Section 17.3: The North Wins
Today’s Essential Question: What were the
major events that led to the Union victory?
What We Already Know
Lincoln had a difficult time finding an effective
general to command the Union armies.
What We Already Know
Most battles in the
Eastern Theater had
resulted in Confederate
victories.
What We Already Know
Lee’s first invasion of the North
was stopped by McClellan’s Union
forces at Antietam.
The Road to Gettysburg
Battle of Antietam (September 1862) –
McClellan stopped Lee’s Northern invasion,
but failed to finish off Lee’s army, which
retreated safely to Virginia.
The Road to Gettysburg
• Lincoln fired McClellan
for his failure to pursue
Lee after Antietam.
• He replaced him with
Ambrose Burnside, but
Burnside also proved to
be a disappointment.
The Battle of Fredericksburg,
Virginia (December, 1862)
Burnside’s men had to build
pontoon bridges to cross the
Rappahannock River before they
could attack Confederate troops in
the town.
Burnside had to send landing parties over in boats
during the night to drive off sharpshooters that were
firing at the bridge builders.
The Battle of Fredericksburg
Burnside ordered
sixteen separate
charges by his men to
attack the Confederate
troops positioned on
the high ground above
the river.
The Confederates fought from trenches and a stone
wall at the top of a hill overlooking the river, and
poured fire down on the advancing Union soldiers.
• The Union suffered 12,600 killed or wounded.
• Lincoln replaced Burnside with General Joseph
Hooker.
The Battle of Chancellorsville, Virginia
(May, 1863)
With half as many men as Hooker, Lee still
managed to cut the Union forces to pieces.
The Battle of Chancellorsville, Virginia
(May, 1863)
• As General “Stonewall”
Jackson returned from a
patrol on May 2,
Confederate sentries
thought he was a Union
soldier and shot him in
the left arm.
• A surgeon amputated
the arm, but Jackson
caught pneumonia and
died a week later.
The Battle of Chancellorsville, Virginia
(May, 1863)
When he learned of Jackson’s wounds and
amputation, Lee remarked, “He has lost his
left arm, but I have lost my right.”
Lee’s Second Invasion of the
North
• Lee hoped that a
Confederate victory in
Union territory would fuel
Northern discontent with
the war and bring calls for
peace.
• He also hoped a Southern
victory would lead
European nations to give
diplomatic recognition and
aid to the Confederacy.
The Battle of Gettysburg (July 1-3)
• Lee crossed into southern Pennsylvania. He
entered Gettysburg looking for shoes for his men,
but ran into Union troops.
• The fighting would rage for three days, with
90,000 Union troops commanded by General
George Meade facing 75,000 Confederates led by
Lee.
Gettysburg’s Unique
Geographic Features
• Cemetery Ridge
• Little Round Top
• Devil’s Den
• Seminary Ridge
July 1 – Lee’s men entered Gettysburg,
but were slowed by Union cavalry.
Throughout the day, Lee’s forces poured
into Gettysburg, as did Union troops
from the south.
By day’s end, Lee’s troops held the
town, while Union troops were driven
back to positions south of Gettysburg
on a piece of high ground called
Cemetery Ridge.
July 2 – Confederates attacked Union
positions and tried to flank
them at Little Round Top.
Heroic efforts by Union soldiers
from Maine kept Lee’s men from
gaining the advantage on Meade’s
position along Cemetery Ridge.
July 3 – Pickett’s Charge
Lee ordered
General
George Pickett
to mount a
direct attack on
the middle of
the Union line.
July 3 – Pickett’s Charge
13,000 rebel troops charged up the ridge into
heavy Union fire.
July 3 – Pickett’s Charge
Pickett’s men were torn to pieces by Union soldiers
who chanted, “Fredericksburg, Fredericksburg !”
July 3 – Pickett’s Charge
The Confederates retreated, but again the Union
general Meade failed to pursue Lee’s army.
The Union Victory at
Gettysburg
• Lee’s hopes for a Confederate victory in
the North were crushed.
• The North had lost 23,000 men, but over
one-third of Lee’s army, 28,000 men, lay
dead or wounded.
The Union Victory at
Gettysburg
• Lee led his army back to Virginia
and never again invaded the North.
• Britain gave up all thought of
supporting the South.
Get your whiteboards
and markers ready!
34. Why the Battle of Gettysburg
considered an important
turning point in the Civil War?
Choose all that are true!
34. Why the Battle of Gettysburg
considered an important
turning point in the Civil War?
A. It ended Lee's second invasion of the North.
B. Lee lost over one-third of his army.
C. The Union victory helped Lincoln win
reelection in 1864.
D. It revealed Grant as a Union general who
could win tough victories.
E. The defeat ended Southern hopes of
European diplomatic recognition and aid.
Choose all that are true!
