Essential Questions: Why did political leaders in the lower South think that Lincoln�s election made secession imperative? Why did war break out at Fort Sumter?
I. The Election of 1860
A. Democrats struggled to choose a candidate at their convention
1. Southerners were opposed to Stephen Douglas
2. Intense debate over party platform
a. Federal slave code
-Would ensure party defeat in north
-Defeated by narrow margin
b. Party endorsed popular sovereignty
-50 Southern delegates walked out
3. Party is badly split between North and South
B. Second Democratic Convention (Baltimore)
1. Party is still badly spit on the platform
a. Southern Rights Democratic Party
-Nominated John C. Breckinridge
b. Regular Democratic Party
-Nominated Stephen Douglas
C. Constitutional Union Party
1. Coalition of Southern Whigs who couldn�t vote Democrat and Northern Whigs who felt Republican
Party was too radical
a. Nominated John Bell of Tennessee
D. Republican Party nominated Abraham Lincoln
1. Platform appealed to many in the North
a. Pledged exclusion of slavery from territories
b. Called for higher tariff, homestead act, and federal aid for the construction of a
transcontinental railroad
E. Southern fears began to mount
1. Opposed any Republican candidate
2. Feared that party was out to destroy slavery
3. Would mark end to Southern political influence
F. Lincoln elected by winning every free state, but 40% of popular vote
II. The Lower South Secedes
A. Lincoln�s victory shocked the South
1. Seven states seceded immediately
a. Believed states retained individual sovereignty
-States therefore could leave the Union
2. Four other states would secede after Fort Sumter
3. Seceded states formed the Confederate States of America
B. Northerners reaffirmed their commitment to the Union
1. Some Northerners considered succession unconstitutional and treasonable
C. Senate sought a compromise
1. Formulated a series of proposed amendments (Crittenden Compromise)
a. Guarantee slavery in states against federal interference
b. Prohibit Congress from abolishing Slavery in D.C.
c. Prohibit Congress from interfering with slave trade
d. Compensate slave holders for escaped slaves
e. Protect slavery south of latitude 36/30
2. Lincoln refused to go along with compromise because of territorial provision extending slavery
a. Lincoln�s advice was decisive
D. Confederacy established in convention in Montgomery, AL
1. Confederate constitution dealt with grievances about North�s position on slavery
a. Guaranteed slavery in both states and territories
b. Strengthened principle of state sovereignty
2. Jefferson Davis and Alexander Stephens were selected president and vice president of the Confederacy
a. Both men had significant government and military experience
b. Both were moderates who could appeal to the upper states who had not yet seceded
E. Crisis over Fort Sumter
1. As states seceded, they seized control of federal property within their borders, including forts
2. Struggle ensued over S.C. efforts to take Fort Moultrie in Charleston harbor
a. U.S commander, Robert Anderson, moved his force to Fort Sumter
3. S.C failed to negotiate a withdrawal of federal troops
F. Issue was unresolved when Lincoln was inaugurated in March 1861
1. As the fort ran low on supplies, Lincoln was faced a serious decision
a. Supplying fort through force would provoke Confederate response (Lincoln would be blamed)
b. Withdrawing troops would be a moral victory for the south
c. Lincoln sends unarmed supply ship
-If Confederates attacked, they would be blamed for starting the war
-If they didn�t, fort would remain in federal hands
2. Confederates decided to attack before supply ships could arrive
a. Fort Sumter surrendered after 33 hours of Confederate bombardment
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Chapter 15 : Secession and Civil War, 1860-1862 (sec 2)
Essential Questions: What were the Northern advantages in the Civil War? What were the Southern advantages?
