The Furnace of Civil War: 1861-1865

1. The Furnace of Civil War: 1861-1865 Chapter 21

2. A. Bull Run Ends the “90 Day War” • Public believed the war would be short • Army ill-prepared • Tried an attack just south of DC at Bull Run • Spectator event on July 21, 1861 • Confederate victory- effects on both sides

3. B. “Tardy George” McClellan and the Peninsula Campaign • George McClellan- serious student of war, but too cautious • Created morale for his troops • Overestimated Southern forces • Spring 1862- waterborne approach to Richmond • 7 Days’ Battle- June 26-July 2, 1862- pushed Union forces back • Lincoln fired McClellan for the time • What if Union had won battle? • Little disruption of the country • Slavery would have survived

4. B. Continued • New Union strategy of total war • Blockade the coast • Liberate slaves • Take the Mississippi River to divide the South • Ravage the South by sending troops through GA & the Carolinas • Capture the capital of Richmond • Engage the enemy whenever & wherever possible known as Anaconda Plan

5. C. The War at Sea • Blockade started leaky- focused on cotton ports • Blockade runners- pinched off by 1863 • Northern captains stopped British merchants • CSS Virginia vs. USS Monitor • 1st battle-tested iron clads • End of wooden fighting ships

7. D. The Pivotal Point: Antietam • Lee vs. Pope at 2nd Bull Run- Aug. 1862 • Lee attacked MD • Sept. 17, 1862- Antietam Creek • Lincoln had restored McClellan to his position • Military draw, but Lee had to retreat • Mc wouldn’t pursue • British & French had been on the verge of mediation • Then Lincoln issued Emancipation Proclamation- victory? • Sept. 23, 1862 • Effective Jan. 1, 1863 • All slaves in states in rebellion were immediately free

8. E. A Proclamation Without Emancipation • Slaves in border states & conquered Southern territory not affected (disunion) • Southern slaves deserted plantations as Union army closed in • Did make the war a moral struggle against slavery • Not officially abolished until 13th amendment in late 1865 • Made it an all or nothing fight for the South • Mixed reactions to the proclamation • Convinced British not to support South

9. F. Blacks Battle Bondage • Union army began enlisting black soldiers in 1862 • By end there were about 180,000 (10% of total enlistments) • Most came after Emancipation Proclamation • Treatment of captured black soldiers • Ft. Pillow, TN • Blacks not enlisted in Southern army until final month of war • Most used for manual labor, or kept on plantations

10. G. Lee’s Last Lunge at Gettysburg • End of June, 1863- Union succeeded in taking control of Mississippi River with Battle of Vicksburg • Battle of Gettysburg- July 1-3, 1863 • Lee’s 2nd attempt at attacking the North • Knew if he lost battle it was just a matter of time • Lost after hard fought battle • Vicksburg & Gettysburg greatly improved Lincoln’s & the war’s popularity in the North • Long string of defeats for North • Series of bad generals • Gettysburg Address- Sept. 1863- proclaimed the war was to create a united and free country

11. H. The War in the West • Ulysses Simpson Grant- West Point Graduate • Recommissioned at the beginning of Civil War • Started war in West • Ft. Donnelson, TN & Ft. Henry TN- Cumberland River- important in road to MS River • Shiloh, TN- April 6-7 1862 • Helped take Vicksburg in June 1863

12. I. Sherman Scorches GA • William T. Sherman swept through the Southeast • GA & Carolinas- Sherman’s March to the Sea • Atlanta, Savannah, Columbia, Fayetteville, Raleigh • Total War- shermanizing the South

13. J. The Politics of War • Pressure from Congress • Radical Republicans (Cong. Committee on the Conduct of the War) • Northern Democrats- death of S. Douglas • Clement Vallandigham of Ohio- banished to south

14. K. The Election of 1864 • Republicans joined War Democrats • Created the temporary Union Party • Sec. of War Salmon P. Chase opposed Lincoln • Lincoln’s running mate became War Democrat Andrew Johnson • Democrats nominated George McClellan • Series of Northern victories solidified Lincoln’s chances

15. L. Grant Outlasts Lee • Grant placed in command of Army of Potomac after Gettysburg • Eventually outlasted Lee in VA • Lee surrendered at Appomattox Courthouse, VA- April 9, 1865

17. M. The Martyrdom of Lincoln • April 14, 1865 • Ford’s Theatre, Washington DC • John Wilkes Booth • Died early on April 15

18. N. The Aftermath of the Nightmare • Federal govt. assumed political control that has never been questioned since & gained great power • New system of national banks chartered • Northern economy boomed • Southern economy devastated • Human costs of the war • 360,000 Union soldiers died • 260,000 Confederates died • 275,000 Unions soldiers wounded • 225,000 Confederates wounded • Total cost was $15 billion

19. N. Continued • 1865- 13th Amendment passed • Lee lost his plantation- Arlington • Two problems the nation now faced: • How to bring the Southern states back • How to integrate the 4 million freed slaves