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Period: to
Civil War
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Southern State Secession Dates Continued
Florida- January 10, 1861
Alabama- January 11, 1861
Georgia- January 19, 1861
Louisiana- January 26, 1861
Texas- February 1, 1861
Virginia- April 17, 1861
Arkansas- May 6, 1861
North Carolina- May 20, 1861
Tennessee- June 8, 1861 -
Secession of the Southern States
The election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 was the final straw for many southerners. A total of 11 states seceded from the Union. Four of these (Virginia, Arkansas, North Carolina, and Tennessee) did not secede until after the Battle of Fort Sumter that occurred on April 12, 1861. Five Border Slave States did not secede from the Union were Missouri, Kentucky, West Virginia, Maryland and Delaware. The dates of secession were: South Carolina December 20, 1860, Mississippi January 9, 1861, continued -
Battle of Fort Sumter
The Battle of Fort Sumter was the surrender of of Fort Sumter that started the Civil War. -
Bull Run/ Manassas
The Battle of Bull Run, also known as the Battle of Manassas, was the first major battle of the civil war against the Confederates and the Union. It was fought in Prince William County, Virginia, near the city of Manassas. -
The Battle of Monitor and Merrimack
The Battle of Hampton Roads, often called the Battle of Monitor and Merrimack, was a naval battle of the American Civil War, famous for being the first fight between two ironclad warships, the USS Monitor and the CSS Virginia. -
Battle of Shiloh
The Battle of Shiloh was a major battle fought in Tennessee between the Union and the Confederates. The Union army had camped out deep in Tennessee and were attacked by the Confederates. One the first day the Confederates considerably achieved success but were defeated by the Union on the second day. -
Battle of Antietam
The Battle of Antietam was the first battle of the Civil War to be fought on Northern soil. It was the bloodiest single-day battle in American history. -
Battle of Fredericksburg
The Battle of Fredericksburg was fought between the Confederates and the Union army in Fredericksburg, Virginia. It is known as one of the most one-sided battle of the Civil War because Union casualties were more than twice as heavy as the Confederates. -
Emancipation Proclamation
The proclamation freed all slaves in any state of the Confederate States of America that did not return to Union control. None did return and the actual order, signed and issued January 1, 1863, took effect except in locations where the Union had already mostly regained control. -
Battle of Chancellorsville
The Battle of Chancellorsville was fought from April 30, 1863 to May 6, 1863. Chancellorsville is known as Lee's "perfect battle" because his risky decision to divide his army in the presence of a much larger enemy force resulted in a significant Confederate victory. -
Siege of Vicksburg
The Union army attacked the confederates, driving them into defensive lines surrounding the fortress of Vicksburg, Mississippi. Confederates were defeated by the Union. The Confederate surrender following the Siege of Vicksburg is sometimes considered the turning point of the Civil War. -
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg was fought on July 1-3 in 1863. This battle had the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War and is often known as the turning point of the war. Union's Army of Potomac defeated attacks by Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, ending Lee's invasion of the north. -
The Battle of Little Roundtop
Little Round Top is the smaller of two rocky hills south of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. It was the site of an unsuccessful attack by Confederate troops against the Union on July 2, 1863, the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg. -
Gettysburg Address
The Gettysburg Address was one of the best known speeches in United States History . It was delivered by Abraham Lincoln buring the American Civil War at the dedication of the Soldier's National Cemetery in Gettysburg. It was said four and a half months after the Union Armies defeated the confederacy at the Battle of Gettysburg. -
Grant Takes Command
On March 9, 1864, President Lincoln promoted U.S. Grant to the newly revived rank of Lieutenant General and on March 12 was made General in Chief of the Armies of the United States. -
The re-election of Abraham Lincoln
In the United States Presidential election of 1864, the incumbent, Abraham Lincoln was re-elected as president. Lincoln ran under the National Union banner against his former top Civil War general, George B. McClellan. The 1864 election occurred during the Civil War; though only votes in the Union states counted, elections were held in Louisiana and Tennessee, with Lincoln carrying both. -
Sherman's March to the Sea
Sherman's March to the Sea, also known as the Savannah Campaign, was conducted around Georgia during December 1864 by Maj. Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman of the Union Army in the American Civil War. The campaign began with Sherman's troops leaving the city of Atlanta, Georgia and ended with the capture of the port of Savannah on December 21. It inflicted significant damage, particularly to industry and infrastructure (per the doctrine of total war). -
Surrender at Appomattox Courthouse
The Battle of Appomattox Court House, fought on April 9, 1865, was the final engagement of General Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army before it surrendered to the Union Army under Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, and one of the last battles of the American Civil War. Lee's final stand was at Appomattox Court House, where he launched an attack to break through the Union force to his front, but after realizing the cavalry was backed up by two corps of Union infantry, he had no choice but to surrender. -
Abraham Lincoln Election and Assassination
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The 13th Amendment
The Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution officially abolished and continues to prohibit slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime. It was adopted on December 6, 1865. President Lincoln was concerned that the Emancipation Proclamation, which outlawed slavery in the ten Confederate states still in rebellion in 1863, would be seen as a temporary war measure, since it was based on his war powers and did not abolish slavery in the border states.