The Gettysburg Address
On November
19, 1863,
President
Lincoln spoke
at the
dedication of
a cemetery in
Gettysburg
for the 3,500
soldiers
buried there.
The Gettysburg Address
• His speech was short,
and few who heard it
were impressed.
Lincoln himself called
it “a flat failure.”
• Even so, the Gettys–
burg Address has
since been recognized
as one of the greatest
speeches of all time.
The Gettysburg Address
• In it, Lincoln declared that the nation was
founded on “the proposition that all men
are created equal.”
• He ended with a plea to continue the fight
for democracy so that “government of the
people, by the people, for the people shall
not perish from the earth.”
Get your whiteboards
and markers ready!
35. Which of Jefferson’s ‘self-evident
truths’ did Lincoln mention in his
Gettysburg Address?
A. All men are created equal.
B. All men are given unalienable rights
by their Creator.
C. Governments are created to protect
the rights of the people.
D. Life, liberty and the pursuit of
happiness are some of the people's
rights.
The Fall of Vicksburg
(July 4, 1863)
Vicksburg was the last major Confederate
stronghold on the Mississippi River.
The city's geographical location on the
high bluffs overlooking a hairpin turn in
the river made it ideal for defense.
The approach from the east was
rugged and well-guarded.
The Confederates had constructed a line of defense
consisting of nine major forts connected by a
continuous line of trenches and rifle pits.
The line formed a huge semicircle around
Vicksburg, manned by a garrison of 30,000 men.
Grant’s Strategy
By late spring 1863, Grant had spent
months unsuccessfully attacking the
city from the east.
Grant’s Strategy
• Grant decided to march
the Union army down
the west side of the
river, and cross back
over to the area south
of Vicksburg.
• With grim determina–
tion, Grant ordered his
men to cut a road
through the thick forest
and swamp on the west
side of the river.
Grant’s Strategy
• As Grant's infantrymen slogged their way south,
the Union fleet ran by the guns at Vicksburg
under the cover of darkness.
• The fleet withstood the punishing fire that poured
forth from Confederate cannon with the loss of
only one ship.
• By morning, the Union fleet was below Vicksburg.
In a few days, Grant used
the Union ships to land
22,000 men on the east
bank of the river and
began moving them north
to capture Vicksburg.
Grant’s Strategy
After burning Mississippi’s capital city of
Jackson, Grant marched to Vicksburg and
drove the Confederate army commanded by
General John C. Pemberton back into the city.
The Siege
Throughout the
month of May and
into June, Union
soldiers slowly
extended their lines
to the left and right
until they encircled
Vicksburg.
• The Confederates inside Vicksburg were
cut off from all supplies, but the citizens
still refused to surrender.
• Disease and starvation began to spread
rapidly through the city as the summer
dragged on and the siege continued.
The Siege
Finally, on the morning of July 4, 1863, the
Confederates surrendered, turned over their
weapons and other equipment, and were
allowed to return home.
The Importance of Vicksburg
• Since New Orleans had been taken
the previous spring, the Union
now had total control over the
Mississippi River, and the South
was split in two.
• The Anaconda Plan was now
almost complete.
• The tide of war turned in favor of
the North.
In Grant, Lincoln found a man who was willing
to fight no matter how great the odds.
Grant as Union Commander
• March 1864 – Lincoln named General Grant
commander of all the Union armies.
• Grant’s plan to defeat
the Confederacy – His
men would pursue
Lee’s army in Virginia,
while Union forces
under General William
Tecumseh Sherman
pushed through the
Deep South to the
Atlantic coast, then
turn north and join
Grant’s attack against
Lee.
Get your whiteboards
and markers ready!
36. Why was Northern success in
the Siege of Vicksburg important?
Choose all that are true!
36. Why was Northern success in
the Siege of Vicksburg important?
A. The Confederacy was cut in two.
B. Grant was recognized as a general
who could win tough victories.
C. The Confederacy’s Anaconda Plan
was almost complete.
D. Lee finally admitted defeat and
surrendered to Grant.
E. The Union gained control of the
Mississippi River.
Choose all that are true!
Sherman’s Total War
• September 1864 –
Sherman took Atlanta,
then set out on a march to
the sea, cutting a path of
destruction up to 60 miles
wide and 300 miles long
through Georgia.
• Total war: not only against
enemy troops, but against
everything that supports
the enemy
Sherman’s Total War
His troops tore up rail lines,
destroyed crops, and burned
and looted towns.
Despite a desperate defense led by
Confederate general Joe Johnston, the city
of Atlanta finally fell to Sherman’s siege.
Sherman’s triumph in Atlanta
would be especially important
for President Lincoln.
Get your whiteboards
and markers ready!
Who was William Tecumseh
Sherman?
A. Confederate general
B. Led troops on the
“March to the Sea”
C. Replaced Grant after
Vicksburg
D. Captured Atlanta
E. Waged total war
against civilians
Choose all that
describe Sherman!
