Civil War Overview

Civil War


1861-1865

• Agricultural, reliant on slave labor for cotton production.

• Rural, strong social hierarchy with slavery at its core.

• Feared federal interference with slavery and states' rights.

South

• Industrial, manufacturing-based economy.

• More urban, diverse population.

• Generally favored a strong federal government.

North

A House Divided

Categorize

Options (9)

Urban

Rural

Industrial

Agricultural

Diverse Population

Strong Social Hierarchy

Favored Strong Federal Government

Feared strong Federal Government

Concerned with States Rights

Organize these options into the right categories

North

South

Flashpoints on the Road to War

• The Missouri Compromise (1820): Maintained a balance between slave and free states.

• The Compromise of 1850: Attempted to maintain balance, but created tension with the Fugitive Slave Act.

• Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854): Led to "Bleeding Kansas" with violence over slavery in the territory.

• Dred Scott Decision (1857): Supreme Court decision that African Americans were not citizens and could not sue for freedom. Deeply angered the North.

• John Brown's Raid (1859): Increased fear and distrust between the North and South.

Match

Match the following

• Attempted to maintain a balance between slave and free states.

• Attempted to maintain balance, but created tension with the Fugitive Slave Act.

• Led to "Bleeding Kansas" with violence over slavery in the territory.

• Supreme Court decision that African Americans were not citizens and could not sue for freedom. Deeply angered the North.

• Violent raid that increased fear and distrust between the North and South.

The Missouri Compromise

The Compromise of 1850

Kansas-Nebraska Act

Dred Scott Decision

John Brown's Raid

• The Missouri Compromise

• The Compromise of 1850

• Kansas-Nebraska Act

• Dred Scott Decision

• John Brown's Raid

A Nation on the Edge

• The major political parties were badly divided over slavery.

  • The Democratic Party split into Northern and Southern factions.

    • Northern Democrats: Led by Stephen Douglas, they supported popular sovereignty (letting each territory decide on slavery).

    • Southern Democrats: Led by John Breckinridge, they believed in strong federal protection for slavery.

  • The Republican Party: A new, anti-slavery party with Abraham Lincoln as its leading candidate.

• The election became a referendum on slavery's expansion.

Multiple Choice

All Democrats were united in what they envisioned for the future of the country

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

Which party was anti-slavery?

• Northern Democrat

• Republican Party

• Southern Democrats

• Lincoln won the election with a majority of electoral votes.

• Almost no popular votes in the South.

• Southerners who felt they were being ignored.

• The results showed a deep national divide over slavery.

The Election

South Secedes

• South Carolina was the first state to secede in December 1860, fearing the end of their way of life and the power of the federal government.

• Other Southern states soon followed, forming the Confederate States of America.

• They believed they had the right to secede based on states' rights.

Brink of War

• President James Buchanan did little to stop secession, believing states couldn't legally leave the Union.

• Peace conferences were held, but failed to find common ground

• The Confederacy elected Jefferson Davis as president and began building its own military.

Multiple Choice

Lincoln won the Popular Vote across the country

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

Lincoln LOST the popular vote in the South because...

• The North was afraid of losing their way of life

• Lincoln said he wanted to preserve the Union

• The South was afraid of losing their way of life

• Lincoln killed vampires in his spare time

Multiple Choice

Which state was the first to secede from the Union?

• North Carolina

• South Carolina

• Maryland

• Virginia

Major Battles

• First Battle of Bull Run (Manassas, 1861): An early battle where the overconfident Union army was surprised and defeated by the Confederates. This showed the war wouldn't be a quick victory for the North.

• Antietam (Sharpsburg, 1862): The bloodiest single-day battle in American history. Although a tactical draw, it stopped a Confederate invasion and gave Lincoln the chance to issue the Emancipation Proclamation.

• Gettysburg (1863): A major turning point. The Union army decisively defeated the Confederacy, ending Lee's invasion of the North.

• Vicksburg (1863): The Union captured this strategic Mississippi River city, splitting the Confederacy in two and crippling their supply lines.

Match

Match the following

• The Union army decisively defeated the Confederacy, ending Lee's invasion of the North.

