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Period: to
civil war
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Fort Sumter
April 12 1861 to April 14 1861
President Lincoln sends a ship to resupply the federal fort. Believing the ship had troops and weapons, the Confederacy fired on the fort. Due to the attack on the fort, Lincoln calls up 75,000 troops and some of the border states, such as Virginia, secede. -
First Bull Run
The Confederates pushed back the Union troops while screaming the famous rebel yell. There were 3,000 Union casualties and 1,750 Confederate casualties. As a result of the loss Lincoln removed McDowell from command and replaced him with McClellan. The Confederate president was arguing with Johnston over who to blame about the failure to pursue and crush the enemy after the battle. -
Hampton Roads
This was the first battle between ironclad warships. This battle was part of a Confederate effort to break the Union blockade of Southern ports, including Norfolk and Richmond, Virginia. The battle began a new era in naval warfare. The Union was under command of Lieutenant John Worden. The battle ended on May 9 1862. -
Shiloh
April 6, 1862-April 7, 1862. Confederate generals launched a surprise attack on Grant’s forces, unable to hold their positions and were forced back. Grant was planning to attack but before he could Johnston and his troops attacked first. Both sides lost 10,000 men. The Shiloh national Military Park commemorates the battle. -
Antietam
Generals Robert E. Lee and George McClellan faced off near Antietam creek in Sharpsburg, Maryland. It was the first battle fought on northern soil. The Union had a lot of defeats, but after this victory Abraham Lincoln was able to issue his Emancipation Proclamation. This battle had over 22,000 casualties. This battle ended on September 18, 1862. -
Fredericksburg
Burnside ordered his left wing in an attack on lees right, commanded by Jackson, while the rest of his army attempted to assault Longstreet’s First Corps at Marye’s Heights. Meade and his Union troops broke through Jackson’s line, but Franklin failed to send 50,000 more troops, so Jackson was able to launch a successful counterattack. The Confederate’s artillery was mowing down ranks of attacking Union soldiers. By nightfall the Union suffered 13,000 casualties, Confederates only lost 5,000. -
Chancellorsville
The Battle of Chancellorsville was considered to be General Robert E. Lee's greatest victory during the American Civil War. General Joseph Hooker had numerical superiority, but he did use this advantage so Lee split his troop into two. When Lee attacked again Hooker was forced to retreat across the Rappahannock River. This victory came with a high cost; his trusted general Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson was mortally wounded. This battle ended in May 1863. -
Vicksburg
Union forces waged battle to take the Confederate's Vicksburg, Mississippi. After Vicksburg was captured this divided the Confederacy and proved the Union and General Ulysses S. Grant's military genius. Grant approached from the east across the river with an army of 40,000 troops. Once across the river Grant moved northeast cutting off the Confederate army of General Joseph E. Johnston from joining with the troops at Vicksburg. Vicksburg's commander, General John C. Pemberton attempted to connec -
Gettysburg
July 1, 1863-July 3, 1863. Lee controlling the Confederate troops decided to invade the North. The Union army hears about this and decided to stop the invasion at Gettysburg. After three days Lee’s army lost. This battle and the battle of Vicksburg turned the tide of the Civil war in the Union’s favor. -
Chickamauga
September 19, 1863-September 20, 1863. Bragg’s men repeatedly attacked the Union left, but having Union forces come in they could hold their position. In a stroke of luck Bragg’s men were advancing when the Union reinforcements were shifting troops. Confederates pushed the Union troops into a chaotic retreat. The Confederates lost 20,000 troops while the Union lost 16,000. Bragg’s inaction turned a triumph in the South into a tactical defeat by letting the Union forces get to Chattanooga. -
Wilderness
The Confederate corps were led by Richard Ewell. They clashed near the Orange Turnpike. The thick trees and underbrush made the fighting difficult and fierce. This made the artillery and cavalry ineffective. The first day of battle was inconclusive. The federals were able to attack Lee's right wing. Grant ordered an attack at 4 in the morning. Shortly after 5 a.m. on May 6 the Union Corps led by Winfield Scott Hancock attacked along the Plank Road. The rebels were aided from collapse by the arr -
Spotsylvania
May 8, 1864-May 20, 1864. May 8th through May 10th the Confederates held there ground in Spotsylvania with a defense they called the “Mule Shoe.” On May 12th Union troops attacked the Confederate mule-shoe salient at a section that became known as “Bloody Angle,” capturing most of the Confederates splitting Lee’s army in half. On May 18th a surprise attacked failed costing more Union casualties. On May 21st Grant and his Union troops headed south toward Richmond making lee maneuver his army -
Petersburg
June 9, 1864-April 9 1865. Peterburg was not a battle more or less a campaign. It was a series of military operation in southern Virginia during the final months of the American Civil war. This campain ulimatley had Lee surender to General Grant. -
Sherman's March
This was a very important triumph for General Sherman because Atlanta was the central railroad and industrial center of the Confederacy. These warehouses disturbed food, weapons and other goods. Sherman split his troops into two. Major General George Thomas took 60,000 men to meet the Confederates in Nashville. While Sherman took the remaining 62,000 on an offensive march through Georgia to Savannah. The battle ended in early 1865. -
Lincoln's Assassination
John Wilkes Booth, was born in Maryland in 1838. He remained in the North during the Civil War despite his Confederate opinions. On March 20, 1865, the day of the planned kidnapping, Lincoln ended up not being in the spot where Booth and his six fellow conspirators were waiting. At 10:15, Booth slipped into the box and fired his .44-caliber single-shot derringer into the back of Lincoln's head.A 23-year-old doctor named Charles Leale was in the audience and he ran to the Presidents aid. He foun
