American Civil War: Difference between revisions

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In the 1860 presidential election, Republicans, led by<span style="color:rgb(58,58,58);"> </span>[http://real-life-heroes.wikia.com/wiki/Abraham_Lincoln Abraham Lincoln], opposed expanding slavery into [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Territories_of_the_United_States United States' territories]. Lincoln won, but before [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_inauguration_of_Abraham_Lincoln his inauguration] on March 4, 1861, seven slave states with cotton-based economies formed the Confederacy. Outgoing [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Party_%28United_States%29 Democratic] President [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Buchanan James Buchanan] and the incoming Republicans rejected secession as illegal. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abraham_Lincoln%27s_first_inaugural_address Lincoln's inaugural address] declared his administration would not initiate civil war. Eight remaining slave states continued to reject calls for secession. Confederate forces seized numerous federal forts within territory claimed by the Confederacy. A [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peace_Conference_of_1861 Peace Conference] failed to find a compromise, and both sides prepared for war. The Confederates assumed that European countries were so dependent on "[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Cotton King Cotton]" that they would intervene; none did and none recognized the new Confederate States of America.

Hostilities began on April 12, 1861, when Confederate forces fired upon Fort Sumter, a key fort held by Union troops in South Carolina. Lincoln called for each state to provide troops to retake the fort; consequently, four more slave states joined the Confederacy, bringing their total to eleven. The Union soon controlled the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Border_states_%28American_Civil_War%29 border states] and established a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_blockade naval blockade] that crippled the southern economy. The Eastern Theater was inconclusive in 1861–62. The autumn 1862 Confederate campaign into Maryland (a Union state) ended with Confederate retreat at the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Antietam Battle of Antietam], dissuading British intervention. Lincoln issued the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emancipation_Proclamation Emancipation Proclamation], which made ending slavery a war goal. To the west, by summer 1862 the Union destroyed the Confederate river navy, then much of their western armies, and the Union [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Vicksburg siege of Vicksburg] split the Confederacy in two at the Mississippi River. In 1863, [http://real-life-heroes.wikia.com/wiki/General_Robert_E._Lee Robert E. Lee]~~[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_E._Lee~~ '~~s] Confederate~~ incursion north ended at the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Gettysburg Battle of Gettysburg]. Western successes led to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulysses_S._Grant Ulysses S. Grant] command of all Union armies in 1864. In the Western Theater, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Tecumseh_Sherman William T. Sherman] drove east to capture [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlanta_in_the_American_Civil_War Atlanta] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherman%27s_March_to_the_Sea marched to the sea], destroying Confederate infrastructure along the way. The Union marshaled the resources and manpower to attack the Confederacy from all directions, and could afford to fight [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_attrition battles of attrition] through the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overland_Campaign Overland Campaign] towards Richmond, the Confederate capital. The defending Confederate army failed, leading to Lee's surrender to Grant at [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Appomattox_Courthouse Appomattox Court House] on April 9, 1865.

Hostilities began on April 12, 1861, when Confederate forces fired upon Fort Sumter, a key fort held by Union troops in South Carolina. Lincoln called for each state to provide troops to retake the fort; consequently, four more slave states joined the Confederacy, bringing their total to eleven. The Union soon controlled the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Border_states_%28American_Civil_War%29 border states] and established a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_blockade naval blockade] that crippled the southern economy. The Eastern Theater was inconclusive in 1861–62. The autumn 1862 Confederate campaign into Maryland (a Union state) ended with Confederate retreat at the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Antietam Battle of Antietam], dissuading British intervention. Lincoln issued the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emancipation_Proclamation Emancipation Proclamation], which made ending slavery a war goal. To the west, by summer 1862 the Union destroyed the Confederate river navy, then much of their western armies, and the Union [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Vicksburg siege of Vicksburg] split the Confederacy in two at the Mississippi River. In 1863, [http://real-life-heroes.wikia.com/wiki/General_Robert_E._Lee Robert E. Lee]'s Confederate incursion north ended at the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Gettysburg Battle of Gettysburg]. Western successes led to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulysses_S._Grant Ulysses S. Grant] command of all Union armies in 1864. In the Western Theater, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Tecumseh_Sherman William T. Sherman] drove east to capture [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlanta_in_the_American_Civil_War Atlanta] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherman%27s_March_to_the_Sea marched to the sea], destroying Confederate infrastructure along the way. The Union marshaled the resources and manpower to attack the Confederacy from all directions, and could afford to fight [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_attrition battles of attrition] through the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overland_Campaign Overland Campaign] towards Richmond, the Confederate capital. The defending Confederate army failed, leading to Lee's surrender to Grant at [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Appomattox_Courthouse Appomattox Court House] on April 9, 1865.

The American Civil War was one of the earliest true industrial wars. Railroads, the telegraph, steamships, and mass-produced weapons were employed extensively. The mobilization of civilian factories, mines, shipyards, banks, transportation and food supplies all foreshadowed [http://real-life-villains.wikia.com/wiki/World_War_I World War I]. It remains the deadliest war in American history, resulting in the deaths of an estimated 750,000 soldiers and an undetermined number of civilian casualties.

