free states did not want to admit Missouri as a slave state
and change the balance of power in favor of the slave states. In 1820, Henry Clay of
Kentucky played a major role in getting northerners and southerners in Congress to agree
on the Missouri Compromise. Under the terms of the Missouri Compromise, Missouri, a
slave state, and Maine, a free state, were both admitted to the Union. This kept the
number of slave and free states equal. The Missouri Compromise also made slavery
illegal in the Louisiana Territory north of Missouri's southern border.
Compromise of 1850
The Compromise of 1850 dealt with the issue of slavery in territory that the U.S. acquired
as a result of the Mexican War. Henry Clay proposed the idea that California would be
admitted as a free state, and the territories of New Mexico and Utah would decide the
issue of slavery by popular sovereignty, meaning that the people who lived there were
able to vote on whether or not slavery would be allowed.
Kansas-Nebraska Act
Under the terms of the Missouri Compromise, slavery was not allowed areas that were
part of the Louisiana Territory and were north of Missouri's southern border. In 1854,
Senator Stephen Douglas of Illinois introduced a bill to create the territories of Kansas
and Nebraska and to let those territories decide on the issue of slavery by popular
sovereignty. The bill was favored by southerners, but opposed by northerners. Despite the
opposition, Congress passed the Kansas-Nebraska Act and repealed part of the Missouri
Compromise in the process.
Civil War
Abraham Lincoln, John C. Breckinridge, Stephen Douglas, and John Bell were all
people who played significant roles in the 1860 election.
Presidential Election of 1860
In the presidential election of 1860, the issue of slavery divided the country and divided
the Democratic party. Northern Democrats chose Stephen Douglas of Illinois as their
candidate. Southern Democrats were not pleased with Douglas' position on slavery, so
they chose John C. Breckinridge of Kentucky as their candidate. The newly formed
Constitutional-Union party did not take a stand on slavery and nominated John Bell of
Tennessee. Abraham Lincoln of Illinois was the Republican candidate. Lincoln won all of
his electoral votes from free states, and Breckinridge won all of his electoral votes from
slave states. With 180 electoral votes, Lincoln was elected president. In response to
Lincoln's election, Southern states began seceding from the Union.
Abraham Lincoln
By the time Abraham Lincoln was inaugurated as president on March 4, 1861, seven
slaves states had seceded from the Union. The Civil War began shortly afterwards.
Throughout the Civil War, Lincoln wanted to restore the Union. Lincoln is known for
issuing the Emancipation Proclamation in which he declared slaves in the Confederate
states "then, thenceforward, and forever free." Lincoln gave a memorable speech at
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, on November 19, 1863. He was re-elected as president in 1864
and was assassinated after the end of the Civil War in April of 1865.
John C. Breckinridge
John C. Breckinridge was a lawyer, U.S. representative, senator from Kentucky, vice
president of the United States, and Southern Democratic candidate for President in 1860.
Breckinridge was an unsuccessful candidate for president. He was nominated by the
Southern faction of the split Democratic Party and supported by the outgoing Democratic
president, James Buchanan. Breckinridge won the South with his pro-slavery platform,
but he was unable to win solid majorities in the Border States. His native Kentucky went
for John Bell, the Constitutional Union candidate. In most of the North, Breckinridge
received almost no support. After the election, Breckinridge served in the Confederate
army and became the Confederates' secretary of war in 1865.
Stephen A. Douglas
Stephen A. Douglas was a politician from Illinois. He was the Northern Democratic
nominee for president in 1860. He lost to the Republican candidate, Abraham Lincoln,
whom he had defeated two years earlier in a Senate contest following a famous series of
debates. He was nicknamed the "Little Giant" because he was short but was considered
by many a "giant" in politics.
John Bell
John Bell was a politician, attorney, and plantation owner. A wealthy slaveholder from
Tennessee, Bell served in the Congress in both the House of Representatives and Senate.
He began his career as a Democrat and later became a Whig. In 1860, he was among a
group of presidential candidates defeated by Abraham Lincoln in a bitterly divided
election that helped spark the Civil War. Originally, Bell was against states leaving the
Union, but after the firing on Fort Sumter in South Carolina and Lincoln's call for
military troops to force the Southern states back into the Union, Bell changed his mind
and retired from politics.
