The Civil War, 1861–65

Outbreak and Progression of the Civil War

The Civil War was a major conflict in the United States from 1861 to 1865 between the Northern states (Union) and Southern states (Confederacy) primarily over the issue of slavery.
The war began after the attack on Fort Sumter in South Carolina by the Confederate forces in April 1861. Four more states joined the already seceded seven states in forming the Confederacy.
Early in the war, the Union experienced seething defeats like Bull Run and had a lack of effective leadership. However, the tide of the war changed with battles such as Gettysburg and Vicksburg in 1863. Gettysburg halted Lee’s northern invasion, and Vicksburg granted the Union control of the Mississippi River, a significant Confederate supply line.

Abraham Lincoln, elected president in 1860, was the leader of the Union. He issued the Emancipation Proclamation in 1862, which declared the freeing of all slaves in the Confederate-held territory.
General Robert E. Lee was the commander of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia and one of the most respected figures of the South.
Ulysses S. Grant, a key Union general, led the Union armies to several victories and was later appointed as commander of all Union Armies in 1864.

Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation not only freed slaves in Confederate territory but also established the abolition of slavery as a key objective of the war.
The Proclamation allowed for the recruitment of African Americans into the Union Army, a significant boost in manpower.

With the surrender of Lee to Grant at Appomattox Court House in Virginia, the Confederacy collapsed, and the Civil War effectively ended.
The war resulted in extensive damage, particularly in the South. The human cost was enormous with over 600,000 soldiers killed, and millions more were injured.
The war resulted in the abolition of slavery, and set the stage for struggles over Civil Rights that would continue well into the 20th century.