American Civil War

American Civil War
Top left: William Rosecrans at Stones River, Tennessee; top right: Confederate prisoners at Gettysburg; bottom: Battle of Fort Hindman, Arkansas
Date April 12, 1861 – April 9, 1865 (last shot ended June, 1865) Location United States, Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean Result Union victory Territorial integrity of the United States of America preserved Reconstruction Slavery abolished
Commanders
Ulysses S. Grant George B. McClellan William T. Sherman Winfield Scott Henry Halleck George Meade Ambrose Burnside Joseph Hooker Benjamin F. Butler Phillip Sheridan William Rosecrans George H. Thomas	Robert E. Lee Joseph E. Johnston P.G.T. Beauregard A.S. Johnston Samuel Cooper Braxton Bragg John Bell Hood Stonewall Jackson J.E.B. Stuart Jubal Early James Longstreet Edmund Kirby Smith
Strength
2,100,000	1,064,000
Casualties and losses
110,000 killed in action 360,000 total dead 275,200 wounded	93,000 killed in action 260,000 total dead 137,000+ wounded

The American Civil War (1861–1865), also known as the War Between the States, was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States (said that they wanted to separate from the United States of America) and formed the Confederate States of America, also known as "the Confederacy". Jefferson Davis led the Confederate states as they fought against the United States (the Union). The Union states (sometimes called "the North") were all those in which slavery was not legal (most of which were in "the North") and five states in which slavery was legal (the "border states").

In the presidential election of 1860, the Republican Party, led by Abraham Lincoln, was actively against expanding slavery beyond the states in which it already existed. The Republican party won in that election. This made seven Southern states declare their independence from the Union even before Lincoln became president on March 4, 1861. Both outgoing President James Buchanan and Lincoln disagreed with the legality of the secession, considering it rebellion. No nation ever recognized the Confederacy as a separate nation.

Fighting started when the Confederates bombarded a Union fort within the territory claimed by the Confederacy. The war was fought mostly in the South, and because both sides were American, was one of the deadliest in U.S. history. The Union won the war, resulting in the end of slavery in the United States.

Fighting begins

The Confederate States claimed ownership of all forts and other federal buildings within their territory. Fort Sumter in South Carolina remained in Union hands. On April 12, 1861, Confederate forces bombarded and forced the surrender of Union forces inside the fort. Following this, President Lincoln called for volunteers from each state to take back the captured forts, defend Washington, D.C., and suppress the rebellion. Swiftly four more states joined with the Confederates rather than supply forces to suppress them.

The northern states were against slavery but the southern states did not want the laws to change.

The war

There were two important areas where the American Civil War was fought - in the west and in the east.

In the eastern area, there was the US capital, Washington D.C., and the Confederate capital, Richmond, Virginia. These two cities are only about 90 miles apart. In this area, the Confederate military leader from 1862 until the end of the war was Robert E. Lee. Lee was a great general, and won many battles. Many times, his actions prevented the smaller number of Confederate troops from being badly beaten or destroyed by the Union troops. Even though the North had more soldiers, they could not capture Richmond until the end of the war in 1865.

In the western area, there was the great river, the Mississippi. Ulysses S. Grant (who later became US President) won many battles here. One of the earliest battles to take place in the western area was the Battle of Shiloh. The North captured almost all the cities on the Mississippi River, but the Confederacy still held Vicksburg, an important city and fort. On the 4th of July, 1863, following a long siege, Vicksburg surrendered to Grant. This divided the Confederacy into two. This victory is considered to be one of the turning points of the war.

There were also battles west of the Mississippi River, in the area called the Trans-Mississippi. Two battles which are considered important are the Battle of Wilson's Creek and the Battle of Pea Ridge. After the Union captured Vicksburg, this area became isolated from the rest of the South.

Another major turning point occurred at about the same time in the east. After several victories, General Lee decided to invade the North. Lee and his Army of Northern Virginia went into Pennsylvania. The Confederate army met the Union army near Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The Battle of Gettysburg was fought over a three day period, July 1-3 in 1863. The invasion was stopped by Grant, and Lee and the Confederate army were pushed back to the South.

Lincoln decided that Ulysses S. Grant was his best general. He put Grant in control of all the Union armies, and made William T. Sherman general of armies in Georgia. While Grant attacked Lee again and again, Sherman burned Atlanta and Savannah. Lee held out time and time again, but eventually the number of Union soldiers was too much for the smaller Confederate army. Lee decided he had too few soldiers to keep on fighting and he surrendered to Grant on April 9, 1865, near Appomattox Court House.

Following Lee's surrender, many other Confederate armies surrendered as well. The last Confederate general to surrender was Brigadier General Stand Watie on June 23 in Oklahoma. Some Confederates did not want to become part of the United States again; these people moved to Mexico and Brazil.

Inflation

Inflation occurred on both sides. The prices on everything were raised, and caused people in both the North and the South to go hungry if they could not afford the newly priced food. This suffering was an important factor in the South's surrender.

After the war

Many soldiers died for both sides during the war. The South was hurt the most because most of the war was fought there. The South's economy was hurt very badly, too. The Union Army stayed in some Southern states for many years. This time is called "Reconstruction". Reconstruction ended in 1877.

Also, soon after the war, several constitutional amendments were made by the US government and passed with enough support from the people. Slavery was ended by the 13th Amendment. The 14th Amendment makes it clear that all people born in the United States are citizens with equal rights that cannot be taken away unless they do something against the law. The 15th Amendment says that people in the United States cannot be kept from voting because of their race. (Citizens could be stopped from voting because of their gender, however. It was not until the passing of the 19th Amendment in 1920 that women could vote.) Other facts are that Generals Grant, Hayes, Garfield, Harrison, and McKinley became presidents or ran for the office.

Other websites

• The Civil War Home Page
• Civilwar.com

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American Civil War