Civil War Key Events and Figures

Who was the President of the United States during the Civil War?

• Thomas Jefferson
• Abraham Lincoln
• Andrew Jackson
• Ulysses S. Grant

Answer explanation

Abraham Lincoln served as the 16th President and led the Union through the Civil War, issuing the Emancipation Proclamation and delivering the Gettysburg Address.

What was the primary reason Southern states seceded from the Union?

• Disputes over tariffs
• The issue of slavery
• Westward expansion
• States' rights to print money

Answer explanation

While states' rights were mentioned as a cause, the primary issue was the Southern states' desire to maintain slavery, which they feared Lincoln would abolish.

Which battle is considered the turning point of the Civil War?

• Battle of Antietam
• Battle of Vicksburg
• Battle of Gettysburg
• Battle of Fort Sumter

Answer explanation

The Union victory at Gettysburg in July 1863 halted Lee’s invasion of the North and marked the beginning of the Confederacy's decline.

What was the name of the Confederacy’s most famous general?

• William T. Sherman
• Robert E. Lee
• Ulysses S. Grant
• George McClellan

Answer explanation

Robert E. Lee was the leading general of the Confederate Army, known for his military strategies and leadership in key battles like Gettysburg and Antietam.

What was the purpose of the Emancipation Proclamation?

• To free all slaves in the U.S.
• To free slaves in the Confederate states
• To abolish slavery nationwide
• To allow new states to decide on slavery

Answer explanation

Issued by Lincoln in 1863, it declared freedom for enslaved people in Confederate-held territories, but not in Union states or border states.

Which Union general led the "March to the Sea," devastating the South?

• George Meade
• Ulysses S. Grant
• William T. Sherman
• Stonewall Jackson

Answer explanation

General Sherman led a campaign of total war from Atlanta to Savannah, destroying infrastructure and weakening the South’s ability to fight.

Where did General Robert E. Lee surrender to General Ulysses S. Grant, effectively ending the Civil War?

• Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
• Appomattox Court House, Virginia
• Richmond, Virginia
• Charleston, South Carolina

Answer explanation

On April 9, 1865, Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox Court House, marking the official end of the Confederacy’s fight.

What was the first battle of the Civil War?

• Battle of Fort Sumter
• Battle of Bull Run
• Battle of Shiloh
• Battle of Antietam

Answer explanation

The Civil War began on April 12, 1861, when Confederate forces fired on Fort Sumter in South Carolina, prompting a Union surrender.

What was the main goal of the Union’s Anaconda Plan?

• To blockade Southern ports and control the Mississippi River
• To free enslaved people
• To negotiate peace with the Confederacy
• To capture the Confederate capital in one attack

Answer explanation

The Anaconda Plan aimed to strangle the Confederacy by cutting off its trade routes and splitting it in two along the Mississippi River.

Which amendment to the U.S. Constitution abolished slavery?

• 12th Amendment
• 14th Amendment
• 15th Amendment
• 13th Amendment

Answer explanation

The 13th Amendment, ratified in 1865, officially abolished slavery in the United States.