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The Start of the Civil War
The civil war starts after the decades of the northern and southern states having tension. The election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 caused 7 states to secede and to form the confederate states of america. After that four states also soon joined them. The states that formed the confederation were Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Texas, Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina. -
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Conflicts of the Civil War
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The First Battle if Bull Run
The First Battle of Bull Run was the first major battle of the Civil war. It was fought in Virginia and it was fought 25 miles away from Washington D.C. Due to the public pressure to end the war in 90 days Lincoln pushed Gen. McDowell went on a campaign to capture the Confederate capital in Richmond but the troops had been stopped in Bull Run by rebel forces. The federal forces had then retreated back to Washington. It was a victory for the confederacy. -
The Battle of Fort Donelson
Early in the war union commanders had realized that if they gained control of the major rivers it would be key to success for them in the Western Theater. After Ulysses S. Grant captured Fort Henry; he then advanced to Fort Donelson. Operations against Donelson were part of a campaign launched in 1862 to push the confederates out of the middle and western part of Tennessee. The Union won the battle of Fort Donelson and forced the confederacy to give up southern Kentucky and most of Tennessee. -
The Battle of Seven Pines
After retreating from Williamsburg Virginia Joseph E. Johnston fell back to Richmond Virginia where Johnson tried to look for an opportunity to strike McClellan's larger army and try to turn the tide of the campaign. The battle ended as a victory for both sides and was inconclusive. After they failed to defeat the Federals the Confederate army retreated from Seven Pines. After this battle Robert E. Lee became the commander of the confederate army after Joseph E. Johnston was hurt. -
The Second Battle of Bull Run
A year after the confederate victory at the first battle of bull run George B. McClellan threatened the confederate capital with the largest enemy ever assembled in North America. Three union forces in the Shenandoah valley had attempted to move south to support McClellan's invasion. Lincoln formed the Army of Virginia in June 1862 and appointed John Pope to command it. The Union has been defeated during this battle causing Lee to continue his march northward. -
The Battle of Antietam
In September 1862 Robert E. Lee invaded Maryland with the idea of moving the focus of fighting away from the South and into Federal territory. He wanted to gain victories there in order to try to capture the Federal capital in Washington D.C. Robert E. Lee committed his entire force to the battle but George B. McClellan sent in less than three quarters of his and they still outnumbered the confederates 2:1 the battle was considered a tactical draw but President Lincoln considered if a victory. -
The Battle of Fredericksburg
After failing to aggressively pursue Robert E. Lee's army aggressively after the battle of Antietam McClellan was removed as commander of the Army of the Potomac and replaced by Ambrose E. Burnside. They moved quickly and developed a plan to beat Lee to the confederate capital and move southwest in order to quickly get to the Rappahannock River. The battle ended in a confederate victory. The Union retreated, losing their chance to further advance into confederate territory. -
The Battle of Gettysburg
After a year of the Confederacy having defensive victories in Virginia Lee had the objective to win a battle north of the Mason-Dixon Line in hopes to force a negation to end the fighting. The battle ended with the Union winning and marked the turning point of the civil wars The loss dashed hopes of the confederate becoming their own independent nation. -
The Battle of Chickamauga
The city of Chattanooga layed on the bank of the Tennessee River and was the crossroads and Lincoln knew if the Union could capture the town it would cut vital supply lines for the confederate army’s and the war would be closer to an end. It ended in a victory for the confederacy and was the 2nd bloodiest battle of the civil war and the victory came with a great cost for the confederacy. -
The Skirmish of Palmito Ranch
In May of 1865 Theodore H. Barrett’s commanding forces in Texas made the decision to dispatch a 500 man column to attack confederate outposts and camps in the area. Despite Barrett knowing that Robert E. Lee surrendered his column still moved towards the palmito ranches hoping to destroy a big confederate camp. It had ended in a confederate victory due to the southern forces hammering the union with artillery which caused Barrett to order a retreat. This was the final battle of the civil war.