Major Civil War Battles

Fort Sumter

Apr 12, 1861

First action between United States and Confederate forces, this artillery duel resulted in the surrender of the bastion of Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor but no casualties. It served as an indication that the South was willing to fight for federal property it considered to be its own following seccession.

Bull Run

Jul 12, 1861

First significant action of The American Civil War, Bull Run shocked the North into the realization that it would not be a three-month war. The battle falsely buoyed the South's hopes of negotiating an end to the war.

Shiloh (Pittsburg Landing)

Apr 6, 1862

At the time, Shiloh was both the bloodiest single day and bloodiest two-day battle in American history. It served as America's introduction to the "total warfare" of the rest of the Civil War. Until Ulysses S. Grant's advance down the Tennessee River, engagements in the Civil War had been relatively small. The engagement also saw the death of Sidney Albert Johnston, on whom Jefferson Davis had pinned his hopes in the West.

Seven Days Retreat

Jun 25, 1862

With the success of George McClellan's Peninsula Campaign, Lincoln and Edwin Stanton agreed on closing the recruitment offices in the north. Then Lee replaced Joe Johnston as commander of the Army of Northern Virginia and aggressively pursued the Army of the Potomac as it retreated down Virginia's Lower Peninsula. Lincoln and Stanton had to admit they were wrong and re-open the offices.

Antietam

Sep 17, 1862

Bloodiest day of the Civil War, this battle gave Abraham Lincoln the perceived victory he desired to release the Emancipation Proclamation. The costly battle also ended Robert E. Lee's advance into Maryland.

Gettysburg

Jul 1, 1863

George Meade won the largest and most costly battle in American history fought on the farms and hillsides of southern Pennsylvania. The Union victory ended Lee's belief that a single massive victory would defeat the Army of the Potomac.

Vicksburg

Jul 4, 1863

Lincoln realized early in the war that control of the Mississippi was a major goal of the Western forces. Ulysses S. Grant delivered the city when the Army of Mississippi surrendered after a prolonged siege. In response Lincoln proclaimed "I have found the man who can win this war."

Chattanooga

Nov 23, 1863

Following the worst defeat of any United States army at Chickamauga Lincoln dispatched three of his best generals (Grant, William Tecumseh Sherman, and Joseph Hooker) to Chattanooga. Six weeks later Grant broke out of the city, drove the Confederate Army into Georgia, and began preparing for the Spring campaigns.