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Preface:

Lincoln only thought he needed the troops he called on April 15, 1861, for 90 days. He also intended not to mess with slavery but both of these promises were broken eventually.

Bull Run Ends the “90 Day War”

• The thirty thousand men that went to Washington for drills were not well prepared for battle but time was running out. Therefore, he made a decision to attack a small Union force at Bull Run (Alternate Name for Confederacy: Manassas Junction).

• Winning this battle could potentially allow the capture of Richmond to happen and restore the Union without much bloodshed.

• The North, acting all prideful, sent the recruits to Bull Run on July 21st, 1681 and were chased away by a line of reinforcements led by Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson. The Confederate army was too tired to follow.

• Bull Run was the first turning point battle. The South won, but they got cocky afterwards. The Union lost, but they now knew they actually needed to fight.

• Interesting Trivia: This was called a “military picnic” because politicians were actually watching the fight. Some of them actually ended up being a hindrance to the fleeing Union troops.

“Turdy George” McClellan and the Peninsula Campaign

• George B. McClellan (nicknames: Young Napoleon, Little Mac) looked like a good man, graduating from West Point and fighting in the Mexican War. He also observed the Crimean War.

• His flaw came when he liked his soldiers a little too much, causing him to not even send them out into battle. He also wanted things to be perfect, making excuses that his army was not ready. A battle cannot be won without some sacrifice.

• He constantly overestimated the strength of the Southern army (basically chickened out because the Pickerton’s Detective Agency fed him unreliable information)

• Abe Lincoln thought he was too slow in doing things so he finally ordered McClellan to advance. He took a water route to Richmond by going up the peninsula.

• He was getting closer with his 100,000 men to Richmond until he could see it.

• Lincoln called McClellan to go over to chase “Stonewall” Jackson’s army but it was a bit too late. “Jeb” Stuart’s scout cavalry found out the location of the army and Robert E. Lee launched an attack pushing the Union army back to sea. Lincoln abandoned McClellan as the commander of the Potomac Army.

• But if McClellan had won, then the Union would be restored with slavery still intact, nothing would change. Lincoln now wanted to give some punishment to the South for their actions. He began drafting what would be the Emancipation Proclamation.

• Now the Union really knew this was going to be a tough war. This is the Union strategy:

1. Blockade coast

2. Free slaves to destroy economy of South

3. Slice the Confederacy in half by taking control of the Mississippi River

4. slice the South even further by adding troops into Georgia and Carolinas

5. Chop the head off of the Confederacy by taking Richmond

6. Keep the Southern army occupied so that they will slowly be ground into pieces.

The War at Sea

• Initially the blockade looked like a flop. You try blocking 3500 miles of coastline with some warships and some yachts converted into warships. But they did concentrate on the major ports which wasn’t a bad idea.

• The British didn’t want to bust the blockade, they did not want to be tied into a war that wasn’t their own war. There were some Scots that ran the blockade from the West Indies. This profitable business went on until the Union blockaded the important Southern ports.

• The North intercepted the British ships and if they contained any weapons, it was automatically assumed the weapons were going for the Confederacy. (Ultimate destination)

• The British reluctantly agreed to comply with the blockade.

• There was a close call though. The Confederates raised a ship called the Merrimack  and reinforced it with railroad rails. Renamed the Virginia the ship sunk two wooden Union ships.

• A small ironclad ship, the Monitor, came chugging along and managed to stall the Merrimack.

• Merrimack was eventually destroyed by the Confederacy so the Union army couldn’t get a hold of it.

The Pivotal Point: Antietam

• Robert E. Lee was on his way north and met General John Pope at the Second Bull Run (Second Manassas Junction).

• It was another crushing defeat for the North. Now all Lee had to do was hijack Maryland and hopefully persuade them to join the confederacy by a victory. He also wanted to use another huge victory as a way to woo other countries to help. So he came to Antietam Creek.

• Old McClellan was back, even though he chickened out once already.

