The Civil War
1861-1865
What were the advantages?
North South Individuals & Terms
Robert E. Lee
Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson
Jeb Stuart
James Longstreet
Jefferson Davis
Alexander H. Stephens
Winfield Scott
Anaconda Plan
Joe Johnston
What were the key obstacles?
North South
1861 Campaigns + Strategy
Northern Strategy:
July 1961: Battle of Bull Run (Manassas Junction)
Irwin McDowell vs. P.T. Beauregard
Significance: 1. Moral victory for the Confederacy
2. Elevates the stature of Stonewall Jackson
3. Portended a long and protracted war
1862 Campaigns
West
Union Strategy: Control of the Mississippi River
April 1862: Battle of Shiloh
Ulysses S. Grant vs. Albert Sydney Johnston
William Tecumseh Sherman
Casualties: Union 13,000 Confederates 10,000
Significance: 1. Secure the upper Mississippi River
2. U.S. Grant is elevated as a key leader of the Union army
April 1862: New Orleans falls to the Union
Commodore Farragut
Significance: 1. Secure lower Mississippi River
2. Tightens the blockade of Confederate trade with Europe
December 1862: Grant moves on Vicksburg, the last stronghold of the Confederacy along the Mississippi
River
1862 Campaigns
East
June 1862: Peninsula Campaign
George McClellan vs. Robert E. Lee
Joe Johnston
May-June 1862: Jackson’s Valley Campaign
Shenandoah Valley (Virginia)
17,000 Union troops
Strategy: Advance on Harper’s Ferry and feint advance across the Potomac River
toward Washington D.C.
Two Union armies converge on Jackson (John C. Fremon33,000 troops + James
Shields 30,000 troops), and fail to defeat Jackson
June 1862: McClellan advances with 130,000 troops toward Richmond and is stymied by Lee with 75,000
troops. McClellan retreats north.
July 1862: Lincoln informs his Cabinet that he wants to declare an Emancipation Proclamation. The
Cabinet is split in their support.
August 1862: McClellan is replaced by General John Pope.
The Committee on Conduct of the War declared that the army was now in the saddle.
Newspaper editor Horace Greeley noted that “the headquarters was in the saddle, to be
sure, and Pope had been sitting on his brains.”
August 1862: Second Battle of Bull Run
Union 62,000 troops Confederates 52,000 troops
Pope is defeated by Lee
Significance: A confidant Robert E. Lee moves North into Maryland
George McClellan replaces John Pope
Southern strategy: Convince Great Britain that the Confederacy can win the war
Induce Europe to recognize the Confederacy
September 1862: Battle of Antietam
Union forces: 75,000 Confederate forces: 50,000
Lee sends Jackson with 15,000 troops on a read at Harper’s Ferry
What should McClellan do???
Significance: 1. Allows Lincoln to claim a victory
2. Political leverage needed to issue the Emancipation Proclamation
3. Spoils Confederate bid for international recognition
1863 Campaigns + Events
January 1863: Lincoln issues the Emancipation Proclamation
Significance: Consolidated Republican support
Created disharmony in the South
Gained international recognition
Provided a moral cause for the North
Highlighted the theme of “equality” in the American idea of freedom
July 1863: Vicksburg siege ends. Confederates surrender.
Arkansas and Texas are cutoff from the Confederacy.
The Mississippi River comes under the control of the Union.
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Robert E. Lee: 65,000 troops George Meade 85,000 troops
Confederates: 22,000 casualties
Union: 27,000 casualties
Significance: Forces the Confederacy to fight a defensive campaign
Union strategy shifts from a plan of attrition to a plan of exhaustion
1864 Campaigns + Events
February 1864: Congress passes the 13th Amendment which abolishes slavery
Key leaders: Thaddeus Stevens, Charles Sumner, Benjamin Wade
Lincoln elevates Ulysses S. Grant to lead all Union troops.
Grant places William Tecumseh Sherman in command of Western armies.
Grant’s Strategy:
Sherman is to move on Atlanta, then Savannah, and then up into South and North Carolina.
Eventually, Sherman is to unite with Grant and defeat Lee’s Virginia forces.
Meanwhile, Grant moves toward Richmond and attempts to outflank Lee with superior forces.
May-September 1864: Lee slowly retreats toward Richmond and is held under siege at Petersburg,
Virginia.
September 1864: Atlanta falls to Sherman. Lincoln’s reelection is secure.
November 1864: Lincoln defeats George McClellan and the Copperheads.