Back to the video list: North American History
The War of Secession was the arguably most traumatic event in U.S. history. It shaped the society of the United States of America until today.
Videos
You find the two-part video documentary about the War of Secession in this section.
First Phase of the American Civil War
Second Phase of the American Civil War
Overview
- Date: 12 Apr 1861 – 09 May 1865
- Location: North America
- Start: Confederate forces attack Fort Sumter
- End: U.S. President Johnson declares the end of the war
Important Persons of the Union
- Abraham Lincoln (1809 – 1865)
- George B. McClellan (1826 – 1885)
- Ulysses S. Grant (1822 – 1885)
- William T. Sherman (1820 – 1891)
Important Persons of the Confederates
- Jefferson Davis (1807 – 1889)
- Robert E. Lee (1807 – 1870)
- T.J. „Stonewall“ Jackson (1824 – 1863)
- Joseph E. Johnston (1807 – 1891)
Background
- Contrast of Northern & Southern states:
|
Northern States |
|
Southern States |
|
Economy |
Industrialised industry Therefore: In favour of protective duties to support the domestic industry |
Agricultural economy Therefore: Against protective duty because the South depends on imports |
||
Slavery |
No slavery |
Slavery |
||
Understanding of the Constitution |
Federal state in which the minority must accept the will of the majority Therefore: No right to secession |
Confederation in which the states have the last decision Therefore: Right to secession |
- The conflict between Northern & Southern states escalates during the presidential election 1860
- Several states see their “Southern way of life” in danger & leave the Union
Events Leading to the Secession
06 Nov 1860: Presidential Election |
|
Abraham Lincoln (Republican) |
180 |
John C. Breckinridge (Southern Democratic) |
72 |
John Bell (Constituational Union) |
39 |
Stephen A. Douglas (Democratic) |
12 |
- Dec 1860 – May 1861: Southern states leave the Union & form the Confederate States of America
- West Virginia remains in the Union & becomes a member state (1863)
- 12 – 14 Apr 1861: The Civil War starts with the Confederate attack on Fort Sumter
From the Secession to the Emancipation Declaration - 1861-1863
Naval Warfare
- From 1861: U.S. Navy blockades Sothern ports & captures costal forts
- From 1861: Blockade runners & successful single operation by Confederate ships
- 08 Mar 1862: The ironclad CSS Virginia sinks 2 U.S. ships
- 09 Mar 1862: The battle between the Virginia & the USS Monitor ends indecisive
- 28 Apr 1862: U.S. Navy takes New Orleans & opens the Mississippi to the north
West & Trans-Mississippi
- 1861: U.S. troops push the Confederates to the south-west corner of Missouri
- From 1862: Guerrilla war in Missouri which leads to the loss of 1/3 of the population
- 1861: Confederate & U.S. troops occupy Kentucky
- 06 – 07 Apr 1862: U.S. troops successfully advance & win the Battle of Shiloh
- 06 Jun 1862: U.S. forces take Memphis
- Jun – Oct 1862: The Confederate Heartland Offensive fails despite tactical victories
- End of 1862: U.S. forces apply pressure on the Confederates from the north & the south without a final decision
Eastern Theatre
- 21 Jul 1861: The Confederates win the 1st Battle of Bull Run & repulse a U.S. invasion
- Mar – Jun 1862: The successful Shenandoah Campaign threatens Washington & ties up U.S. troops
- 05 Apr 1862: The USA start the Peninsula Campaign
- 25 Jun – 01 Jul 1862: The Confederates win the Seven Days Battles & put an end to the Peninsula Campaign
- 28 – 30 Aug 1862: The Confederates win the 2nd Battle of Bull Run
- 17 Sep 1862: The tactically indecisive Battle of Antietam is a strategic victory for the USA as it ends the Confederate invasion of Maryland
- 17 Sep 1862: Lincoln’s Emancipation Declaration – Abolishment of slavery in all states which are not in the Union by 01 Jan 1863
The Situation by the End of 1862
- Military stalemate
- The U.S. pressure the South from the north, west & from the sea
- With the Battle of Antietam the South has lost its momentum
- Lincoln’s Emancipation Declaration (abolishing slavery in the Confederate States) gives the North moral superiority
- The will to successfully end the war grows on both sides
- USA: Capture of the South & preservation of the Union
- Confederates: Resistance until the North recognises the Confederate States
- The military & moral situation prevents the European powers to intervene
From the Emancipation Declaration to the End of War - 1863-1865
Naval Warfare
- From 1863: The U.S. Navy successfully tightens the blockade & ironclads take Confederate positions under fire
- 17 Feb 1864: H.L. Hunley conduct the 1st submarine attack in history
- 05 Aug 1864: The U.S. Navy takes the forts at Mobile & sinks the Confederate ships stationed around Mobile
- 22 Feb 1865: U.S. forces take Wilmington, the last Confederate port at the east coast
- 06 Nov 1865: CSS Shenandoah lowers her flag in Liverpool after successful operations
West & Trans-Mississippi
- 1863: Successful Confederate raids
- 1864: A Confederate raid causes severe damage in Missouri but has to be abandoned after a defeat in December
- 1863 – 1864: The Confederates can repulse U.S. invasions of Louisiana
- Mar – Jul 1863: Grant’s Vicksburg Campaign
- 04 Jul: Grant takes Vicksburg & cuts the South into two (turning point of the war)
- May – Sep 1864: Successful Atlanta Campaign
- 15 Nov – 22 Dec 1864: Sherman’s Marsh to the Sea with massive destructions
Eastern Theatre
- 01 – 04 May 1863: Confederate victory in the Battle of Chancellorsville
- 01 – 03 Jul 1863: U.S. victory in the Battle of Gettysburg (turning point of the war)
- May – Jun 1864: Grant‘s Overland Campaign wears off the Confederate forces
- Jun 1864 – Mar 1865: The siege of Petersburg wears off the Confederates
- Aug – Oct 1864: Sheridan brings the Shenandoah Valley under U.S. control & suppresses all Confederate operations
- 29 Mar – 09 Apr 1865: The Appomattox Campaign of the Union ends with the surrender of Lee‘s North Virginia Army
- 26 Apr 1865: Sherman‘s Carolina Campaign leads to the surrender of Johnston’s troops
- 09 May 1865: President Johnson declares the end of the war
Consequences & Impact
- The American Civil War is seen as the first modern war with at least 620,000 dead
- The Union is preserved
- The Southern states are fully reintegrated into the Union during the Reconstruction (1865 – 1877)
- The USA are conclusively made into a federal state which enables her international rise
- Abolishment of slavery