The American
Civil War –
Beginnings
Presidential election of 1860
 In 1860, Stephan Douglas and Abraham
Lincoln ran against each other again, this
time for president.
 Lincoln had become well known from their
debates about slavery.
 This time, Lincoln won, becoming the 16th
president.
The RED states are the ones that elected Lincoln.
Southern States secede
 Lincoln received no support in the South,
because they believed Lincoln wanted to end
slavery. Since there were so many more people in
the North, he won the election anyway.
 As soon as Lincoln won the election, the South
started to secede. This means the South split from
the Union. They no longer wanted to be part of
the United States.
 Supporters of secession based their arguments on
the idea of states’ rights. They had voluntarily
joined the union, so they could leave when they
wanted.
Confederate States of America
 On December 20, 1860, South
Carolina became the first state
to secede. They were followed
by Mississippi, Florida,
Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana,
and Texas.
 The eleven states that had
seceded became the
Confederate States of America.
 They named Jefferson Davis as
president.
 They wrote a new Constitution
which made slavery legal.
Civil War
 A civil war is a war between people of the
same country.
 There have been many civil wars, but one
of the worst happened in America.
 The American Civil War was fought to
keep the South from leaving the Union.
 Slavery was the major issue that separated
the North from the South.
The Civil War began at Fort Sumter
on
April 12, 1861.
 Fort Sumter was a Union fort in the South,
and the Union had a hard time defending it.
They surrendered 34 hours later.
 There were 23 states in the Union (North)
at the beginning of the war.
 There were 11 states in the Confederacy
(South) at the beginning of the war.
Union and Confederate states
North’s Advantages
The North had some major advantages:
 They had many more people
 They had many more factories, which
could be used to make weapons.
 The Union also had many more miles of
railroad tracks.
South’s Advantages:
 The South’s main advantage was that they
were fighting at home.
 They were closer to their supplies.
 They would fight harder because they were
protecting their homes.
 Southern soldiers were better equipped
with the skills necessary to survive a war.
Abraham Lincoln
 The president of the
Union was Abraham
Lincoln, who had
been elected in 1860.
Jefferson Davis
 The president of the
new Confederate
States of America, or
the Confederacy, was
Jefferson Davis.
Battle of Bull Run
 One of the first battles of the war was the Battle
of Bull Run.
 The North realized after this battle that the war
would not be easy and would not be over soon, as
they originally thought.
New Weapons
Many new weapons were used during the
Civil War.
 One of these weapons was an ironclad
ship. An ironclad ship was a ship with iron
plates on it to protect it from cannon fire.
Other new weapons:
 Deadlier cannons and
bullets
 Rifles that were more
accurate
Battle of Antietam
 The first time the Confederacy invaded
Northern territory was the Battle of
Antietam. They were led by Gen. Robert
E. Lee
 It began on Sept. 17, 1862 and lasted 12
hours.
 It was the bloodiest battle day in United
States history. 23,000 men lost their lives
that day.
 The Union army stopped the Confederate
army. This “victory” by the Union gave
President Lincoln the chance to announce
the abolition of slavery in the South.
Battle at Antietam
Emancipation Proclamation
 On January 1, 1863, Pres.
Lincoln announced the
Emancipation
Proclamation. It declared
that all slaves should be
set free in the
Confederacy.
 It also allowed blacks to
serve in the Union army
and navy.
 The South ignored the
Emancipation
Proclamation, but it did
change the focus of the
war to the issue of
slavery.
Women in the Civil War
 Women on both sides
worked during the
war. Many became
nurses. The most
famous nurse from
the Union was Clara
Barton.
 She also helped
organize the
American Red Cross.
Battle of Gettysburg
 The Battle of Gettysburg
was one of the bloodiest
battles of the war.
 It took place from July13, 1863.
 97,000 Union soldiers
fought 75,000
Confederate soldiers.
 More than 50,000 men
were killed or wounded in
the battle.
 The Union won the Battle of Gettysburg.
 Many felt it was a turning point in the war.
 Many Northerners started supporting the army
after this by lending them money to help pay for
the war.
 This was called a war bond.
Gettysburg Address
 Several months after the Battle of
Gettysburg, President Lincoln went to the
battlefield to dedicate a cemetery in honor
of all those who had died.
 Lincoln spoke for two minutes, but his
speech became very famous.
 It is called “The Gettysburg Address”.
Other Important Dates:
• In March of 1864, Pres. Lincoln appointed Gen.
Ulysses S. Grant to lead the Union Army.
• On Nov. 6 1864, President Lincoln was reelected as
president of the Union.
• After several more battles, Confederate General
Robert E. Lee surrendered to Union General Ulysses
S. Grant on April 9, 1865. The war was officially
over.
• On April 14, 1865, while enjoying a night at the
theater with his wife, Abraham Lincoln was shot by
John Wilkes Booth. He died at 7:22 a.m. the next
day.
• On Dec. 6, 1865, the 13th Amendment to the
Constitution was ratified. This amendment abolished
(ended) slavery.