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Georgia state troops seize Fort Pulaski
The Third System was the name applied to a string of coastal forts from the Florida Keys to Maine intended to defend the shores of the United States against hostile invaders. This defensive parameter was built in response to the English attack on Washington D. C. and Baltimore, Maryland during the War of 1812. More than 200 forts were called for in the original plan; of these 30 were actually built. Fort Pulaski was the last of the Third System forts to be constructed. -
Florida secedes from the union
Conflicts over the issue of slavery and its impact on the South's economy, in addition to other reasons, led to a split in the Union. Florida became one of the six original Southern states to form the Confederate States of America; eventually, 11 states would leave the Union. -
Texas secedes from the Union
Texas becomes the seventh state to secede from the Union when a state convention votes 166 to 8 in favor of the measure. The ascendant Republican Party made many Texans uneasy about continuing in the Union. After Abraham Lincoln’s election to the presidency in November 1860, pressure mounted on Houston to call a convention so that Texas could consider secession. -
Robert E. Lee becomes commader of Virginia forces
Robert Edward Lee was an American soldier known for commanding the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War from 1862 until his surrender in 1865. Lee was a top graduate of the United States Military Academy and an exceptional officer and military engineer in the United States Army for 32 years. -
Period: to
Civil War
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Battle of Mill Springs
The Confederates achieved early success, but Union resistance rallied and Zollicoffer was killed. A second Confederate attack was repulsed. Union counterattacks on the Confederate right and left were successful, forcing them from the field in a retreat that ended in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Mill Springs was the first significant Union victory of the war -
Naval Attack on Charleston, S.C
The ships, under command of Rear Admiral Samuel Francis Du Pont, attacked the Confederate defenses near the entrance to Charleston Harbor. Navy Department officials in Washington hoped for a stunning success that would validate a new form of warfare, with armored warships mounting heavy guns reducing traditional forts. -
Gettysburg
Over 165,000 soldiers participate in the largest battle in the Western Hemisphere. After three days of fighting, Lee retreats, leaving 4,000 dead Confederates. Total casualties: 23,000 Union, 28,000 Confederates. -
First attack on Petersburg, VA
On June 15, the first day of the Battle of Petersburg, some 10,000 Union troops under General William F. Smith moved against the Confederate defenders of Petersburg, made up of only a few thousand armed old men and boys commanded by General P.G.T. Beauregard. -
Battle of Fisher's Hill, VA
His right rested on the North Branch of the Shenandoah River. The left flank of his infantry was on Fisher's Hill. Confederate cavalry was expected to hold the ground from there to Little North Mountain. The battle began at 4 a.m
