SECESSION AND CIVIL WAR
AIM:
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
DO NOW:

Should individual states have the right to leave the Union? Why or why not?
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________

If the federal government does not allow a state to secede, does that make the federal
government any different from a monarchy? Why or why not?
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
SOUTH CAROLINA’S DECLARATION OF CAUSES AND SECESSION (DECEMBER 24, 1860)
The State of South Carolina having resumed her separate and equal place among nations, deems it
due to herself, to the remaining United States of America, and to the nations of the world, that she
should declare the immediate causes which had led to this act…
We assert that fourteen of the States have deliberately refused for years past to fulfill their constitutional
obligations….The States of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode
Island, New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Iowa, have enacted laws
which either nullify the acts of Congress (the Fugitive Slave Act), or render useless any attempt to
execute them….The States of Ohio and Iowa have refused to surrender to justice fugitives charged with
murder, and with inciting servile insurrection in the States of Virginia. Thus the constitutional compact
has been deliberately broken and disregarded by the non-slaveholding States; and the consequence
follows that South Carolina is released from her obligation (to remain in the Union)….
A geographical line has been drawn across the Union, and all the States north of that line have united
in the election of a man to the high office of the President of the United States whose opinions and
purposes are hostile to Slavery.

According to the document, what actions by northern states contributed to South
Carolina’s decision to secede?

What is the “insurrection in the States of Virginia” referred to in the document?

Why did South Carolina regard Lincoln’s election as a threatening development?
SECESSION ADVERTISEMENT
It is January of 1861. Nearly two weeks ago, South Carolina seceded
from the Union and created their own independent nation. You are a
citizen of Mississippi. What should your state do? Should you secede
or stay in the Union? Create a poster that answers the questions
above. Remember, you are trying to convince people to agree with you
so your poster must be persuasive. Be sure to include several reasons
why you chose the way you did and several images that represent your
argument.
THINK ABOUT IT!

What should President Buchanan do about the seceding states? (Remember he is still
president until March 1861)
LINCOLN AS PRESIDENT
By the time of his inauguration, seven states of the Lower
South had already seceded from the Union. In his first
inaugural address on March 4, 1861, President Lincoln
spoke directly to the seceded Southern states.
“Apprehension seems to exist among the
people of the Southern States that by the
accession of a Republican Administration
their property and their peace and personal
security are to be endangered. … I have no
purpose, directly or indirectly, to interfere with the institution of slavery in the States where it
exists. I believe I have no lawful right to do so, and I have no inclination to do so. …
I hold that in contemplation of universal law and of the Constitution the Union of these States is
perpetual. …No government proper ever had a provision…for its own termination. Continue to
execute all the express provisions of our National Constitution, and the Union will endure
forever, it being impossible to destroy it except by some action not provided for in the instrument
itself. …
In your hands, my dissatisfied fellow-countrymen, and not in mine, is the momentous issue of
civil war. The Government will not assail you. You can have no conflict without being yourselves
the aggressors. You have no oath registered in heaven to destroy the Government, while I shall
have the most solemn one to ‘preserve, protect, and defend it.’”
 What is Lincoln’s position on slavery?


How did Lincoln define the purpose of the oncoming civil war?
Should Lincoln use force to bring the southern states back into the Union? Why or why
not?
FORT SUMTER
Just before Lincoln was inaugurated, the Confederacy began seizing all federal property in their states,
including arsenals and forts. One of the few still controlled by the Union was Fort Sumter in Charleston.
In April, Lincoln announced that he would resupply the fort. Confederate President Jefferson Davis now
faced a dilemma. Leaving federal troops in the South’s most vital harbor was unacceptable if the
Confederacy was to be an independent nation. Firing on the supply ship, however, would undoubtedly
lead to war with the United States. Davis decided to capture Fort Sumter before the supply ship
arrived. On April 12, 1861, Confederate forces began attacking the fort. After 33 hours of
bombardment, the fort was wrecked and finally surrendered. The Civil War had begun. As a result,
President Lincoln called for volunteers to regain federal property and force the South to return to the
Union. In response, four more Upper South states seceded from the Union and joined the newly
established Confederate States of America (CSA).

Why did Lincoln wait for the South to attack?

Can the use of force preserve a nation? Why or why not?

Who should be blamed for the outbreak of Civil War – the northern or southern states?