• The Union captured this strategic Mississippi River city, splitting the Confederacy in two.

• The bloodiest single-day battle in American history

• An early battle where the overconfident Union army was surprised and defeated by the Confederates.

Battle of Gettysburg

Battle of Vicksburg

Antietam

First Battle of Bull Run

• Battle of Gettysburg

• Battle of Vicksburg

• Antietam

• First Battle of Bull Run

General Sherman led a brutal Union campaign through Georgia, destroying infrastructure and supplies to cripple the Confederacy's war effort.

Sherman's March to the Sea

President Lincoln declared all enslaved people in Confederate states to be free. This changed the war from preserving the Union to ending slavery. Could only be enforced upon Union victory.

Emancipation Proclamation

Multiple Choice

Were all slaves freed with the Emancipation Proclamation?

• True

• False

North's Plan to Win

• Blockade: The Anaconda Plan, named for the giant snake that crushes its prey, involved a naval blockade of Southern ports. This strangled the South's economy by preventing them from exporting cotton, their main cash crop, and importing supplies.

• Military Victories: The Union aimed to win key battles on land to capture territory, destroy Confederate armies, and ultimately take the Confederate capital, Richmond, Virginia.

• Divide and Conquer: The Union wanted to control the Mississippi River, the "South's lifeline," splitting the Confederacy in two and disrupting their transportation and communication. Battles like Vicksburg were crucial to achieving this.

• Weaken Southern Morale: By invading the South and destroying resources, like Sherman's March to the Sea, the Union aimed to break the South's will to fight and convince them the war was unwinnable.

Match

Match the following Northern strategies to their definitions

• The Anaconda Plan - block southern ports

• Destroy Confederate armies

• Control the Mississippi River, the "South's lifeline,"

• Invading the South and destroying resources

Blockade

Military Victories

Divide and Conquer

Weaken Southern Morale

• Blockade

• Military Victories

• Divide and Conquer

• Weaken Southern Morale

• Confederacy ran out of resources and manpower.

• General Robert E. Lee, commander of the Confederate army, surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant, leader of the Union army, at Appomattox Court House in 1865.

South Surrenders

Multiple Choice

Who surrendered at the Appotmax Courthouse?

• General Robert E. Lee

• General Ulysses S Grant

The 13th Amendment (passed in 1865) officially outlawed slavery throughout the United States.

Amending the Constitution

The 14th Amendment (passed in 1868) guaranteed citizenship to all people born or naturalized in the United States, including former slaves. It also prohibited states from denying any citizen "life, liberty, or property, without due process of law" and required states to give "equal protection of the laws" to all citizens.

Defining Citizenship

The 15th Amendment (passed in 1870) prohibited states from denying a citizen the right to vote based on "race, color, or previous condition of servitude." This amendment aimed to give Black men the right to vote.

Voting Rights

Match

Match the following

• Outlawed slavery in the US

• Guaranteed citizenship to all people born or naturalized in the US

• Banned states from limited voting rights on the basis of "race, color, or previous condition of servititude"

13th Amendment

14th Amendment

15th Amendment

• 13th Amendment

• 14th Amendment

• 15th Amendment

Reconstruction Begins

• Rebuilding the South:

  • This period after the Civil War focused on rebuilding the South's infrastructure and economy, which had been devastated by the war.

• Challenges for African Americans:

  • Although slavery was abolished, many former slaves faced discrimination and violence in the South.

• The End of Reconstruction:

  • Reconstruction ended in the late 1870s, and many of the gains made by African Americans were eroded. However, the Civil War and Reconstruction marked a turning point in American history, ending slavery and establishing civil rights for Black Americans as a long-term goal for the nation.

Multiple Choice

All discrimination and violence against African Americans ended with the Civil War

• True

• False

Categorize

Options (13)

Firing on Fort Sumter

States Rights

Power of Federal Government

Slavery

Vicksburg

Gettysburg

Antietam

Sherman's March to the Sea

Controlling the Mississippi River

13th Amendment

Protecting Voting Rights

Ensuring citizenship

Outlawing Slavery

Organize these options into the right categories

Causes

Battles

Constitution

You made it to the last unit of 8th grade US History!