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Events leading to the civil war
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The compromise of 1850
When California sought approval to enter the Union as a free state in 1849, the Union refused as it would upset the balance. Senator Stephen A. Douglas, came up with an alternative plan that admitted California, established Utah and New Mexico as territories that could decide for themselves whether to permit slavery, defined borders for the state of Texas, removed the slave trade in the District of Columbia, and obligated the entire country to help in the capture and return of escaped slaves. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin Published
n 1851, author Harriet Beecher Stowe, who was still grieving the loss of her 18-month-old son Samuel to cholera two years earlier, wrote to the publisher of a Washington, D.C.-based abolitionist newspaper, National Era, and offered to write a fictional serial about the cruelty of slavery. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
In 1854, Senator Douglas, introduced another piece of legislation “to organize the Territory of Nebraska,” an area that covered not just that present-day state but also Kansas, as well as Montana and the Dakota. Douglas was promoting a transcontinental railroad that would pass through Chicago in his home state. But the envisioned northern route had to pass through the Nebraska territory, a place where slavery was prohibited by the Missouri Compromise. Rivals, wanted a southern route instead. -
The Pottawatomie Massacre
At a spot near a crossing on Pottawatomie Creek in Franklin, Kansas, Brown, four of his sons and several others lured five proslavery men out of their houses with a promise that they would not be harmed, and then slashed and stabbed them with a saber and shot them in the head, according to a contemporary account of the attack. -
Dred Scott Decision
In an 1857 decision written by Chief Justice Roger Taney, the court decided that Scott was not entitled to U.S. citizenship and the protection of law, no matter where he had lived. In the court’s view, the Constitution’s framers had not intended for Black people to be free, but instead viewed them as property, with “no rights which the white man was bound to respect.” The ruling made further political compromise too difficult. -
John Brown's Raid on Harper's Ferry
In October 1859, he and a band of 22 men launched a raid on Harpers Ferry, and captured some prominent local citizens and seized the federal arsenal. His small force soon was counterattacked by local militia, forcing him to seek refuge. The following afternoon, U.S. Marines under the command of then-Col. Robert E. Lee arrived and stormed the arsenal, killing many of Brown’s men and capturing him. Brown was tried and charged with treason, murder and slave insurrection, and sentenced to death. -
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Civil War
This period spans the entirety of the civil war, see the last period to find out about the events leading up to the civil war. -
The Civil War Starts
The civil war is a series of battles between the Confederates and the Union. The civil war started over the issue of slavery in the United States. The South wanted slaves and the North didn't want slaves so they came up with compromises to fix the delicate balance between the two. Once it could no longer be controlled, the Confederate States broke away from the Union and caused trouble for the Union, this is what lead up to the civil war. -
First Bull Run (July 21, 1861)
The Union Army under General Irvin McDonnell marched from Washington, D.C., to seize the Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia. Approximately 42 kilometers (25 miles) into the march, his path was blocked by the Confederate Army under the command of General P.G.T. Beauregard. -
Shiloh (April 6, 1862–April 7, 1862)
Grant’s army arrived first and set up a camp in the town of Pittsburg Landing, Tennessee, near the Shiloh Meeting House. Johnston planned to strike Grant’s army before Buell arrived, and at dawn on the sixth of April, Johnston's forces attacked. Grant’s Union forces were surprised, but remained, after a day of fierce fighting. Buell’s forces finally arrived overnight, and the combined Union force fought at dawn. Beauregard—the new Confederate general after Johnston was mortally wounded—withdrew. -
Antietam or the Battle of Sharpsburg (September 17, 1862)
Confederate General Robert E. Lee had decided to take the war to the North. He devised a plan to split his army and take supplies to Maryland, move into Pennsylvania, and threaten Washington, D.C. His plans fell into Union hands, and the Union Army marched to confront the force he commanded at Antietam Creek, in northern Maryland. However, the Union General McClellan, known for his cautious approach to engaging in battle, responded tentatively, waiting 18 hours before moving his troops. -
Gettysburg (July 1, 1863–July 3, 1863)
Although Antietam was a setback to Lee’s plans, the Union failed to capitalize on it. Lincoln replaced McClellan, but his new generals lost decisively at Fredericksburg, Virginia (December 13, 1862), and Chancellorsville, Virginia (April 30, 1863–May 4, 1863). These Confederate victories encouraged Lee to renew his plan to invade the North. -
Atlanta
The Battle of Atlanta was the bloodiest part of Sherman’s March through Georgia, costing the Union 3,700 casualties, while the Confederates lost 5,500 men. Sherman’s forces continued their advance and finally surrounded the city, besieging it for the entire month of August. -
Palmito Ranch
Confederate Victory. After fighting for most of the 12th and 13th, Col. Theodore H. Barrett withdrew his worn-out command a few miles from Palmito Ranch along a bend near the Rio Grande River. At 4:00 pm, a large Confederate cavalry force, commanded by Col. John S. “Rip” Ford, approached, and the Federals formed a battle line. The Southern forces hammered the Union line with artillery, and Barrett ordered a retreat, ending the last battle in the Civil War. -
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Credits
Check the description of each event in credits to find out the link to the website that made it. -
The History Channel
---. “9 Events That Led to the Civil War.” HISTORY, 17 Jan. 2023, www.history.com/news/civil-war-causes-issues. Kiger, Patrick J. “7 Important Civil War Battles.” HISTORY, 5 Mar. 2021, www.history.com/news/key-civil-war-battles. National Geographic. “Defining Battles of the Civil War | National Geographic Society.” Education.nationalgeographic.org, 2 June 2022, education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/defining-battles-civil-war/. -
US Events
egriffin4. “Major Events in U.S History 1607-1877 Timeline.” Timetoast, www.timetoast.com/timelines/major-events-in-u-s-history-1607-1877. -
Battlefields.org
battlefields.org. “Civil War.” American Battlefield Trust, 2000, www.battlefields.org/learn/civil-war.