Civil War (1860-1865) (#7)

Battle of Antietam, Sept. 1862

It was the bloodiest day of fighting in American history; more died at Antietam than at D-Day in World War II.--4,300 men were killed that day in fighting and 2,000 of those wounded later died.--Antietam is located in Maryland, and southern forces under the command of General Robert E. Lee, having crossed into Maryland, were repelled in their northern advance by General McClellan and the Army of the Potomac. (9/17/62)

First Battle of Bull Run, 1861

July 12, 1861...First major battle of the Civil War, in which untrained Northern troops and civilian picnickers fled back to Washington. This battle helped boost Southern morale and made the North realize that this would be a long war.

Legal Tender Act

Lincoln signed in 1862, authorized $150 million in greenbacks. - Confederacy never made its paper money legal tender, responded by making more paper money, which accelerated southern inflation. Intended to help pay for Civil War expenses, but all it did was abandon the specie backing system to cause never-before-seen inflation

Surrender at Appomattox Courthouse, 1865

Robert E. Lee surrendered to Ulyssess S. Grant after steadily losing ground and after finding himself unable to lift the siege of Petersburg. Petersburg fell to Grant on April 2. Lee then abandoned Richmond, the Confederate Capitol, and fled west only to surrender a week later on April 9. This essentially ended the war, although some fighting continued until the end of May

Jefferson Davis

(1808-1889) First and only president of the Confederate States of America after the election of President Abraham Lincoln in 1860 led to the secession of many southern states. Goal as a military strategist was to will down the North's will to fight

Ulysses S. Grant

(1869-1873) and (1873-1877) The 15th Amendment is added to the Constitution Administrative inaction and political scandal involving members of his cabinet, including the Crédit Mobilier scandal and the Whiskey Ring conspiracy. He was more successful in foreign affairs, where he was aided by his secretary of state, Hamilton Fish. He supported amnesty for Confederate leaders and protection for the civil rights of former slaves. Panic of 1873; controversial presidency as the 18th president Leading Union (American) general during the Civil War, especially later in the war

Abraham Lincoln

16th president of the United States, during the Civil War; saved the Union during the American Civil War and emancipated southern slaves through the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863

Andrew Johnson

17th President of the United States, A Southerner form Tennessee, as V.P. when Lincoln was killed, he became president. He opposed radical Republicans who passed Reconstruction Acts over his veto. Issued a pardon in 1868 to all southern rebels of the Civil War. The first U.S. president to be impeached, he survived the Senate removal by only one vote. He was a very weak president.

Crittenden Compromise proposed, 1861

1860 - attempt to prevent Civil War by Senator Crittenden - offered a Constitutional amendment recognizing slavery in the territories south of the 36º30' line, noninterference by Congress with existing slavery, and compensation to the owners of fugitive slaves - defeated by Republicans

Secession of South Carolina (12/20/1860)

1860 South Carolina secedes because of election of Abraham Lincoln. Southerners felt that they they were justified morally, constitutionally, and historically in seceding from the union, just as the 13 American colonies had less than 100 years previously from Britain. Jefferson Davis elected as the President of the Confederacy; believed they had no voice in the national government and that slavery was threatened

Battle of Vicksburg, 1863

1863, Grant takes lead of Union armies, total war begins, With a Union victory, the north now controlled the Mississippi River and split the Confederacy in half.

Emancipation Proclamation warning, Sept., 1862

1863, Lincoln's proclamation made after a crucial victory at Antietam, allowed lincoln to push for something radical; frees all slaves in areas under rebellion; this excludes the border states, keeping them on the side of the union, prevents foreign powers from entering the war for slavery, provides a rationale for the war, and allows blacks to enlist in the army; This made the Civil War a moral war to end slavery (9/22/62)

Emancipation Proclamation enacted, Jan. 1, 1863

1863, Lincoln's proclamation made after a crucial victory at Antietam, allowed lincoln to push for something radical; frees all slaves in areas under rebellion; this excludes the border states, keeping them on the side of the union, prevents foreign powers from entering the war for slavery, provides a rationale for the war, and allows blacks to enlist in the army; changed the Civil War into a battle for freedom and led to the involvement of blacks in the United States Army