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 In the 1860 presidential election, Republicans, led by<span style="color:rgb(58,58,58);"> </span>[http://real-life-heroes.wikia.com/wiki/Abraham_Lincoln Abraham Lincoln], opposed expanding slavery into [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Territories_of_the_United_States United States' territories]. Lincoln won, but before [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_inauguration_of_Abraham_Lincoln his inauguration] on March 4, 1861, seven slave states with cotton-based economies formed the Confederacy. Outgoing [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Party_%28United_States%29 Democratic] President [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Buchanan James Buchanan] and the incoming Republicans rejected secession as illegal. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abraham_Lincoln%27s_first_inaugural_address Lincoln's inaugural address] declared his administration would not initiate civil war. Eight remaining slave states continued to reject calls for secession. Confederate forces seized numerous federal forts within territory claimed by the Confederacy. A [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peace_Conference_of_1861 Peace Conference] failed to find a compromise, and both sides prepared for war. The Confederates assumed that European countries were so dependent on "[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Cotton King Cotton]" that they would intervene; none did and none recognized the new Confederate States of America.
-Hostilities began on April 12, 1861, when Confederate forces fired upon Fort Sumter, a key fort held by Union troops in South Carolina. Lincoln called for each state to provide troops to retake the fort; consequently, four more slave states joined the Confederacy, bringing their total to eleven. The Union soon controlled the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Border_states_%28American_Civil_War%29 border states] and established a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_blockade naval blockade] that crippled the southern economy. The Eastern Theater was inconclusive in 1861–62. The autumn 1862 Confederate campaign into Maryland (a Union state) ended with Confederate retreat at the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Antietam Battle of Antietam], dissuading British intervention. Lincoln issued the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emancipation_Proclamation Emancipation Proclamation], which made ending slavery a war goal. To the west, by summer 1862 the Union destroyed the Confederate river navy, then much of their western armies, and the Union [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Vicksburg siege of Vicksburg] split the Confederacy in two at the Mississippi River. In 1863, [http://real-life-heroes.wikia.com/wiki/General_Robert_E._Lee Robert E. Lee][http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_E._Lee 's] Confederate incursion north ended at the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Gettysburg Battle of Gettysburg]. Western successes led to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulysses_S._Grant Ulysses S. Grant] command of all Union armies in 1864. In the Western Theater, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Tecumseh_Sherman William T. Sherman] drove east to capture [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlanta_in_the_American_Civil_War Atlanta] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherman%27s_March_to_the_Sea marched to the sea], destroying Confederate infrastructure along the way. The Union marshaled the resources and manpower to attack the Confederacy from all directions, and could afford to fight [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_attrition battles of attrition] through the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overland_Campaign Overland Campaign] towards Richmond, the Confederate capital. The defending Confederate army failed, leading to Lee's surrender to Grant at [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Appomattox_Courthouse Appomattox Court House] on April 9, 1865.
+Hostilities began on April 12, 1861, when Confederate forces fired upon Fort Sumter, a key fort held by Union troops in South Carolina. Lincoln called for each state to provide troops to retake the fort; consequently, four more slave states joined the Confederacy, bringing their total to eleven. The Union soon controlled the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Border_states_%28American_Civil_War%29 border states] and established a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_blockade naval blockade] that crippled the southern economy. The Eastern Theater was inconclusive in 1861–62. The autumn 1862 Confederate campaign into Maryland (a Union state) ended with Confederate retreat at the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Antietam Battle of Antietam], dissuading British intervention. Lincoln issued the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emancipation_Proclamation Emancipation Proclamation], which made ending slavery a war goal. To the west, by summer 1862 the Union destroyed the Confederate river navy, then much of their western armies, and the Union [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Vicksburg siege of Vicksburg] split the Confederacy in two at the Mississippi River. In 1863, [http://real-life-heroes.wikia.com/wiki/General_Robert_E._Lee Robert E. Lee]'s Confederate incursion north ended at the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Gettysburg Battle of Gettysburg]. Western successes led to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulysses_S._Grant Ulysses S. Grant] command of all Union armies in 1864. In the Western Theater, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Tecumseh_Sherman William T. Sherman] drove east to capture [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlanta_in_the_American_Civil_War Atlanta] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherman%27s_March_to_the_Sea marched to the sea], destroying Confederate infrastructure along the way. The Union marshaled the resources and manpower to attack the Confederacy from all directions, and could afford to fight [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_attrition battles of attrition] through the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overland_Campaign Overland Campaign] towards Richmond, the Confederate capital. The defending Confederate army failed, leading to Lee's surrender to Grant at [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Appomattox_Courthouse Appomattox Court House] on April 9, 1865.
 The American Civil War was one of the earliest true industrial wars. Railroads, the telegraph, steamships, and mass-produced weapons were employed extensively. The mobilization of civilian factories, mines, shipyards, banks, transportation and food supplies all foreshadowed [http://real-life-villains.wikia.com/wiki/World_War_I World War I]. It remains the deadliest war in American history, resulting in the deaths of an estimated 750,000 soldiers and an undetermined number of civilian casualties.