American Civil War: The Birthpangs of the United States

Q: What caused the American Civil War?

The American Civil War was caused by slavery. The issue of slavery had been dividing the nation for over half a century before tensions finally led to war.

Q: When did the American Civil War begin and end?

The American Civil War began on 12 April 1861 and ended on 9 April 1865, although hostilities continued after April, and the official end of the Civil War is now considered to be 26 May 1865.

Q: Who won the American Civil War and why?

The Union Army of the United States won the American Civil War, defeating the Confederate States of America between 1861 and 1865. The Union won through President Lincoln's leadership, General Grant's strategy, greater numbers of soldiers, greater industrial strength, and a better economy that could support a war.

Q: What was the deadliest war in US history?

The American Civil War is the deadliest war in US history, with casualties numbering upwards of 650,000 and some estimates placing the toll at 750,000 or more. There were more American lives lost in the Civil War than in any other military engagement in its history.

Joshua J. Mark

Definition

The American Civil War (1861-1865) was the pivotal event in United States history and the largest armed conflict in the Western world following the end of the Napoleonic Wars (1815) and prior to the beginning of the First World War (1914). The central cause of the war was the institution of slavery, which had increasingly caused conflict between Southern states, which relied heavily on slave labor for their agrarian economy, and Northern states, which were heavily industrialized and had far less need for slaves.

More about: American Civil War

Timeline

5 Mar 1820
Congress approves the Missouri Compromise, setting the boundary between 'free' and 'slave' states at the 36°30′ parallel (except Missouri).
Sep 1850
The Compromise of 1850 admits California as a 'free state' and establishes popular sovereignty in the other territories of the Mexican Cession.
12 Apr 1861
The American Civil War begins when Confederate forces fire on the Union Fort Sumter.
20 Apr 1861
Robert E. Lee resigns from the US Army as Virginia secedes from the Union.
1 Jun 1862
Robert E. Lee is put in command of the Army of Northern Virginia.
25 Jun 1862 - 1 Jul 1862
The Seven Days' Battles; Lee launches a counteroffensive against McClellan, driving him away from Richmond.
28 Aug 1862 - 30 Aug 1862
Battle of Second Manassas (aka Second Battle of Bull Run) results in a Confederate victory.
17 Sep 1862
Battle of Antietam; the culmination of Robert E. Lee's first invasion of the North, resulting in 22,000 casualties. After the battle, Lee withdraws back across the Potomac River.
30 Apr 1863 - 6 May 1863
Battle of Chancellorsville; Robert E. Lee wins another decisive victory.
1 Jul 1863 - 3 Jul 1863
Battle of Gettysburg; Robert E. Lee's second invasion of the North ends in a Southern defeat.
9 Mar 1864
Ulysses S. Grant is made general-in-chief of all Union armies.
4 May 1864
The Army of the Potomac crosses the Rapidan River, beginning the Overland Campaign.
4 May 1864 - 12 Jun 1864
The Overland Campaign - Grant and Lee's armies struggle in some of the hardest fighting of the American Civil War.
5 May 1864 - 6 May 1864
The Battle of the Wilderness results in a stalemate.
7 May 1864
Despite the horrendous losses he sustained at the Wilderness, Grant continues pressing south and heads toward Spotsylvania.
7 May 1864
William Tecumseh Sherman begins his Atlanta Campaign.
8 May 1864 - 21 May 1864
Battle of Spotsylvania Court House.
11 May 1864
Battle of Yellow Tavern; J. E. B. Stuart is mortally wounded.
23 May 1864 - 26 May 1864
Battle of North Anna; Union and Confederate armies try to maneuver around one another as they take parallel routes toward Cold Harbor.
31 May 1864 - 12 Jun 1864
Battle of Cold Harbor.
12 Jun 1864
Grant abandons his entrenchments at Cold Harbor and heads for the James River. End of the Overland Campaign.
14 Jun 1864
Confederate General Leonidas Polk is killed in action near Marietta, Georgia.
16 Jul 1864
Joseph E. Johnston is removed from command of the Confederate Army of Tennessee; he is replaced by John Bell Hood.
18 Jul 1864
Sherman begins to lay siege to Atlanta, Georgia.
22 Jul 1864
Battle of Atlanta; Union victory. Union Major General James B. McPherson is killed.
2 Sep 1864
Atlanta is occupied by Union soldiers; end of the Atlanta Campaign.
29 Sep 1864
Gen. John Bell Hood and the 40,000-man Army of Tennessee crosses the Chattahoochee River, beginning the Franklin-Nashville Campaign.
13 Nov 1864 - 20 Nov 1864
Gen. John Bell Hood crosses the Tennessee River, beginning his invasion of Tennessee.
15 Nov 1864
US Major General William T. Sherman burns Atlanta, begins his infamous 'March to the Sea'.
23 Nov 1864
Sherman captures Milledgeville, the state capital of Georgia.
30 Nov 1864
Battle of Franklin; the Confederate assault is repulsed with 6,000 casualties, including 14 generals. One of the worst Confederate defeats of the war.
15 Dec 1864 - 16 Dec 1864
Battle of Nashville; the Confederate Army of Tennessee is decisively defeated, ceases to exist as an effective fighting force.
21 Dec 1864
Sherman captures Savannah, Georgia, ending his 'March to the Sea'.
9 Apr 1865
General Robert E. Lee surrenders to General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House.