Notes

Major Battles of the Civil War

Fort Sumter (1861)
-Upon secession, the Confederacy seized federal government property in the South. They demanded the Union surrender Fort Sumter (S. Carolina)
-Confederacy bombards Fort Sumter for two days until Major Robert Anderson surrendered
-Confederacy fires shots and war begins

War Commanders
-Lincoln: Commander-in-Chief of the Union Army
-Understood war strategy
-Struggled to find adequate general
-Eventually Ulysses S. Grant would be appointed in 1864
-Jefferson Davis: President of the Confederacy, attempted to make all military decisions alone
-Robert E. Lee: General-in-chief

Union War Strategy
-Use the navy for a blockade of Southern ports on the coast
-Take control over the Mississippi River
-Destroy the Southern economy

Civil War and Foreign Relations
-At first, England and France were sympathetic to the Confederacy because they depended on cotton and wanted to the see the U.S. lose power
-However, most of England’s people were anti-slavery
-England and France also found other sources of cotton
-Additionally, both England and France were not confident the Confederacy would win so they did not take a side
-Lincoln successfully pressured foreign countries to not recognize the Confederacy

Battle of First Bull Run Virginia (1861)
-Considered the first battle of the Civil War
-Union had hoped to win and end the war quickly
-The Confederacy was won the battle with a strong counter-attack against the inexperienced Union soldiers
-Battle dispelled the illusion that the war would end quickly

Peninsular Campaign (1862)
-Led by Union General George McClellan, who was known for being hesitant to send his troops into battle
-"Peninsular Campaign's" purpose was to invade Richmond, capital of the Confederacy
-McClellan hesitates until Lincoln orders him to invade
-Unprepared, the Union loses the Battle and victory goes to the Confederacy

The Battle of Antietam (1862)
-McClellan achieves victory when he obtains General Lee's orders to his army
-Bloodiest battle of the Civil War (6,000 died, 17,000 injured)
-The Battle presented England and France from recognizing the Confederacy

Battle of Gettysburg, PA (1863)
-At this point, the Union had successfully split the Confederacy and gained the Mississippi River
-Gen. Lee and South hoped to win in order to get foreign support
-McClellan had been replaced by George C. Meade
-North wins the battle, first of many losses for South
-Considered a turning point in the war

Sherman's March (1863)
-Union General William Sherman leads 90,000 men near Georgia against the Confederacy's 60,000
-Sherman is successful in Georgia and marched toward the sea, destroying everything on his way
-The purpose of this march was to destroy morale of Southerners

The South Surrenders (4/1865)
-In April 1865, the Union captures Richmond
-General Lee (Confederate) surrendered at the Appomattox Courthouse in VA
-The Civil War comes to an end

Effects and Results of the War
Effects
-Women active in war effort, many worked outside the home
-In the South, women became head of their households
-War devastates Southern economy
-South faces food shortages
Results
-Over 1 million lives lost
-$15 billion in war costs
-Increased national debt
-Disunity b/w the North and South