Major battles
First Shots Fired (april 1861) The first shots of the Civil War were fired at Fort Sumter on April 12th, 1861. Supplies were being taken to the fort and South Carolina was warned, but detecting a trick, asked Robert Anderson, Fort Sumter's commander, to surrender. He was going to surrender, but wanted to still supply what was needed to Fort Sumter and that offer was rejected. The first shots were fired on the 12th, and eventually South Carolina gained control of the fort. There was continuous shelling of the fort for around 40 hours until the south gained control and Union troops could leave safely.
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The First Battle Of Bull Run (July 1861) This was the first battle of the Civil War, which occurred on July 21st, 1861, at Manassas Junction close to Bull Run Creek in Virginia. General Irvin McDowell was in charge of advancing on the Confederate troops. Although the northern troops were not ready, they did have a winning start, but the South brought in reinforcements and won the battle. There were a total of 2,900 casualties resulting from this battle when the South defeated the North. The Union retreated to the Capital and Lincoln called for more volunteers because of this heavy loss.
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Shiloh (april 1862)
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General Ulysses S. Grant had captured several forts in Tennessee and he was moving his troops South along the Tennessee River when the Confederate troops attacked Union forces at Shiloh, Tennessee. Grant was not expecting this attack, resulting in a heavy loss the first day of fighting, but reinforcements were sent in overnight and the next day the Union troops dominated the fields. Many of the Union soldiers who were killed, died in their bunks or eating breakfast because the attack was so sudden. Confederates retreated and the Union stopped pushing. 13,000 Union soldiers and 11,000 Confederate soldiers died.
Battle of ANTIETAM (september 1861) The Battle of Antietam was the bloodiest battle throughout the whole Civil War. General Lee had written his strategy to attack the Union forces on a bundle of cigars, but a Union soldier found it and Union troops knew what they were planning. Lee had split his army again and was planning an attack. McClellan delayed any action for sixteen hours, which allowed Lee to post his troops behind Antietam Creek. Around 6,4000 soldiers on both sides were killed and 15,000 were wounded. Union forces won but McClellan upset Lincoln and was removed from command.
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Battle of Vicksburg (May 1863) Ulysses Grant was moving his soldiers towards Vicksburg which is where many Confederate troops were. The Union wanted to gain control of the Mississippi River, therefore splitting the Confederate Army in two. Grant sent the troops into Louisiana and later went South to meet the enemy in April. He went through Jackson, Mississippi and seized or destroyed all supplies of the Confederacy. On May 18th, he forced 30,000 Confederate soldiers into Vicksburg, starving and bombarding them. President Lincoln called Grants campaign to get the Confederate troops into Vicksburg, "one of the most brilliant in the world."
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The Battle of Gettysburg (July 1863)
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http://www.sonofthesouth.net/leefoundation/civil-war/1863/august/battle-gettysburg.jpg
When the battle of Gettysburg started the Union troops had a better chance of winning because of higher ground. In Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, Confederate troops were looking for shoes when they ran into Union troops. Confederates pushed the enemy out of Gettysburg up onto higher ground which was an advantage for the Union. General Meade was in charge of the Union troops now, and he asked for reinforcements. Confederate soldiers tried to assault the soldiers but Meade's army stopped it. General Pickett, in charge of the Confederate troops in Gettysburg, decided to attack on the Union center located at Cemetery Ridge. The Confederates were completely overwhelmed and suffered heavy loses. Whole regiments were killed and many Generals were mad at Robert E. Lee because of the horrible loss the Confederates faced.
Appomattox (April 1865) Confederate soldiers were having a rough time because of sanitation and disease. Confederate troops were outnumbered by Union soldiers and by this point they knew they were not going to win the war. Union Cavalry captured the Confederacy's President, Jefferson Davis, in Georgia on May 10th. General Lee met General Grant in the parlor of the Appomattox Court House to surrender. Grant allowed the Confederate soldiers to keep their guns and mules. Later on, the rest of the Confederate army's surrendered and the war was finally over and ready for reconstruction to start.
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Tindall, George and David Shi. (2007). America, A Narrative History. New York: W.W. Norton & Company.