Civil War
The Civil War, fought between the Union and the Confederacy, went from 1860 to 1865.
In that time, a president took office (and was later reelected), states seceded, battles were
fought, and important speeches were made. The Civil War ended on April 9, 1865 when
Robert E. Lee surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House. Below is a
timeline of important events and battles during the Civil War.
Timeline of Civil War Events
Election of 1860: Abraham Lincoln wins the presidential election, and the South fears
that the Republican president is a threat to the Southern way of life. Lincoln defeated
Southern Democrat Breckinridge and Northern Democrat Douglas.
South Carolina secedes, December 1860: South Carolina secedes from the Union as a
reaction to the election of 1860. Eleven states eventually followed and formed the
Confederacy.
Georgia secedes, January 1861: Georgia secedes from the Union and joins the
Confederacy shortly after. Georgia later became the last state readmitted to the Union in
1870.
Battle of Fort Sumter, April 1861: Confederate soldiers fire on Fort Sumter in South
Carolina, which is occupied by Union soldiers. This battle, on April 12, marks the
beginning of the Civil War.
First Battle of Bull Run (Manassas), July 1861: The Union army advances on
Richmond and is pushed back by Confederate soldiers. This battle, on July 16, marks the
first major engagement of the Civil War.
Battle of Antietam, September 1862: The battle takes place near Antietam Creek in
Maryland and becomes the first major battle on Northern land. The battle also is the
bloodiest single-day battle in American history.
Andersonville POW Camp: Andersonville, Georgia becomes the home of Camp
Sumter, a Prisoner-of-War site. Thousands of Union soldiers are confined in horrible
conditions. Over 13,000 soldiers die in this POW camp.
Emancipation Proclamation, January 1863: Lincoln declares all slaves in Confederate
states are now free. Slaves in the Union states of Missouri, Kentucky, Maryland, and
Delaware are not free. This proclamation changes the goal of the war to ending slavery
instead of just preserving the Union.
Battle of Gettysburg, July 1863: Union leader Meade stops the Confederate invasion of
Pennsylvania at Gettysburg. This battle is one of the bloodiest battles in the Civil War,
with both the North and South losing thousands of soldiers. Along with Vicksburg, this
Union win becomes a turning point in the war.
Battle of Vicksburg, July 1863: General Grant defeats the Confederate Army at
Vicksburg, Mississippi on July 4. The Union now controls all of the Mississippi River,
and the Confederate states Texas, Louisiana, and Arkansas are cut off from the rest of the
Confederacy. This battle, along with Gettysburg, becomes a turning point in the war.
Battle of Chickamauga, September 1863: The Confederate Army, led by Tennessee
General Braxton Brigg, fights the Union Army in south-central Tennessee and
northwestern Georgia, near Chickamauga Creek. The Confederate Army defeats the
Union Army, temporarily stopping the Union advance in Tennessee and Georgia.
Lincoln delivers Gettysburg Address, November 1863: Lincoln speaks at Gettysburg
at a ceremony dedicating the battlefield as a cemetery for those who died in that battle.
The speech becomes one of the most famous speeches in U.S. history.
General William Sherman's March to the Sea, 1864: William Tecumseh Sherman
captures Atlanta, Georgia for the Union army. After capturing Atlanta, Sherman leads his
army across the south to the Atlantic coast. Sherman's army sets fire to towns and
destroys anything that might help the South's war effort, including crops, bridges, and
railroad tracks.
Election of 1864: Sherman's capture of Atlanta helps Lincoln to win back the support of
the Republican Party just in time for the election. Lincoln defeats McClellan, his former
general, to be re-elected President of the United States.
Lee surrenders at Appomattox Court House, April 1865: Lee surrenders to Grant on
April 9 after his troops become surrounded by Union troops while retreating from
Richmond. Lee surrenders without permission from Confederate President Davis, and the
Civil War comes to an end.
John Wilkes Booth assassinates Lincoln, April 1865: While at the theater, an actor
named John Wilkes Booth assassinates Lincoln on April 14, just 6 days after Lee had
surrendered to Grant and ended the Civil War.