6. The American Civil War: 1863 to Reconstruction

Why did Lincoln avoid making the early Civil War about slavery?

To prevent loyal border states, especially Maryland, from seceding.

Why was Maryland's loyalty crucial to the Union?

Its secession would leave Washington D.C. surrounded by Confederate territory.

Peninsular Campaign (1862)

A disastrous Union defeat that led to Lincoln temporarily relieving George McClellan.

Battle of Antietam (1862)

The single bloodiest day of the Civil War, resulting in 22,000 casualties.

Why was McClellan permanently relieved after Antietam?

He failed to pursue Robert E. Lee's retreating Confederate army.

Political action taken by McClellan in 1864

He ran for President as a Democrat against Abraham Lincoln.

Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation (Sept 1862)

An announcement freeing all slaves in the 11 rebelling Confederate states.

Which slaves were NOT freed by the Emancipation Proclamation?

Slaves in the loyal border states and the North.

Frederick Douglass's military advocacy to Lincoln

He pushed for the enlistment of black men in the Union Army.

Battle of Vicksburg (July 4, 1863)

A major Union victory giving them full control of the Mississippi River.

Why did Robert E. Lee invade the North in the summer of 1863?

To exploit northern division caused by the newly implemented military draft.

Battle of Gettysburg (July 1863)

The bloodiest multi-day battle of the war, ending Lee's northern invasion.

Why was Stonewall Jackson absent from the Battle of Gettysburg?

He was killed in action earlier that spring at Chancellorsville.

Gettysburg Address (1863)

Lincoln's speech dedicating the national cemetery and justifying the war's immense sacrifices.

Sherman's March to the Sea (1864)

A destructive Union campaign from Atlanta to Savannah using scorched-earth tactics.

Siege of Petersburg

A ten-month Union siege targeting the vital rail head south of Richmond.

Appomattox Courthouse (April 9, 1865)

The site where Robert E. Lee surrendered his army to Ulysses S. Grant.

Total death toll of the American Civil War

Approximately 635,000 soldiers lost their lives.

William Tecumseh Sherman's famous warning to military graduates

"War is hell."