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Civil War Begins
Confederate forces under General P.G.T. Beauregard bombard Major Robert Anderson and his Union soldiers at Fort Sumter in Charleston, South Carolina. The Civil War officially begins. -
Period: to
Civil War
Information about important events of the Civil War. -
Union Surrender at Ft. Sumter
RANGEEND_SUMTER Major Robert Anderson surrenders Fort Sumter to Confederate forces after two days of bombardment. -
First Battle of Bull Run
The First Battle of Bull Run pits Union General Irvin McDowell against the new Confederate army. McDowell is defeated causing a panicked retreat back to Washington, which is about forty miles away. The withdrawal is hampered by the large numbers of spectators who are there to see the battle. -
Second Battle of Bull Run
The Second Battle of Bull Run is a resounding victory for Confederate General Stonewall Jackson. Union General John Pope is blamed for the loss and is relieved of his duties after the battle. -
Monitor vs. Merrimack
The Confederate ironclad USS Merrimack battles the Union ironclad USS Monitor in Chesapeake Bay. The battle is a draw but it makes wooden ships obsolete and ushers in the era of steel warships, changing naval warfare forever. -
Lee Surrenders
General Robert E. Lee surrenders to General Ulysses S. Grant in a farmhouse in the town of Appomattox Court House, Virginia. The war is over.