Bombardment of Fort Sumter
April 1861
• Lincoln sent federal
troops to SC to defend
the fort
• His calling of troops
meant war!
• Result: The Federal
fort (now on
Confederate land) fell
to the South
The Battle of Bull Run
(Manassas)
1st Battle of Bull Run (Manassas)
July 1861
•1st major battle of the Civil War ended in a
victory for the Confederacy.
•It became known as the First Battle of Bull
Run because the following year a battle
occurred at almost exactly the same site.
•Approximately 35,000 troops were involved
on each side.
•The Union suffered about 2,900 casualties,
•Confederate casualties were fewer than 2,000.
•Union realized this was going to be a hardfought war
Battle of Antietam
September 1862
THE SOUTH ATTACKS!
• The Confederate forces invaded the North.
• The Union army learned of General Lee’s strategy.
• the two armies met at Antietam Creek near
Sharpsburg, Maryland.
• The Union forces had more than 75,000 troops, with
nearly 25,000 in reserve. The Confederate forces
numbered about 40,000.
• By the day’s end, the Union casualties numbered
more than 12,000. The Confederate casualties were
nearly 14,000, more than a third of the entire army.
• The Battle of Antietam became the bloodiest day of
the Civil War.
“Bloody Lane” at Antietam
Emancipation Proclamation
January 1863
• Though the Battle of Antietam was a tie, it was not a major Union
defeat
• Therefore, Antietam gave Lincoln the confidence to issue the
Emancipation
• On January 1, 1863, President Lincoln issued the final
Emancipation Proclamation.
• The Emancipation Proclamation freed all of the slaves in
states under Confederate control.
• Made the abolition of slavery a Northern war goal
• It promised that enslaved people would be free when the
North won the war.
• Significant reaction came from Europe
– Europeans felt very strongly about ending slavery
– The Proclamation ended any chance that French and British
would aid the Confederates.
African-Americans Join the Union Army
• Early in the war, General Butler said that slaves
captured by the Union army were contraband, property
of one side seized by the other.
• The South claimed slaves were property, therefore the
Union could consider them contraband, take
ownership, and give them their freedom.
• Congress authorized Lincoln to accept African
Americans into the military
• By 1865, nearly 180,000 African Americans had
enlisted in the Union army.
• Many African Americans viewed the chance to fight
against slavery as a milestone in their history.
Battle of Gettysburg
July 1863
• Turning point of the War
• Decisive Union Victory
• Confederate General Pickett made a gutsy move
to charge the Union line
• Confederates lost 1/3 of their troops
• Why is it significant? Major Union victory on
Union soil and after Gettysburg, there were no
more major Confederate victories!
• Europe was watching! What do you think I mean
by that?
Battlefield at Gettysburg
Confederate and Union
movement: Battle of
Gettysburg
Gettysburg Address
November 1863
• According to Lincoln’s address:
– The War’s goal was to preserve a country
whose main dedication is “all men are created
equal”
– America was ONE nation; not a collection of
sovereign states
– Echoes of Declaration of Independence,
especially with the opening phrase