Chapter 16 The Civil War Begins Section 1

Chapter 16: The Civil War Begins Section 1: War Erupts

Even though both sides wanted to avoid a fight – they couldn’t n One of the things the Confederacy did was to take over government places – like post offices, banks, forts, newspapers, etc…

One of the forts the South hadn’t taken over was: Fort Sumter – an island fort off South Carolina n n Fort Sumter was still held by the Union, but they were running low on supplies. Abraham Lincoln decided to send them the supplies they needed. On the way, the supply ships were attacked. The South then began to attack the fort – and the Civil War had begun

The 2 sides sign up for n The North Lincoln tried to get 75, 000 men to enlist in the militia (to put down the uprising). The Civil War is the reason we have a Virginia and a West Virginia. People west of the mountains didn’t have slaves. People east of the Appalachians did. n n n The South More and more states decided to break away. Getting Virginia was big for the South (a wealthy state with a lot of people). Convinced Robert E. Lee to resign from the Union army and he became the commanding general of the South.

Northern Advantages n n n n n Had a lot more people 22 million to 9 million (3. 5 million slaves). Had a lot more railroads. Had most of the ships and the naval power. Had most of the nation’s factories. Fighting to uphold the constitution. Had a strong political leader (Lincoln). Had a stronger government. Fighting to “preserve the Union. ” The North’s Plan: The Anaconda Plan – to slowly squeeze the south (militarily and economically). Sometimes the Civil War is also called “a war of attrition”

Southern Advantages n n n Fighting for a cause. Didn’t need as many soldiers to defend as they would have needed to attack – fighting a defensive war. Knew their own land better. Had better military leaders who knew more about war strategy. Could ride and shoot better (more northerners lived in cities). Used the American Revolution as an example that the stronger side doesn’t always win (and as an example that it was OK to go to war to break away from a country).

The South thought that could maybe get some help from France and/or Britain… who they thought depended on Southern cotton for their textile mills. n But they decided to stay out of it. n At first the South was going to fight a defensive war, but soon decided to take the offensive (go after the other side /attack) n

One of the first battles: The Battle of Bull Run (or… Manassas) n n Close to Washington D. C. Some people even came to watch (sat up on a hill) Some of the men not fighting came by and did “play by play” for the people. This battle made people in Washington realize the war was going to take a long time

Manassas was so close to Washington D. C. that many people came out from the city to watch the battle. They came on horseback or in carriages, to watch the battle as if it were a play. The onlookers included several senators and congressmen. When Union troops began to retreat and Confederate artillery shells came closer, the spectators suddenly realized that war was dangerous. They joined the withdrawing soldiers, adding greatly to the general confusion as the retreat became a rout.