Robert E. Lee

A General for the confederates, fought many battles. One of his main plans towards the end of the civil war was to wait for a new president to come into office to make peace with. Fought Peninsular Campaign, 2nd battle of Bull Run, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville (with Jackson), and Gettysburg. Opposed slavery and secession, but when asked by Lincoln to head the Union Army, he could not go against his birthplace Virginia and resigned to fight for the Confederacy

George McClellan

A general for northern command of the Army of the Potomac in 1861; nicknamed "Tardy George" because of his failure to move troops to Richmond and in the Pennsylvania Campaign; lost battle vs. General Lee near the Chesapeake Bay; Lincoln fired him twice. Served as general for the Union Nov 1862 thru March 1863

Copperheads

A group of Northern Democrats who opposed the Civil War and wanted immediate peace negotiations with the Confederacy. The most famous was Congressman Clement L. Vallandigham of Ohio who was briefly banished to Canada for his speeches against the war.; from what used to be known as the Northwest Territories, A group of northern Democrats who opposed abolition and sympathized with the South during the Civil War.

Clara Barton

A leader in nursing during the U.S. Civil War who transformed it into a profession of trained, middle-class women. She was also the founder of the American Red Cross (1881 - Geneva Convention), which helps victims of war and disaster.

Radical Republicans

A small group of people in 1865 who supported black suffrage. They were led by Senator Charles Sumner and Congressman Thaddeus Stevens. They supported the abolition of slavery and a demanding reconstruction policy during the war and after., After the Civil War, a group that believed the South should be harshly punished and thought that Lincoln was sometimes too compassionate towards the South.

William T. Sherman

A successful Union general who implemented the tactic of "total war" in order to defeat the South. Led successful military campaign to conquer Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. (March to the Sea, targeting not only military bases but civilian towns as well, destroying everything in his path from Tennessee to the Atlantic Ocean, 1864; destroyed southern infrastructure and split the Confederacy yet again - a second time)

Monitor

A tiny Union ironclad ship that fought the Confederate Merrimack to a standstill but was destroyed to keep it from the grasp of advancing Confederate troops. Revolution in naval warfare

Total war

A war that involves the complete mobilization of resources and people, affecting the lives of all citizens in the warring countries, even those remote from the battlefields.; , A war in which distinctions between the soldiers on the battlefield and civilians at home are blurred, and where the government plans and controls economic social life in order to supply the armies at the front with supplies and weapons.

Merrimack

Abandoned Union warship salvaged by the Confederacy. Enforced with iron plates to become an ironclad ship. Renamed "CCS Virginia"; was destroyed to keep it from the grasp of Union troops after being cornered, even with reinforcements a few days away

Gettysburg Address, 1863

Abraham Lincoln's oft-quoted 2 minute speech, delivered at the dedication of the cemetery at Gettysburg battlefield. In the address, Lincoln framed the war as a means to uphold the values of liberty.

Reconstruction

After the Civil War. President Andrew Johnson continued Lincoln's plan after his death. Union troops sent to the South to keep the people under control. Former slaves could vote, blacks elected to public office. When the Northern Troops left, the southerners ignored the rights of blacks., the period after the Civil War in the United States when the southern states were reorganized and reintegrated into the Union, 1865-1877; the attempt to rebuild and reform the political, social, and economic systems of the South after the Civil War.

Pacific Railway Act (1862)

Authorized the building of a transcontinental railroad over a northern route in order to link the economies of California and the western territories to the Eastern states; Union Pacific and Central Pacific Companies would begin building after the war, Purpose: to move troops and to transport materials to market. Govt gave land instead of $ to RR companies. For every 1 mile of railroad, there would be 5 miles of land given on each side of it.

