Answer the following questions based on the information watched or read.
The answer to each question should be 1-2 pages. Use examples and specifics.
You can answer each question individually or write the responses as one essay.
- What was the direct cause of the Civil War?
- What did the election of Lincoln do to exacerbate the tensions between North and South?
- What were the sacrifices the home fronts in the North and South have to make during the war?
- Why did the North win?
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/us-history/civil-war-era/slavery-and-the-civil-war/v/slavery-and-missouri-compromise-in-early-1800s
5 pages
The Election of 1860
Democrats split
· Northern Democrats run Stephen Douglas
· Southern Democrats run John C. Breckinridge
Republicans decide for moderate
· Republicans nominate Lincoln
· Lincoln opposes slavery in territories
· Republican platform comprehensive
Fourth party enters race
· Constitutional Unionists
· Run John Bell
Republican Victory
· Lincoln gains 40% popular vote
· Lincoln wins in electoral college
· Most Americans want settlement
South Carolina fire-eaters demand secession
· South Carolina secedes December 20, 1680
· Deep South follows
· Buchanan unable to shape compromise
Crittenden Compromise
· Proposed extension of 36º 30’
· John Tyler proposed constitutional amendment
· Lincoln cannot accept slavery in territories
· Compromises fail
Confederate States of America
· Seven states of deep South
· Montgomery original capital
· Constitution similar to that of U.S.
· Constitution protects slavery
President Jefferson of CSA
· Model slave owner; not fire-eater
· Cold personality, irritable, inflexible
· Lacks self-confidence
· Surrounds himself with yes-men
President Abraham Lincoln of United States
· Knows value of unity, competency
· Appoints rivals to cabinet
· Brunt of jokes, criticism
· Sharp native intelligence, humble
Border states
· Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Arkansas join CSA
· Maryland, Kentucky, Missouri stay with Union
· West Virginia secedes from Virginia
A war of nerves
· Two Southern forts in U.S. hands
· Davis willing to let status quo stand for moment
· Lincoln decides to re-supply forts without force
· Confederates fire, beginning April 12, 1861
Art of War influences commanders
· Focus on occupying high ground
· Focus on taking enemy cities
· Retreat when necessary
· Jomini’s 12 models of war
The Armies
· Calvary: for reconnaissance
· Artillery: weakens enemy
·
Infantry
: backbone of army
· Also support units
Infantry
· Brigades of 2,000–3,000
· Form double lines of 1,000 yards
· Advance into enemy fire
· Then fight hand-to-hand
· Most battles in dense woods
Yanks and Rebs
· Most between 17 and 25
· From all states, social classes
· Draft exempts upper class
· Anti-draft riots in New York City
· Draft dodgers in South
· Some bounty hunters
· High desertion rates
· Shirking duty not common
First Battle of Manassas (Bull Run)
· Both sides thought war would be short
· First battle 20 miles from Washington
· South wins, Union forces flee in panic
First Battle of Manassas (Bull Run)
· South fails to attack Washington
· South celebrates victory
· Stonewall Jackson hero for South
· South disorganized even in victory
Consequences of Manassas (Bull Run)
· South becomes overconfident
· North prepares for long fight
· George McClellan given command of Army of Potomac
Northern strategy
· Defend Washington; take Richmond
· Split Confederacy by taking Mississippi River
· Blockade southern coastline
Mismatch
· North had population advantage of 22 to 9 million
· Industry in north
· Railroads mainly in the north
· Southerners knew the battleground
· Interior lines in the south
· More southerners had military training especially officers
Southern hope for help from abroad fails
· Southern strategy = Hold off North until help comes from abroad
· Hope North grows weary of fighting
· France decides to intervene in Mexico
· British government pro-Confederate
· British people anti-slavery
· Britain never helps South
Jefferson Davis tries to force Britain’s hand
· Withholds sale of cotton
· British mills stockpile cotton before war
· British need grain more than cotton
Diplomacy
· U.S. captures Confederate diplomats on British ship, Trent
· Britain threatens war
· British build ships for South
· U.S. uses diplomacy to keep Britain out of the war
· Copperheads: Northern sympathizers of South
· Defeatists: Believe war is not worth the effort
· Lincoln suspends writ of habeas corpus
· Jails many dissenters, weakens their effectiveness
War in the West
· Union moves troops to Kentucky
