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States secede
After South Carolina secedes (Dec. 20, 1860), Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas follow, forming the Confederate States of America, with Jefferson Davis as president. -
War begins
War begins as Confederates fire on Fort Sumter. -
Lincoln calls for help
Lincoln calls for 75,000 volunteers. Southern ports blockaded by superior Union naval forces. Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina secede to complete 11-state Confederacy. Union army advancing on Richmond repulsed at first Battle of Bull Run (Manassas). -
First major victory
General Grant wins first important Union victory in West, at Fort Donelson; Nashville falls. -
Lincoln replaces general
Lincoln removes McClellan for lack of aggressiveness. He was replaced with Ambrose Burnside. -
Confederate General is killed
Lee defeats Hooker at Chancellorsville; “Stonewall” Jackson, Confederate general, dies. -
Confederate invasion
Confederate invasion of Pennsylvania stopped at Gettysburg by George Meade—Lee loses 20,000 men—the greatest battle of the war. -
Turning point
The Union victory at Vicksburg mark the war's turning point. Union general George H. Thomas, the “Rock of Chickamauga,” holds Bragg's forces on Georgia-Tennessee border. -
Wilderness campaign
In the Wilderness campaign, Grant forces Lee's Army of Northern Virginia back toward Richmond. -
Sherman's march to the sea
Sherman's Atlanta campaign and “march to the sea”. Sherman's march to the sea was disasteras to the Confederates. -
End of the Civil War
On April 9, Lee surrenders to Grant at Appomattox. His surrender marked the end of the war.