Stonewall Jackson

Brave commander of the Confederate Army that led troops at Bull Run. He died in the confusion at the Battle of Chancellorsville from friendly fire (killed by his own men who were defending the camp when he rode in on a horse late at night - May 1863). His troops stood like a stonewall. Second most important general in the Confederate Army

Fort Sumter, April 12, 1861

Built on an island in 1829, the fort was one of three that the United States maintained in the harbor of Charleston, South Carolina. In order to claim true independence from the Union, Jefferson Davis decided that the forts needed to be taken; a Confederate force under P.G.T. Beauregard ordered the small Union garrison, controlled by Major Robert Anderson, to surrender. Anderson refused, shots were fired, and the Union commander surrendered two days later, with only one soldier killed. The Union made two unsuccessful attempts to recapture the fort with ironclad ships in 1863, but Confederate forces finally abandoned it when they left Charleston in February 1865 Lincoln's attempt to provide the fort with provisions only was disapproved by the South; men were allowed to return to the North after Confederate capture

Homestead Act (1862)

Encouraged westward settlement by allowing heads of families to buy 160 acres of land for a small fee ($10-30); settlers were required to develop and remain on the land for five years. Over 400,000 families got land through this law.

Winfield Scott

In charge of the Union army. He was very smart, and he came up with the idea to block the South ports. He estimated the war would last 2-3 years. Everyone thought they were stupid, but he was right. He got fired, even though they followed his original plan. (Won the US the Mexican-American War, and was a Whig presidential nominee in 1852)

Battle of Gettysburg, 1863

Meade, the commander of the Union Army of the Potomac, led the army and encountered Lee at the small town of Gettysburg, PA, and fought a war; Meade's army established a strong, well-protected position on the hills south of the town; Lee's army attacked twice and failed in both, losing 1/3 of his army; therefore, Lee withdrew from Gettysburg on July 4. Proved that the North would win the war, and the Confederate Army could never again invade northern territory or win another battle (50,000 soldiers lost their lives - bloodiest battle in American history)

Articles of Agreement Relating to the Surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia (1865)

On April 9, 1865, Generals Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee met in the parlor of a house in Appomattox Court House, VA, to discuss this surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia, which would end the Civil War. According to the terms, the men of Lee's army could return home in safety if they pledged to end the fighting and deliver their arms to the Union Army.

War Department General Order 143: Creation of the U.S. Colored Troops (1863)

The War Department issued General Order 143 on May 22, 1863, creating the United States Colored Troops. By the end of the Civil War, roughly 179,000 black men (10 percent of the Union Army) served as soldiers in the U.S. Army, and another 19,000 served in the Navy; recruitment of slaves and free blacks for military service

13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Abolition of Slavery (1865)

The amendment made to the Constitution that officially banned slavery in the United States of America. It narrowly passed the House of Representatives, but the Republicans with help from anti-slavery Democrats were able to make it work.

Election of Lincoln, Nov., 1860

The issue of secession was being talked about even before the 1860 election, and Lincoln's election intensified the move in the South to split with the Union. And when Lincoln was inaugurated on March 4, 1861, it seemed obvious that the nation was on an inescapable path toward war. Indeed, the Civil War began the next month with the attack on Fort Sumter.

President Abraham Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address (1865)

The purpose of Lincoln's second inaugural address was to state that slavery was the key component that led to the civil war and he stated that it was possible that slavery had offended God and he retaliated by causing conflict which started the war. He said that since there was now peace, they should take advantage of that and begin a time of reconciliation where there was malice towards no one and charity for everyone.

New York draft riots, 1863

Uprising, mostly of working-class Irish-Americans, in protest of the draft to war. Rioters were particularly incensed by the ability of the rich to hire substitutes or purchase exemptions. (Five Points, NY)

Assassination of President Lincoln, 1865

While sitting in his box at Ford's Theatre watching "Our American Cousin", President Lincoln was shot by John Wilkes Booth. April 14, 1865 - just days after Lee's surrender and a little more than a month after Lincoln's second inauguration

Writ of habeas corpus

a legal protection requiring that a court determine if a person is lawfully imprisoned; A court order requiring explanation to a judge why a prisoner is being held in custody

Morrill Act (1862)

another one of the Government's acts that worked to encourage more settlers into the Great Plains (passed along with the Homestead Act of 1862). The Act set aside land and provided money for agricultural colleges, eventually, agricultural science became a huge industry

Wade-Davis Bill (1864)

harsh Congressional Reconstruction bill that provided the president would appoint provisional governments for conquered states until a majority of voters took an oath of loyalty to the Union; it required the abolition of slavery by new state constitutions, the disenfranchisement of Confederate officials, and the repudiation of Confederate debt. Lincoln killed the bill with a pocket veto. Essentially would make re-entry into the Union significantly and cruelly harder for Confederate states