Civil War Test Preparation Review

A comprehensive set of flashcards covering key terms, events, and figures related to the Civil War for test preparation.

Compromise of 1850

An agreement that established Texas as a slave state and New Mexico as a free territory, with Texas giving up land for $10 million.

Fugitive Slave Act

Part of the Compromise of 1850 that made it illegal to assist runaway slaves.

Harriet Beecher Stowe

Author of 'Uncle Tom's Cabin,' a novel that revealed the horrors of slavery and heightened tensions between the north and south.

Kansas-Nebraska Act

Legislation allowing Kansas and Nebraska to decide on slavery through popular sovereignty, angering northerners.

Missouri Compromise (1820)

A compromise that drew a line designating where slavery was legal (south of the line) and illegal (north of the line).

Dred Scott Decision

A Supreme Court ruling stating that slaves are property and cannot sue for freedom.

John Brown and Harpers Ferry Raid

An abolitionist raid intended to incite a slave rebellion by seizing a federal armory, ultimately unsuccessful.

Border State

A state that bordered the north and south, supported slavery but did not secede from the Union (e.g., Kentucky, Missouri, West Virginia, Maryland, Delaware).

Texas Secession

The act of Texas leaving the Union on March 2, 1861, ironically on Texas Independence Day.

Battle of Fort Sumter

The first battle of the Civil War, won by the Confederacy in April 1861.

Battle of Manassas (First Bull Run)

The first major battle of the Civil War, won by the Confederacy; marked the rise of Confederate general Stonewall Jackson.

Battle of Gettysburg

A turning point in the war favoring the North, marked as the bloodiest battle at three days (July 1863).

Battle of Vicksburg

A key Union victory that split the Confederate Army in two and secured control of the Mississippi River.

Battle of Antietam

The bloodiest single day in American history; a tactical draw that the Union claimed as a victory.

Tariffs

Taxes on imports that the North supported to protect industries, harming the South's economy.

Cotton Diplomacy

The South's strategy to leverage cotton exports to gain support from European nations, ultimately unsuccessful.

Secession

The act of withdrawing from a country or organization, as states did from the Union.

Cottonclads

Steamboats disguised with cotton bales used by the Confederates in the Battle of Galveston.

Union

The Northern states during the Civil War, opposing secession and slavery.

Confederacy

The Southern states that seceded from the Union, advocating for states' rights and slavery.

General John Bell Hood

Leader of Texas Brigade; failed to counter Sherman's campaign.

General Henry Sibley

Commanded Texas troops in early battles; faced defeat in the southwest.

Colonel Thomas Green

Confederate officer known for being intoxicated and leading cottonclads during the Battle of Galveston.

General John Magruder

Confederate general responsible for the cottonclad strategy in Galveston.

Lieutenant Richard ‘Dick’ Dowling

Led the Davis Guards to victory at the Battle of Sabine Pass, defeating a much larger Union force.

General Albert Sidney Johnston

The second highest-ranking Confederate officer killed at the Battle of Shiloh.

Francis Lubbock

Pro-Confederacy Texas governor who served as aide to Jefferson Davis after governorship.

Sam Houston

Opposed secession; removed as Texas governor for refusing to pledge loyalty to the Confederacy.

Colonel Sam R.I.P. Ford

Led Confederate victory in the last Civil War battle at Palmito Ranch.

The Davis Guards

Irish unit that defeated Union troops at Sabine Pass.

Unionist

Southern individuals against secession, persecuted for supporting the North; about 1 in 4 Texans identified as Unionists.