American Civil War Battles

Fort Sumter (SC)

• April 12, 1861

• First battle of the Civil War

• No one died

First Bull Run (VA)

• July 1861

• Stonewall Jackson inspired his troops

• Confederacy won

Shiloh (TN)

• April 1862

• Ulysses S. Grant used the rivers to attack

• Lasted 2 days - 15,000 men died

• Union won

  • 1st major victory

Seven Days (VA)

• June - July 1862

• Robert E. Lee vs. George McClellan

• George McClellan could have overtaken Richmond, but waited weeks to make a decision

• Confederacy won

Antietam (MD)

• August 1862

• Robert E. Lee vs. George McClellan

• Bloodiest Day in US history

• Lee wanted to be aggressive & cross Potomac River to take D.C

  • A guy dropped the plans in a cigar box and Union found it

  • McClellan took forever to make a decision

• No one wins

  • Lee retreats because he lost so many soldiers

  • McClellan is fired

Fredericksburg (VA)

• December 1862

• Ambrose Burnside told to be aggressive

• Union tried to build a bridge across the Rappahannock River to take Richmond

  • Union slaughtered

• Confederacy won

  • Burnside fired

Chancellorsville (VA)

• May 1863

• Robert E Lee vs. Thomas Hooker

• AKA “Lee’s Masterpiece”

• Thomas Hooker brought prostitutes to boost morale for the Union soldiers

  • STDs ran rampant

• Confederacy won

  • Hooker fired

  • Stonewall Jackson killed

Gettysburg (PA)

• July 1863

• Robert E. Lee vs. George Meade

  • Lee was going to take New York City

• Accidentally ran into Meade’s army & fought in PA

  • 3 days long (July 1-3)

  • 3rd Day, “Pickett’s Charge”

    • Confederacy assault on union failed

• Lee believed God was on his side so he didn’t need the high ground like the Union

  • 1/3 of Lee’s army died

• Turning point of the War

• Union won

Vicksburg (MS)

• July 1863

• Ulysses S. Grant overtook all the Confederate forts down the Mississippi & this was the last one

• Cut off beef from Texas to Confederacy

• Union won

Fort Wagner (SC)

• July 1863

• The fort was basically a sand castle

• Proved that black people needed to fight in the war

• Confederacy won

Chickamauga (GA)

• September 1863

• 1st major battle of Georgia

• Union tried to enter the state but were driven out

• Confederacy won

Chattanooga (TN)

• November 1863

• The Union army driven out of Chickamauga assaulted the Confederate forces that were atop Lookout Mountain

  • Confederacy could only shoot so many at the very top of mountain

• Union won

  • Ulysses S. Grant now in this area of south

Siege of Petersburg (VA)

• July 1864 - April 1865

• Robert E Lee vs Ulysses S Grant

• Trench warfare used by both sides

• Multiple battles

• Union wins overall

“The Crater” (VA)

• July 1864

• Part of the Siege of Petersburg

• Union soldiers buried 5,000 lbs of gunpowder beneath the Confederate trenches

  • Last minute change from black battalion to white battalion cause they didn’t want Grant to be seen as racist

• The unprepared white battalion ran Union soldiers into the crater

  • Union slaughtered

• Confederacy won

Atlanta (GA)

• July 22 - Sep 2, 1864

• William T Sherman invades Atlanta because it is the railroad hub for the south

• Confederacy burns ATL so the Union couldn’t get the raw materials

• Union won

“March to the Sea”

• November 15 - December 21, 1864

• William T Sherman’s “total war” mentality

• 62,000 union soldiers march into enemy territory (without supplies and support from the North)

  • 15 miles a day

  • Rich houses raided

  • Cities burned (Madison spared)

• 100,000 slaves freed

• Tied rails around themselves to hinder railroad rebuilding

  • “Sherman neckties”

• After Savannah fell, continued his march through GA, SC, & NC

Appomattox (VA)

• April 9, 1865

• Robert E Lee vs Ulysses S Grant

• Lee’s army was surrounded by Appomattox Court House, so they surrendered

• Only terms for surrender: Go Home

  • South has been hurt enough

• Union won