Understanding the Civil War

What was the primary cause of the Civil War that divided the North and the South?

• Disagreements over railroad construction

• Slavery and its expansion into new territories

• Arguments about building new schools

• Disputes over ocean trade routes

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VA.USI.9.a

Which of the following best describes the economy of the South before and during the Civil War?

• The South had a strong industrial economy with many factories

• The South relied mainly on trade with foreign countries

• The South had an agricultural economy based on large plantations and slave labor

• The South depended on fishing and mining for its economy

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VA.USI.9.b

Who was the President of the Confederate States of America during the Civil War?

• Ulysses S. Grant

• Robert E. Lee

• Frederick Douglass

• Jefferson Davis

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VA.USI.9.d

What was the Emancipation Proclamation?

• A document that ended the Civil War

• A declaration by President Lincoln that freed enslaved people in Confederate states

• A speech given by Lincoln at a soldier's cemetery

• A law passed by Congress to create new states

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VA.USI.9.e

How did the North's industrial economy give it an advantage over the South during the Civil War?

• The North could grow more food to feed its soldiers

• The North had more enslaved workers to help fight the war

• The North could produce weapons, supplies, and equipment more quickly using its factories

• The North had a larger amount of farmland to support the war effort

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VA.USI.9.b

How did Abraham Lincoln's leadership help preserve the United States during the Civil War?

• He personally led troops into battle and won every major fight

• He kept the Union together by making important decisions such as issuing the Emancipation Proclamation and choosing strong military generals

• He convinced the Southern states to rejoin the Union by offering them more land

• He ended the war quickly by surrendering to Confederate forces

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VA.USI.9.c

How did Frederick Douglass influence the course of the Civil War?

• He served as a general in the Confederate Army

• He used his voice and writings to argue against slavery and encouraged African Americans to join the Union Army

• He designed new weapons for the Union soldiers

• He negotiated the peace treaty that ended the war

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VA.USI.9.d

How did the constitutional and cultural differences caused by slavery lead Southern states to secede from the Union? Use evidence from what you know about the causes of the Civil War to support your answer choice.

• Southern states seceded because they wanted to build more railroads and the federal government refused to help them

• Southern states seceded because they believed the federal government had no right to limit or end slavery, which threatened their way of life and economy

• Southern states seceded because they disagreed with the North about how to build new schools and universities

• Southern states seceded because they wanted to form trade agreements with European countries without federal approval

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VA.USI.9.a

Compare Lincoln's Gettysburg Address and his Second Inaugural Address. How did the purpose and message of these two speeches reflect the changing goals of Lincoln's leadership as the Civil War progressed?

• Both speeches focused entirely on punishing the South for starting the war and had the same message throughout the war

• The Gettysburg Address honored fallen soldiers and reaffirmed the nation's commitment to equality, while the Second Inaugural Address called for healing and reuniting the nation with "malice toward none"

• The Gettysburg Address called for the immediate end of slavery, while the Second Inaugural Address focused only on military strategy

• Both speeches were written to convince European countries to stay out of the Civil War and had no message for American citizens

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VA.USI.9.e

Consider the roles of Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee during the Civil War. How did the strategies and actions of these two generals reflect the strengths and weaknesses of the Union and Confederate armies, and how did their leadership influence the outcome of the war?

• Both Grant and Lee used the same military strategies, so neither had a greater impact on the outcome of the war than the other

• Lee's defensive strategies helped the Confederacy hold off the Union for years, but Grant's aggressive campaigns and ability to use the North's greater resources eventually forced Lee's surrender, leading to a Union victory

• Grant focused only on protecting Washington D.C., while Lee led his army to capture several Northern cities, which is why the war lasted so long

• Lee surrendered early in the war because the Confederate Army ran out of soldiers, while Grant spent most of the war training new troops in the West

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VA.USI.9.d