Civil War Presentation Test Cards

Fort Sumter ($1861$)

The opening engagement of the Civil War. After South Carolina seceded, Confederate forces fired on the federal fort when Lincoln attempted to 'provision' the garrison. This event prompted Lincoln to call for $75,000$ volunteers, effectively starting the military conflict.

Secession of the Upper South

Triggered by Lincoln's call for troops after Fort Sumter. Four states—$Virginia$, $North$ $Carolina$, $Arkansas$, and $Tennessee$—left the Union to join the Confederacy, significantly increasing the South's industrial and population resources.

Union Advantages (The North)

1. Economic & Infrastructure: Controlled $90\%$ of industrial output, $70\%$ of railroad mileage, and had a vastly superior navy.\n2. Demographics: A population of $22$ million compared to the South's $9$ million ($3.5$ million of whom were enslaved).

Confederate Advantages (The South)

1. Military Leadership: Possessed highly experienced officers like Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson.\n2. Strategy: Only had to fight a defensive war of attrition to win (independence), whereas the North had to conquer territory.\n3. Geography: Fought on familiar home soil with local support.

The Anaconda Plan

Proposed by General Winfield Scott, this Union strategy aimed to 'strangle' the South through:\n1. Naval Blockade: Cutting off Southern cotton exports and foreign imports.\n2. Mississippi River: Seizing control of the river to bisect the Confederacy into two parts.

First Battle of Bull Run (Manassas)

The first major land battle in July $1861$. A Confederate victory that debunked Northern hopes for a quick $90$-day war and led to the professionalization of the Union Army under George McClellan.

Battle of Shiloh ($1862$)

A brutal battle in the Western Theater. Ulysses S. Grant's forces repelled a surprise Confederate attack near the Tennessee River. With over $23,000$ total casualties, it proved the war would be a long, high-casualty struggle for the frontier.

Battle of Antietam (Sharpsburg)

Fought in September $1862$, it was the bloodiest single day in American history ($22,000+$ casualties). While tactically a draw, it was a strategic Union victory because it halted Lee's first invasion of the North and prevented British/French intervention.

Political Impact of Antietam

The strategic victory gave President Lincoln the 'positive' momentum needed to issue the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation without appearing desperate, which shifted the war's moral objective toward the abolition of slavery.

Emancipation Proclamation ($1863$)

An executive order that declared all slaves in areas of 'active rebellion' to be free. Critically, it did not apply to the Border States ($Missouri$, $Kentucky$, $Maryland$, $Delaware$) to prevent them from seceding. It turned the war into a 'crusade for freedom' and allowed for the recruitment of African American soldiers.

The Border States

Slave states that remained in the Union during the war ($MD$, $DE$, $KY$, $MO$). Lincoln prioritized keeping these states favorable to the Union because of their strategic location near Washington D.C. and their vital resources/manpower.

Conscription Act of $1863$

The first federal draft in U.S. history. It allowed wealthy draftees to hire a substitute or pay a $300$ dollar fee for exemption, leading to the perception of the conflict as 'a rich man's war and a poor man's fight.'

New York City Draft Riots ($1863$)

Violent protests led by lower-class workers, particularly Irish immigrants, who were angered by the draft and feared that freed slaves would compete for their jobs. The riots resulted in significant property damage and the targeted lynching of African Americans.

Battle of Gettysburg ($1863$)

The military turning point of the war in the East. Over three days, Lee’s second attempt to invade the North failed after the disastrous Pickett’s Charge. Lee lost one-third of his army and never launched another offensive.

Siege of Vicksburg ($1863$)

Fell to Ulysses S. Grant on July $4$, the day after Gettysburg. This gave the Union complete control of the Mississippi River, cutting the Confederacy in half and fulfilling a major tenet of the Anaconda Plan.

The Gettysburg Address

A short speech by Lincoln in November $1863$ that redefined the war's purpose. He invoked the principles of human equality from the Declaration of Independence and envisioned a 'new birth of freedom' for the nation.

Total War and Sherman’s March

General William T. Sherman's strategy of targeting not just the enemy army, but also the economic resources and psychological will of the civilian population. His march through Georgia from Atlanta to Savannah in $1864$ destroyed railroads, crops, and infrastructure.

Election of $1864$

Lincoln ran on the 'National Union' ticket against Democrat George McClellan. Lincoln's victory was secured by the timely capture of Atlanta by Sherman, which convinced Northern voters that victory was imminent.

Appomattox Court House ($1865$)

The site in Virginia where Robert E. Lee surrendered the Army of Northern Virginia to Ulysses S. Grant, effectively ending major combat operations in the Civil War.

Lincoln’s Assassination

Carried out by John Wilkes Booth at