Transcript 1861 Notes 2014

The First Year
Building Armies

Politicians think this will be a “90 - day War”
 Short and easy with few casualties
At the start of the War neither side had a large
standing Army
 Both sides will call for volunteers
 Most men that volunteer are between 16-30 years old,
and have no military experience
 Describe the attitude of the Soldiers leaving for War. Why are
they volunteering? Do they seem scared or worried?
Building Armies

The North calls for 275,000 volunteers
The South calls for 100,000 volunteers
 So many men volunteer that some are turned away and
sent home
 Neither side will allow African-Americans to fight
Men from everywhere, and from many different
backgrounds enlist in the Army to fight for their
countries.
 Entire towns will sign up go to war.
Building Armies

 Describe the attitude of the Soldiers leaving for War. Why are
they volunteering? Do they seem scared or worried?
 Most inexperienced soldiers are excited, happy and eager to
fight.
 They have no idea what war really will be like
 Most experienced soldiers are worried, scared and are
predicting a long war with many deaths.
 They have seen war before, and know what to expect
Robert E. Lee

 Both sides were in need of strong, capable commanders
 Robert E. Lee Pre-Civil War: Considered the most promising and capable
officer in the United States Army
 After Fort Sumter: Meets with Abraham Lincoln
 Lee is offered command of the entire U.S. Army
 Lee declines the offer.
 Lee is offered command of the
Confederate Army of Northern Virginia
 Lee Accepts the offer
 “I look upon secession as anarchy. If I owned four millions of slaves in the South I would sacrifice
them all to the Union; but how can I draw my sword upon Virginia, my native state?”
 “If Virginia stands by the old Union, so will I. But if she secedes…then I will follow my native
state with my sword and if need be with my life.”
Preparing for Battle

 Thousands of men have left home to enlist in the army.
 They are being trained, but have yet to see a real battle
 “This is not an army” – Irvin McDowell
 Abraham Lincoln has shown he will do anything to restore the
Union, even ignore the Constitution.
 Lincoln prevents the border states from seceding (MO, KY, DE, MD)
 Neither side is allowing African-Americans to fight.
 The Union Army is allowing runaway slaves to work as laborers
 Small skirmishes are breaking out across the country, but there
still has not been a major battle.
Battle of Bull Run/Manassas

Battle of Bull Run/Battle of Manassas
 July 21st, 1861
 First major battle of the Civil War
 Manassas Junction, Virginia (near Bull Run Creek)
 Contained an important railroad station
 Close to both the U.S. and Confederate Capitols
 ~25 miles from Washington D.C
 ~75 miles from Richmond, Virginia
 Turn to your Civil War Map
Battle of Bull Run/Manassas

 ~35,000 Union Troops vs. ~25,000 Confederate Troops
 Early in the battle, Union Forces are winning easily.
 They are breaking Confederate lines and forcing them to retreat.
 The battle is so one-sided that Union soldiers are stopping to
collect souvenirs from the battlefield
Battle of Bull Run/Manassas

**Turning Point**
Union forces hit Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson’s line.
 Jackson’s men hold and the Union Army is stopped
 “There’s Jackson with his Virginians, standing like a stone wall”
 Confederate reinforcements
arrive and go on a counterattack
 The Union Army falls apart and
is driven off the battlefield
Battle of Bull Run/Manassas

The South wins a surprising victory against a
larger Northern Army
Union = 2896 casualties
Confederacy = 1982 casualties
 Casualty = Someone injured, killed, captured, or
missing in action after a military action.
Bull Run/Manassas was the largest and bloodiest
battle in American history up to that point.
After Bull Run/Manassas

 Soldiers now realize what the war will really be like.
 They are exposed to death and horrific injuries for the first time
 In the South they celebrate their “Great Victory”.
 They will gain the confidence that they CAN win the war.
 In the North they wonder how this could have happened.
 Lincoln and others are shocked, begin to question their strategies
 People on both sides are shocked by the amount of casualties.
 Both sides realize this will not be a “90-day War”
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George B. McClellan

George B. McClellan is put in command
of the Union Army
 His strength is preparing and training armies.
 He drills them day and night, inspires confidence, and makes
the Union Army truly ready for war.
 His weakness is inactivity/cautiousness
 McClellan creates great armies, but does
not want to fight battles.
No “90-day War”

Most people now realize the Civil War will be much
longer and more destructive than they thought.
 Generals:
 Ulysses S. Grant – relieved of command and assigned desk duty
 William T. Sherman – called insane when he predicts he will
need 200,000 men in Kentucky. Goes into a deep depression
Both sides call for more volunteers and continue to
build their Armies
 The two nations prepare for a long, bloody 1862.