• The difference now was that two of his soldiers found a cigar box with Robert E. Lee’s battle plans rolled up inside. With that in his hand, he was able to stop Robert E. Lee on Sept. 17, 1862.

• What McClellan didn’t do was chase the retreating Confederate army. He once again missed out on a good opportunity.

• This was the last straw for Lincoln, McClellan got the boot.

• This is another turning point battle because the South had a chance to show foreign countries that they could win the war. The French and the British were actually negotiating. Suddenly, the Union put up a good fight and the foreign countries were not so optimistic towards the Confederacy.

• If this battle had to be classified as win or loss, it would be a Union victory.

• To add some salt to the wound, Lincoln gave his Emancipation Proclamation.

o He emphasized that now, the goal of this war is to end slavery and to change the Old South.

A Proclamation without Emancipation

• Lincoln had no control of the Confederacy though so the slaves weren’t really freed. Lincoln also refused to free the slaves in the border states because he didn’t want disunion.

• What it did was cause an uprising by the slaves, causing many to run into the Union.

• The war now spelled doom for slavery. Individual states would eventually abolish slavery or the 13th amendment would eventually force them.

• The Emancipation Proclamation also made the war a war that would be victory at all costs. There was no negotiation.

• Many abolitionists complained that the proclamation wasn’t enough. Lincoln should have done more.

• The proclamation had a downside. It drove troops in the Union army away. They were fighting for unity, not against slavery.

o Mid-term elections also went against Lincoln’s administration.

• The South was most definitely outraged.

• The British were more supportive because they had already abolished slavery.

o This slowly removed any foreign support for the Confederacy.

Blacks Battle Bondage

• Lincoln also agreed that the blacks should be allowed to fight too. The army didn’t enlist blacks but the navy did before this.

• Blacks accounted for 10 percent of the Union Army .

• Black fighting men were also happy to have chance to show that they were real people.

• The Confederacy treated them as slaves in revolt rather than POWs until 1864.

• The Confederacy did not think to enlist slaves for they did not want to ruin their “dignity”. They did at the end of the war when it was already too late. The slaves were kept to keep the farms running.

• Fear of slave revolts scared people into staying on the plantation to monitor slaves, keeping some off the battlefront.

• Slaves served as Union spies.

• Some walked away from their plantations while others negotiated better working conditions.

Lee’s Last Lunge at Gettysburg

• McClellan was replaced by General A.E. Burnside.

• Control was handed off to “Fighting Joe” Hooker who was dazed by the charging Confederacy led by “Stonewall” Jackson at Chancellorsville.

• Jackson, however, was killed by friendly fire.

• General George Meade was named as a replacement for Hooker.

• This three day battle ended with George Pickett’s charge toward the Union flank, ending in a failure for the Confederates.

• A Confederate Peace Delegation was moving up toward the Union under a flag of truce. Lincoln stopped this Delegation after winning Gettysburg. The South was doomed.

• Lincoln also gave a 2 minute Gettysburg Address (you know, that “four score and seven years ago” thing)

The War in the West

• Ulysses S Grant was an average student at West Point.

• He was only gaining prestige after he captured Fort Henry and Fort Donelson in Tennessee.

o Grant wanted unconditional surrender when a confederate commander asked for terms.

• Grant’s successes in Tennessee kept neighboring Kentucky in the Union.

• Grant tried to go and capture the railroads of the South but was unsuccessfully met at the Battle of Shiloh.

• Lincoln found his man for he actually fought.

• Interesting Trivia: It was reported that people tried to point out that Grant drank too much. Lincoln thought about it and told them that he should send some drink to all his generals, the alcohol doesn’t seem to have impaired Grant’s ability to lead and fight.

• David G. Farragut was on his way to take New Orleans. Grant was on his way down the Mississippi. Slowly, the backdoor was going to be closed.

• Grant laid siege at Vicksburg, Mississippi and caused that city to fall. He also felled Port Hudson.