37. How did General William T.
Sherman wage total war against the
South during his March to the Sea?
Choose all that are true!
37. How did General William T.
Sherman wage total war against the
South during his March to the Sea?
A. His men lived off the land, taking anything they
wanted from Confederate civilians' homes.
B. He burned farms and towns, and destroyed
Southern railroads wherever he went.
C. He laid siege to Petersburg, but failed to take it.
D. He captured cities like Atlanta and Savannah.
E. He set up new governments in defeated
Confederate cities.
Choose all that are true!
Lincoln’s Re-election
• In 1864, the president was running for
reelection, but many Northerners were
tired of war.
• Democrats nominated George McClellan,
who ran on an antiwar platform.
Lincoln’s Re-election
• Because of Sherman’s
successful march
through the South,
Northerners could
sense a Union victory
could become a reality.
• Lincoln won with 55
percent of the popular
vote in the November
election.
Lincoln’s Second Inaugural
Address
Lincoln hoped for a
speedy end to the
war, and in his
speech, he spoke of
his desire for the
nation to make it
easier for the South to
surrender and return
to the Union.
Lincoln’s Second Inaugural
Address
“With malice towards
none; with charity for all; .
. . let us strive on to finish
the work we are in; to
bind up the nation’s
wounds; . . . to do all
which may achieve and
cherish a just, and a
lasting peace.”
Get your whiteboards
and markers ready!
38. Why were Sherman’s
victories important for Lincoln?
38. Why were Sherman’s
victories important for Lincoln?
A. They ended Lee's second invasion of
the North.
B. They ended Southern hopes of
European diplomatic recognition and
foreign aid.
C. They proved that Sherman was the
general Lincoln needed.
D. They helped him win reelection in 1864.
39. In his Second Inaugural Address,
what message did Lincoln send about
the next task facing the nation?
39. In his Second Inaugural Address,
what message did Lincoln send about
the next task facing the nation?
A. He called on the nation to utterly destroy
the Southern economy.
B. He called on the nation to finish the war
and forgive the South for causing it.
C. He called on the nation to make the
Southern states pay for their decision to
secede.
D. He called on the nation to make all the
sacrifices necessary to win the war.
Grant’s Virginia Campaign
Since May
1864, Grant
and his
generals had
been fighting
battle after
battle, all the
while moving
south toward
Richmond.
Grant’s Virginia Campaign
• In the Battle of the
Wilderness (May,
1864) Union and
Confederate forces
fought in a tangle of
trees and brush so
thick that they could
barely see each other.
• Fire broke out during
the battle, and some
of the wounded
burned to death.
• Grant lost over 17,000
men, but pushed on.
Grant’s Virginia Campaign
Grant’s strategy involved pressing Lee without
letting up, forcing him to use up men and supplies.
At the Battle of Cold Harbor (June, 1864),
the union lost 7,000 casualties, most in the
first few minutes of battle.
Grant’s Virginia Campaign
• Grant’s forces continued to press on toward
Richmond, with Lee’s troops trying to retreat as
slowly as possible.
• But while Grant could always call for fresh
supplies and reinforcements, every skirmish
weakened Lee’s ability to continue fighting.
Petersburg (June, 1864)
• Unable to break through the rebel defenses,
the Union forces dug trenches and settled in
for a ten-month siege at Petersburg, outside
Richmond.
• With Grant tightening his noose around
Richmond, Lee pulled out eventually, and
the city fell on April 3, 1865.
Surrender at Appomattox
• Lee wanted to keep
fighting, but he knew
that his situation
was hopeless.
• He sent a message
to General Grant that
he was ready to
surrender.
Surrender at Appomattox
On April 9, 1865, Lee and
Grant met in the small
Virginia town of
Appomattox Court House
to arrange the surrender.
Surrender at Appomattox
• Grant offered generous terms of surrender.
• After giving up their arms, Lee’s men could return
home with their private possessions and horses.
Surrender at Appomattox
• Grant gave food to the Confederate soldiers.
• After four long years, the Civil War was
coming to a close.
Get your whiteboards
and markers ready!
40. How did Grant force Lee to
surrender?
40. How did Grant force Lee to
surrender?
A. He cut off all of Lee’s possible routes
of retreat from Antietam.
B. He surrounded Lee at Vicksburg.
C. He relentlessly attacked Lee's forces
without letting up.
D. He threatened to execute Confederate
prisoners of war.
41. How did Grant treat Confederate
soldiers after the surrender at
Appomattox Court House?
Choose all that are true!
41. How did Grant treat Confederate
soldiers after the surrender at
Appomattox Court House?
A. He held Confederate officers as
prisoners of war.
B. He provided the rebel troops with food.
C. He allowed Lee's men to keep their mules
and horses.
D. He let the Confederate troops return to
their homes.
E. He exchanged them for Union soldiers
captured by other Confederate forces.
Choose all that are true!