If the Mexican-American War had not happened, would the Civil War have occurred?
CAUSES OF THE CIVIL WAR
IMMEDIATE
LONG TERM
WRAP IT UP

Always—in 1787, 1820, 1833, and 1850—the North and South had been able to
compromise over their differences. Why not in 1861?
DAY TWO DO NOW:
…We feel that our cause is just and holy; we protest solemnly in the face of mankind that we desire
peace at any sacrifice save that of honor and independence; we seek no conquest, no aggrandizement,
no concession of any kind from the States with which we were lately confederated; all we ask is to be
let alone; that those who never held power over us shall not now attempt our subjugation by arms. This
we will, this we must, resist to the direst extremity. The moment that this pretension is abandoned the
sword will drop from our grasp, and we shall be ready to enter into treaties of amity and commerce that
cannot but be mutually beneficial. So long as this pretension is maintained, with a firm reliance on that
Divine Power which covers with its protection the just cause, we will continue to struggle for our
inherent right to freedom, independence, and self-government. …
-Jefferson Davis, Confederate President
Message to the Confederate Congress, April 29, 1861

How does Davis explain the purpose of the war from the point of view of the
Confederacy?
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
NORTH (BLUE) V. SOUTH (GREY)
Directions: Analyze the following PowerPoint slides that focus on the advantages of the North and the
South, and complete the chart below. Consider the following question:
What does this data suggest about the eventual outcome of the war?
MILITARY ADVANTAGES
Union
WAR AIMS
Confederacy
The Aims of the South
“We have vainly endeavored to secure tranquility and obtain respect for the rights to which we were
entitled….If…the integrity of our territory and jurisdiction (legal authority) be assailed (attacked), it will
but remain for us with firm resolve to appeal to arms.”
– Jefferson Davis (2/18/1861)
The Aims of the North
“This war is not waged upon our part in any spirit of oppression, nor for any purpose of conquest or
subjugation, nor purpose of overthrowing or interfering with the rights or established institutions of those
(seceding) states, but to defend and maintain the supremacy of the Constitution and to preserve the
Union.”
–Crittenden Resolution (7/25/1861)

How did the war aims of each side reflect their quarrel?
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
THE CIVIL WAR - THE BATTLE OF 1ST BULL RUN (1:48-14:45)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0PlApbiTGI

Why did both sides want war?

How does the method of naming each battle show the sectional differences of the time?

Why was war attractive to young American men?
JOHNNY IS MY DARLING (1:26)
DATE: _____________
Chorus:
Johnny is my darling, my darling, my darling,
Johnny is my darling, the Union volunteer.
'Twas on a sunny morning,
The brightest of the year,
When Johnny came to my town,
A Union volunteer.
Chorus
As he came marching up the street,
The bands played loud and clear;
And everyone came out to greet
The Union volunteer.
Chorus
With proudly waving starry flags
and hearts that knew no fear;
He came to fight for freedom's rights,
A Union volunteer.
Chorus:
But though he's gone to glory win,
And I left lonely here,
He'll soon return to me again
As Cupid's volunteer.
Chorus

Who would listen to this song?

What three words describe the mood of the song?

What do you think was the purpose of this song?
THE CIVIL WAR - THE BATTLE OF 1ST BULL RUN (23:08 -30:58)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0PlApbiTGI

Why did civilians travel from Washington to the battlefield at Manassas?

How did the Battle of 1st Bull Run change soldiers’ and the nation’s perception of the
war?

How did technology make the Civil War different from all other wars fought before it?
TENTING TONIGHT (5:20)
DATE: _____________
We're tenting tonight on the old campground,
Give us a song to cheer
Our weary hearts, a song of home
And friends we love so dear.
We've been tenting tonight on the old campground,
Thinking of days gone by,
Of the loved ones at home that gave us the
hand,
And the tear that said, "Good-bye!"
CHORUS:
Many are the hearts that are weary tonight,
Wishing for the war to cease;
Many are the hearts looking for the right
To see the dawn of peace.
Tenting tonight, tenting tonight,
Tenting on the old camp ground.
We've been tenting tonight on the old campground,
Thinking of days gone by,
Of the loved ones at home that gave us the
hand,
And the tear that said, "Good-bye!"
We've been fighting today on the old campground,
Many are lying near;
Some are dead, and some are dying,
Many are in tears.
We are tired of war on the old camp-ground;
Many are the dead and gone
Of the brave and true who've left their homes;
Others been wounded long

What three words best describe the mood of the song?

How is this song different from the previous song?

What do you think was the purpose of this song?