Civil War Timeline

By gracemelnichuk
  • Republican Party is formed

    Republican Party is formed

    This party was created to oppose the expansion of slavery.
  • Kansas-Nebraska Act passed

    Kansas-Nebraska Act passed

    This act created 2 new states and allowed them to choose pro slavery or no slavery by using popular soviergnty.
  • Abraham Lincoln elected president

    Abraham Lincoln elected president

    Abraham was the 16th president of the United States and issued the emancipation proclamation.
  • South Carolina votes to secede from the United States

    South Carolina votes to secede from the United States

    South Carolina votes to be the first state to secede, or leave, the union. The left after they didn't agree with a tariff that was being placed.
  • Confederate forces fire on Fort Sumter

    Confederate forces fire on Fort Sumter

    The confederates openly fired on Fort Sumter, officially starting the civil war.
  • Richmond becomes the capital of the Confederacy

    Richmond becomes the capital of the Confederacy

    The capital city of the confederation switches from Montgomery to Richmond.
  • First Battle of Bull Run is fought

    First Battle of Bull Run is fought

    This was the first land battle of the civil war, fought just 30 miles from Washington DC.
  • Jefferson Davis elected president of the Confederacy

    Jefferson Davis elected president of the Confederacy

    Jefferson Davis is the only president ever elected for the confederacy. His term was supposed to be 6 years long but the confederacy ended before his term even finished. He was elected by representatives from states the seceded including Alabama, Louisiana, Georgia, Florida, Mississppi, and South Carolina.
  • The Merrimack and the Monitor fight of the Virginia coast

    The Merrimack and the Monitor fight of the Virginia coast

    This was a naval battle that marked histroy's first duel between ironclad warships.
  • Battle of Shiloh

    Battle of Shiloh

    This battle lasted from April 4- April 5 1862. This battle allowed the union to get into the confederate land.
  • Robert E. Lee is named commander of the Army of Northern Virginia

    Robert E. Lee is named commander of the Army of Northern Virginia

    This army was the main Confederate army. Lee commences 7 days of counter attacks to drive the union out of the Confederate capital.
  • Battle of Antietam

    Battle of Antietam

    This battle was the deadliest SINGLE day battle. It took place in Maryland and accounted for 12,400 union casualties and 10,300 confederate casualties.
  • Battle of Fredericksburg

    Battle of Fredericksburg

    This battle was fought across between December 11 and Decenber 15 1862. With about 200,000 people fighting, this battle had the most people involved compared to any other battle. There were about 12,500 casualties on the union side and about 6,000 losses on the Confederate side.
  • Emancipation Proclamation is announced

    Emancipation Proclamation is announced

    The Emancipation Proclamation stated that slaves would be freed.
  • Confederates surrender at Vicksburg

    Confederates surrender at Vicksburg

    The war starts to end when the confederates surrender at Vicksburg.
  • Battle of Gettysburg

    Battle of Gettysburg

    The battle of Gettysburg lasted between July 1- July 3 1863. It was fought between the confederacy and the union. With more than 50,000 casualties this battle was considered the bloodiest single battle of the war.
  • New York City draft riots

    New York City draft riots

    This was a major eruption of violence from July 11 to July 16 1863.
  • Lincoln suspends habeas corpus

    Lincoln suspends habeas corpus

    This made it possible for arrests to be made without proper reason.
  • Lincoln gives his Gettysburg Address

    Lincoln gives his Gettysburg Address

    This address was given to honor the men who fought and died at the Battle of Gettysburg to help preserve the union.
  • Congress passes the 13th Amendment

    Congress passes the 13th Amendment

    congress passes the 13th amendment which abolished slavery in all territories and states.
  • Atlanta is captured

    Atlanta is captured

    The union forces captured Atlanta, which was an important city to the south.
  • Abraham Lincoln defeats George McClellan to win re-election

    Abraham Lincoln defeats George McClellan to win re-election

    Lincoln easy beat McClellan with the electoral votes being 212-21.
  • Sherman begins his March to the Sea

    Sherman begins his March to the Sea

    This was the most destructive march and started in Atlanta and concluded in Savannah.
  • Freedman’s Bureau is created

    Freedman’s Bureau is created

    This act provided land, food, shelter, and medical services for newly freed southerners.
  • Lincoln gives his second inaugural address

    Lincoln gives his second inaugural address

    Lincoln used this speech to explain how both the north and the south to take some responsibility for slavery.
  • Richmond falls to the Union Army

    Richmond falls to the Union Army

    Richmond (which is the capital of the confederation) gets taken over by the union army.
  • Robert E. Lee surrenders at Appomattox

    Robert E. Lee surrenders at Appomattox

    This was the most significant surrender of the war. Lee surrendered his army to union general Ulysses S Grant.
  • President Lincoln Assassanation

    President Lincoln Assassanation

    President Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth in Ford's Theatre. Booth assassanated Lincoln with the use of a pistol.
  • John Wilkes Booth is killed

    John Wilkes Booth is killed

    Booth was shot in the neck causing his spinal cord to be severed. Booth was paralyzed for the hours leading up to his death.