• Vicksburg was called a day after Gettysburg. Back to back wins were crucial and the Mississippi River was opened up to the North. They also opened back up the Ohio River Valley for supplies, keeping the border state economy from collapsing. Finally, this closed all doors to foreign intervention on the war at least in the South’s favor. Britain and France stopped supplying or planning to supply the South with ships.

Sherman Scorches Georgia

• Grant won his way at Chickamauga and Chattanooga. Invasion of Georgia was now possible. Grant was general in chief now.

• William Tecumseh Sherman was in charge of invading Georgia. He left his base and went to Savannah, Georgia.

o On the way there, he burned buildings and ripped up railroads. He laid a path of destruction to hurt the Southern Morale and destroy supplies.

o His army lost discipline at times and did more damage than intended.

• Sherman continued northward into South Carolina, capturing Columbia (the capital) and then moved up into North Carolina by the end of the war.

The Politics of War

• It was election time in the middle of the war. People in Lincoln’s own party even disliked some of his policies including his treasury secretary, Salmon Chase.

• Congressional Committee on the Conduct of War was a burdensome thing to Lincoln. They disliked presidential expansion of power and persuaded Lincoln to do the emancipation thing.

• Northern democrats were doomed for a bit. They were associated with the Southern democrats and their leader, Stephen A. Douglas, died.

o Democrats divided into “War Democrats” and “Peace Democrats”.

o Extreme “copperheads” showed the most vocal opposition to Lincoln’s war.

o Clement L. Vallandigham stirred up trouble and condemned the war. He was found guilty of treason and banished to the Confederate states.

▪ Ran for governor of Ohio when he ran to Canada. Then returned but was no longer pursued.

The Election of 1864

• Republicans and War Democrats joined forces briefly to form the Union Party.

• Lincoln was nominated without much serious opposition other than from some factions.

• Lincoln was running with Andrew Johnson to attract the War Democrats.

• Copperheads named General McClellan as their candidate.

• It wasn’t a good picture for Lincoln for he was disliked even by a few of his own party. Some tried to dump Lincoln. The Copperheads emphasized that Lincoln dumped McClellan and Little Mac would win the war.

• Successes at Atlanta and Mobile, Alabama changed this for Lincoln. Union soldiers sent in their votes to. Some voted for others and some voted on the front.

• Lincoln 212 electoral. McClellan 21 Electoral

• McClellan did get 45% of the popular vote though.

• Lincoln won and many in the Confederacy deserted the army.

Grant Outlasts Lee

• Lincoln dispatched Grant into the east because Meade wasn’t doing too well.

• Grant and Lee met in the Wilderness of Virginia, engaging in combat. Grant lost 50000 of his more than 100000 men. Lee lost the same amount in a smaller proportion.

• Grant gambled on June 3, 1864 at Cold Harbor. He sent his men in with names and addresses pinned on their backs in case they died. Seven thousand men died in 7 minutes.

• But Grant received undeserved criticism. It wasn’t a total screw up. 1/5 of Lee’s soldiers had casualties while 1/10 of Grant’s soldiers had casualties.

• The war was almost ending. Lincoln went to meet with Confederate reps on a union ship at Hampton Roads to discuss treaty agreements.

• At about the same time, Grant cornered Lee at the Appomattox Courthouse where Lee surrendered on Palm Sunday, April 1865.

• Lincoln went to Richmond and was escorted down the streets.

The Martyrdom of Lincoln

• Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth on April 14, 1865 (Good Friday)

• But the ex-Confederates soon realized that the assassination was a bad idea. Lincoln was going to be nicer to the South. Johnson was a hot tempered man.

The Aftermath (Stats)

• 600000 men died in action or of disease. There were 1 million casualties.

• The war costs amounted to $15 billion but that does not include any compensation or pensions.

• State righters also lost this war for now the government emerged unscathed.

• This would be a challenge for America, would the democracy still be upheld?

• Even so, this war encouraged the British to pass the Reform Bill of 1867 as the observant British wanted such a democracy just like the Americans for the government emerged unscathed.

• Now the Americans needed to reconstruct...

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