Georgia Studies SS8H5 - Civil War

This set of flashcards covers key terms and concepts related to the Civil War as studied in Georgia history.

Antebellum

The time period before the Civil War, especially in the Southern U.S., marked by slavery and agriculture.

John C. Calhoun

A Southern politician who supported slavery and states' rights; influenced the South's decision to secede.

Sectionalism

Loyalty to a region (North or South) over the whole country, often causing conflict.

Compromise of 1850

A set of laws to ease tensions between free and slave states; included California as a free state and the Fugitive Slave Act.

Dred Scott Case

A Supreme Court decision that said enslaved people were property and Congress couldn’t ban slavery in territories.

Election of 1860

Abraham Lincoln was elected president; Southern states began to secede.

Fugitive Slave Act

Required escaped slaves to be returned to their owners, even from free states.

Georgia Platform

Georgia’s support of the Compromise of 1850, warning the North not to interfere with slavery.

Lincoln, Abraham

16th U.S. President who opposed the spread of slavery and led the Union during the Civil War.

Nullification

The idea that states can ignore federal laws they believe are unconstitutional.

Secession

When a state leaves the United States; Georgia seceded in 1861.

Slavery

A system where people were treated as property and forced to work without pay.

States’ Rights

Belief that states should have more power than the federal government, especially over slavery.

Stephens, Alexander

Georgia politician who became Vice President of the Confederate States.

Union

The Northern states that stayed loyal to the U.S. government during the Civil War.

Confederacy (CSA)

Southern states that seceded and formed their own government to protect slavery.

Emancipation

The act of freeing enslaved people.

Robert E. Lee

Top general of the Confederate Army.

Ulysses S. Grant

Top general of the Union Army who helped win the war.

Total War

A strategy that targets enemy troops and resources to break their will to fight.

Anaconda Plan

Union strategy to defeat the South by blocking ports and controlling the Mississippi River.

Andersonville

A Confederate prison in Georgia known for terrible conditions and high death rates.

Atlanta Campaign

Union battles in Georgia led by Sherman to capture Atlanta.

Battle of Chickamauga

Major Confederate victory in Georgia in 1863, followed by Union control of Chattanooga.

Blockade Runners

Ships that tried to sneak past Union blockades to bring supplies to the South.

Emancipation Proclamation

Lincoln’s 1863 order freeing slaves in Confederate states.

March to the Sea

Sherman’s destructive path from Atlanta to Savannah to weaken the South.

Scorched Earth Policy

Destroying anything useful to the enemy; used by Sherman.

Sherman, William T.

Union general who led the Atlanta Campaign and March to the Sea.

Union Blockade

Union effort to stop Southern trade by blocking ports.

Wirz, Henry

Commander of Andersonville prison; executed for war crimes after the war.