Transcript Civil War – Beginnings

The American
Civil War –
Beginnings
Presidential election of 1860
 In 1860, Stephan Douglas and Abraham
Lincoln ran against each other again, this
time for president.
 Lincoln had become well known from their
debates about slavery.
 This time, Lincoln won, becoming the 16th
president.
Southern States secede
 Lincoln received no support in the South,
because they believed Lincoln wanted to end
slavery. Since there were so many more people in
the North, he won the election anyway.
 As soon as Lincoln won the election, the South
started to secede. This means the South split from
the Union. They no longer wanted to be part of
the United States.
 Supporters of secession based their arguments on
the idea of states’ rights. They had voluntarily
joined the union, so they could leave when they
wanted.
Confederate States of America
 On December 20, 1860, South
Carolina became the first state
to secede. They were followed
by Mississippi, Florida,
Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana,
and Texas.
 The eleven states that had
seceded formed the Confederate
States of America.
 They named Jefferson Davis as
president.
 They wrote a new Constitution
which made slavery legal.
Civil War
 A civil war is a war between people of the
same country.
 There have been many civil wars, but one
of the worst happened in America.
 The American Civil War was fought to
keep the South from leaving the Union.
 Slavery was the major issue that separated
the North from the South.
The Civil War began at Fort
Sumter.
 Fort Sumter was in the South, and the
Union has a hard time defending the fort.
 There were 23 states in the Union (North)
at the beginning of the war.
 There were 11 states in the Confederacy
(South) at the beginning of the war.
North’s Advantages
 The North had some major advantages.
They had many more people and also had
many more factories, which could be used
to make weapons.
 The Union also had many more miles of
railroad tracks.
South’s Advantages
 The South’s main advantage was that they
were fighting at home.
 This would mean that they would be closer
to their supplies.
 They also would fight harder because they
were protecting their homes.
Abraham Lincoln
 The president of the
Union was Abraham
Lincoln, who had
been elected in 1860.
Jefferson Davis
 The president of the
new Confederate
States of America or
the Confederacy was
Jefferson Davis.
Battle of Bull Run
 One of the first battles of the war was the Battle
of Bull Run.
 The North realized after this battle that the war
would not be easy and would not be over soon.
New Weapons
 Many new weapons were used during the
Civil War.
 One of these weapons was an ironclad
ship. An ironclad ship was a ship with iron
plates on it to protect it from cannon fire.
Other new weapons
 Deadlier cannons and
bullets
 More accurate rifles
Battle of Antietam
 The first time the Confederacy invaded
Northern territory was the Battle of
Antietam.
 It was also the bloodiest battle day in
United States history. 23,000 men lost their
lives that day.
 The Union army stopped the Confederate
army. This “victory” by the Union gave
President Lincoln the chance to announce
the abolition of slavery in the South.
Emancipation Proclamation
 The Emancipation
Proclamation declared
that all slaves should be
set free in the
Confederacy.
 It also allowed blacks to
serve in the Union army
and navy.
 The South ignored the
Emancipation
Proclamation, but it did
change to focus of the
war to the issue of
slavery.
Women in the Civil War
 Women on both sides
worked during the
war. Many became
nurses. The most
famous nurse from
the Union was Clara
Barton.
 She also helped
organize the
American Red Cross.
Battle of Gettysburg
 The Battle of Gettysburg
was one of the bloodiest
battles of the war.
 90,000 Union soldiers
fought 75,000
Confederate soldiers.
 More than 50,000 men
were killed or wounded in
the battle.
 The Union won the Battle of Gettysburg.
 Many Northerners started supporting the army
after this by lending them money to help pay for
the war.
 This was called a war bond.
Gettysburg Address
 After the Battle of Gettysburg, President
Lincoln went to the battlefield to dedicate a
cemetery in honor of all those who had
died.
 Lincoln spoke for two minutes, but his
speech became very famous.
 It is called the Gettysburg Address.