Civil War Vocabulary

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Term referring to the United States during the 1800’s. Also another word for the North in the Civil War.

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Union

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This refers to the Southern states that left the Union during the Civil War. All together there were 11 states: Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia.

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Confederacy

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Leaving a group formally. This refers to the Southern states who left the Union to form the Confederate States of America.

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Secession

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Part of the Compromise of 1850; allowed slave owners to pursue and capture escaped slaves into the North

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Fugitive Slave Act

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Set of rules in the South that claimed slaves were property, not citizens.

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Slave Codes

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Someone who opposed and fought against slavery. Famous abolitionists include Frederick Douglas, Harriet Tubman, John Brown, and Harriet Beecher Stowe.

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Abolitionist

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System of bringing slaves to America. Usually consisted of a “triangle”: enslaved Africans were brought to America in exchange for manufactured goods, then were sold for raw materials like sugar and coffee, and that was then exchanged for manufactured goods.

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Atlantic Slave Trade

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Given by Lincoln on January 1, 1863. It states all slaves held in the South were now free and able to join the North to fight in the Civil War.

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Emancipation Proclamation

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Also called “the draft” - requires all healthy men over the age of 18 to serve in the military.

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Conscription

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April 12, 1861 - Southern military fire on the fort which starts the Civil War

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Fort Sumter