The Civil War
The Basics of the U.S. Civil War
• Began 1861, ended in 1865
• Concurrent with Lincoln’s presidency (killed in April 1865)
• North: the Union (the United States), “blue”
• South: the Confederacy (the Confederate States), “gray”
The “Border States” are in light blue.
Why fight?
• “States’ rights”– to what? And why not go to war in 1832?
• “Tyranny of big government”– but CSA government was
bigger than USA
• John S. Preston, South Carolina, 1861: “Slavery is our king!
Slavery is our truth! Slavery is our divine right!”
• Lincoln: we fight to preserve the Union (and worry about
slavery later)
• Many simple reasons
Julia Ward Howe,
“The Battle Hymn of the Republic,”
1861:
“As he died to make men holy, let
us die to make men free.”
Union Advantages
• Population advantage
– North: 22 million
– South: 9 million (almost 4 million were slaves)
• Manufacturing advantage: 90% to 10%
–
–
–
–
17x more textiles
30x more shoes and boots
13x more iron
32x more firearms
• Railroad advantage
– 20,000 miles of track in North compared to 10,000 in South
Union Advantages
• Population advantage
– North: 22 million
– South: 9 million (almost 4 million were slaves)
• Manufacturing advantage: 90% to 10%
–
–
–
–
17x more textiles
30x more shoes and boots
13x more iron
32x more firearms
• Railroad advantage
– 20,000 miles of track in North compared to 10,000 in South
• Enlistment advantage: 2,000,000 vs. 900,000
Was the outcome inevitable?
• The challenge of “Confederate nationalism”
• Class conflict in the Confederacy
– “Twenty Negro Law” (1862)
• Could the Confederacy have won a “war of attrition”?