· Union captures Forts Grant and Donelson
· Next major battle at Shiloh, Tennessee
· North wins in incredibly bloody battle
War at sea
· Confederates use commerce raiders
· Confederates try to outrun North’s blockade
· South’s Merrimack, North’s Monitor ironclad ships
· March 9, 1862 first clash of ironclad ships
· North builds more ironclad ships; South lacks resources
McClellan has the “slows”
· Army well-trained and equipped
· McClellan reluctant to attack
· McClellan was Democrat and disliked Lincoln’s war policy
· Lincoln frustrated with McClellan
Peninsula Campaign
· Union troops between York and James Rivers
· McClellan delays; South maneuvers
· 7-day battle; Lincoln recalls troops
· Lincoln replaces McClellan
Antietam
· Eastern theater stalemates
· South invades Maryland
· North stops south of Antietam
· Lee retreats to Virginia
Emancipation Proclamation
· Lincoln’s war aim to save Union
· Antislavery sentiment growing
· Lincoln frees slaves in states fighting Union
· Effective January 1, 1863
Slavery: The Beginning of the End
· Reassures slave states
· Allows North to use black troops
· Improves morale
· Mollifies Radical Republicans
Stalemate renewed
· McClellan replaced with Anthony Burnside
· Burnside loses at Fredericksburg, Virginia
· War bogs down in West
· War stalemates as both sides retreat for winter
1863
War at standstill
· South: shortages and inflation
· North: frustration
Chancellorsville (May 1863)
· Joseph Hooker commands Union troops
· Hooker outnumbers Robert E. Lee
· Lee outmaneuvers Hooker, wins
· South suffers severe casualties
· Including Stonewall Jackson
Fortress of Vicksburg
· South held small section of Mississippi River near Vicksburg
· Union forces unable to take Vicksburg
U.S. Grant
· Re-enlists when Civil War breaks out
· Wins Forts Henry and Donelson
· Shiloh creates questions about soberness
Siege of Vicksburg
· Grant marches down west bank of river
· Crosses river south of Vicksburg
· Takes surrounding area
· Lays siege to city
Gettysburg July 1-3
· Lee invades Pennsylvania
· Surprises Army of Potomac commanded by Meade
· Armies meet at Gettysburg
· North gains strategic advantage
Pickett’s Charge
· Lee plans frontal assault on Union center
· Loses 10,000 men in less than an hour
· Lee waits for counterattack
· Union fails to counterattack
July 4, 1863
· Gettysburg ravages Southern morale
· Vicksburg falls
Tennessee Campaign
· Union troops occupy Chattanooga
· Battle at Chickamauga Creek
· South lays siege to Chattanooga, fails
· Grant becomes commander of all Union forces
Total War
Grant’s tactics
· Totally destroy enemy’s ability to fight
· Union has numerical superiority
· Force Confederacy to fight on all fronts
· William T. Sherman heads toward Atlanta
Richmond
· Grant marches into the wilderness
· Lee outmaneuvers Grant and attacks
· Heavy losses on both sides
· Union can withstand losses; South cannot
Petersburg and the Shenandoah Valley
· Grant lays siege to Petersburg
· Petersburg rail center serves Richmond
· Siege lasts nine months
· Union forces lay waste to Shenandoah Valley
Sherman in Georgia
· Union troops occupy Atlanta (September 1864)
· Sherman marches to sea (Atlanta to Savannah)
· Intends to destroy South’s ability to fight
· Destroys everything in path
The sudden end: April 1865
· Lee abandons Petersburg, Richmond
· Lee tries to make last stand, fails
· Lee, Grant meet at Appomattox Court House
· Grant gives Lee generous terms
Deaths
· Totaled 620,000
· More deaths than all other wars combined
Lincoln’s Assassination: April 14, 1865
· John Wilkes Booth shoots Lincoln
· Shot in Ford’s Theater, Washington
· Booth part of a conspiracy
· Booth killed; four more hanged
“Father Abraham”
· Not overly popular as president
· Worries about winning 1864 election
· Wins due to victories
· Democrat Andrew Johnson running mate
· Had won respect with his humility and eloquence
Consequences of the Civil War
Union victory
· Establishes inseparability of the states
· Destroys political dominance of South
· Northeastern industrial, financial interest now dominant
New Economic Policies
· Pacific Railways Act: transcontinental railroad
· Morrill Tariff: high protective tariff
Union financing of war
· Heavy taxation: tariff, income, and excise taxes
· Paper money: greenbacks
· Borrowing: bonds sold
Free land
· Homestead Act gives 160 acres of public domain; must live on it for 5 years
· Morrill Act gives land to states to fund colleges
Free people
· Slavery immoral, archaic
· Thousands of slaves flee to Union Army
· 15,000 blacks serve in Union army
· Thirteenth Amendment ends slavery