The American Civil War

• Marycarmen Carhuamaca

• Olga Diez Canseco
• Aimy Gago

“The American Civil War”

Answer the following questions and complete the charts.

1.    What was the American Civil War? Explain

• The American Civil War was a major armed conflict that took place from 1861 to 1865 in the United States. It was fought between the northern states, known as the Union, and the southern states, known as the Confederacy.

2.    What were the different parties and principal leaders? Background

• The different parties in the American Civil War were the Union and the Confederacy.
• The Union consisted of the northern states, which remained loyal to the federal government and sought to preserve the Union. President Abraham Lincoln was the prominent leader of the Union.
• The Confederacy comprised the southern states that seceded from the Union. President Jefferson Davis served as the President of the Confederacy. General Robert E. Lee, considered one of the most prominent Confederate military leaders.

3.    Duration of the conflict and who won?

• The American Civil War lasted for four years. The Union emerged victorious in the war.

4.    How was the political context before the war? Explain.

• After two years of fighting, the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ended the Mexican-American War. Through this treaty, the United States acquired new territory that included all of present-day.

5.    What were the causes?

SLAVERY. The Southern states depended on slaves for their large plantations so abolishing slavery was a threat to their economic prosperity.

The Northern states were abolishing slavery and the abolitionist movement was on the rise.

STATES’ RIGHTS v.s.FEDERAL RIGHTS. The Southern states defended the right to allow or protect slavery within their borders and believed that states should be able to override or ignore federal laws they deemed unconstitutional, while the Northern states believed in the authority of the federal government.

ECONOMIC DIFFERENCES. The North was wealthy, industrialized and rapidly urbanizing. They focused on manufacturing, trade and industry. Southerners depended on agriculture and plantations. They used slaves as planters, carpenters, drivers, etc. This economic difference intensified regional tensions.

 ABRAHAM LINCOLN AND THE FOLLOWING SECESSION. The election of Abraham Lincoln, a Republican, was the trigger for the secession of many Southern states and the formation of the Confederate States of America. Between 1860 and 1861, 7 states officially seceded (Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida and South Carolina) because they felt that their rights to govern themselves were no longer guaranteed within the Union.

6.    Explain the outbreak of the American Civil War.

The Confederate attack on Fort Sumter:

➢ On April 12, 1861, Confederate troops fired on Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina. The attack came after South Carolina had already seceded from the Union.

➢ After a 34-hour bombardment, Union forces surrendered on April 13.

➢ Lincoln called out troops to suppress the rebellion and preserve the Union, which caused four of the South to secede and join the Confederacy - Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee and Arkansas.

7.    Explain the war, and the main battles that took place.

BATTLE OF FORT SUMTER (April 12-13, 1861)

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