III. Choosing Sides
A. North responded angrily to news of the attack on Fort Sumter
1. Widespread enlistments in the military
2. Lincoln called up state militias, which met their quotas quickly
a. 75,000 state militia men
3. Also issued call for three-year volunteers
4. Eight slave states in Union rejected call on militias
a. Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina soon seceded and joined Confederacy
B. Southern reaction to Fort Sumter was enthusiastic
1. Embraced idea of war with North
2. Anxious to defend their way of life
C. The border states faced difficult choice
1. Only Delaware was firmly in Union camp throughout
2. Other border states torn by outbreak of war
a. Maryland, Missouri, and Kentucky all wanted to remain neutral, but that proved impossible
3. Maryland became an occupied state in order to protect Washington from hostile encirclement
4. After bloody internal struggle for control, Missouri also federally occupied
5. Unionists gained control of Kentucky and Maryland legislatures in elections in summer and fall of 1861
a. Kentucky and Missouri Confederates formed state governments in exile and were admitted to the Confederacy
6. Two-thirds of populations of border states favored Union
IV. The Balance Sheet of War
A. Union had significant advantages as war began
1. Larger population, especially since almost one-third of the South�s population was slaves
2. Superior economic might: industry; shipping; bank capital; railroad mileage; taxable wealth
B. South also had advantages, though of a different nature
1. Higher proportion of Southern population had military training or experience
2. As rural people, Southerners more skilled at hunting, riding, and other useful outdoor pursuits
3. South had begun to prepare for war earlier than North
C. Strategy and morale
1. North would have to invade, conquer, and occupy South in order to win
2. South only had to defend its ground from invasion and prevent destruction of its armies
3. Morale advantage seemed to rest with Confederacy
a. Fighting to protect their nation, home, land and families
D. Mobilizing for war
1. Both sides initially relied heavily on volunteers
2. Confederacy and Union passed conscription laws in April 1862 and March 1863, respectively
a. Even then, most recruits still volunteers
3. War fought by citizen soldiers, not professionals
a. Elected own company officers and sometimes field commanders
b. Egalitarianism and slack discipline often angered professional military men
c. Price paid by a democratic society with a tiny professional army
4. Strong military leaders emerged on both sides
a. Led by example as much as by precept
b. Suffered higher casualty rates than privates
E. Weapons and tactics
1. Infantry rifle was most lethal weapon in Civil War battles
a. Prior to 1862 � smoothbore rifle
b. From 1862 on � rifled weapon emerged
-More lethal and accurate than smoothbore
2. Tactics adjusted only gradually due to greater range and accuracy of the rifle
a. Massed formations and frontal assaults had emerged from experiences with smoothbore rifle
b. Skirmishing tactics (taking advantage of cover and maneuver) eventually adopted to counteract
defensive power of the rifle
F. Logistics
1. Railroads, steam-powered ships, and the telegraph all important in war
a. However, Confederates became especially skilled at sabotaging Union supply lines
2. Union forced to rely on draft animals as armies moved further south
3. Logistical problems offset North�s industrial supremacy
4. South, though, devastated by inability to replace rails and rolling stock for its railroad
a. As a result, food could not reach soldiers or civilians
5. Eventually, North�s economy grew stronger while Southern economy grew weaker
G. Financing the war
1. Confederacy
a. Initially rejected ideas of taxation or bond selling
b. Resorted to issuing paper money to raise revenue
-Result was runaway inflation
c. Government sought to counter with taxes on income, consumer purchases, business
transactions, and agricultural production in 1863
2. Union
a. Legal Tender Act in 1862 initiated printing of greenbacks (paper money)
b. New taxes, including one on income, began in 1861
c. Bulk of war funding raised by selling bonds
V. Navies, the Blockade, and Foreign Relations
A. Union blockade of Southern ports
1. Prevent importation of manufactured goods or export of cotton to pay for them
B. King Cotton diplomacy
1. Southern strategy that helped Union blockade
2. Southerners believed that Britain would recognize Confederacy due to its dependence on Southern cotton
a. South kept 1861 cotton crop off market, hoping to compel British intervention
b. Backfired miserably
-Bumper crops in 1859 and 1860 had already resulted in British surpluses
3. Union Blockade proved largely effective
4. South in general found it difficult to win diplomatic recognition from other states
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Chapter 15 : Secession and Civil War, 1860-1862 (sec 3)
Essential Question: How did the Northern and Southern advantages manifest themselves in the military campaigns and battles of 1861-62?
C. The Confederate Navy
1. Lacking capacity to build a naval force at home, the Confederacy hoped to use British shipyards for that purpose
2. Two ships constructed in Liverpool delivered to Confederacy in 1862
a. The Florida and the Alabama
b. More than 250 Union vessels destroyed or captured during war; another 700 driven to foreign registry
c. Still, only a tiny dent in Union war effort
D. The Monitor and the Virginia
1. Southern navy improvised to get around shortage of traditional weapons
a. Developed mines that sank or damaged 43 Union warships
b. Constructed world�s first combat submarine (the H. L. Hunley)
c. Built ironclad �rams� to sink Union blockade ships
2. Battle between C.S.S. Virginia and U.S.S. Monitor, March 1862
a. First battle between ironclads
b. Ended in a draw, but Virginia was never again a serious threat to the Union fleet
VI. Campaigns and Battles, 1861-1862
A. Battle of Bull Run, May 1861
1. Called Manassas by northerners
2. Confederate victory
3. Confirmed South�s belief in its military superiority and boosted morale, but also bred overconfidence
4. Jolted North out of expectations of a short war
5. Resulted in appointment of George B. McClellan to organize new troops into the Army of the Potomac
a. Created a large, well-disciplined, and well-equipped fighting force
6. McClellan refused to advance against small Confederate forces near Washington
a. Afraid to take risks
b. Consistently overestimated enemy strength
c. Cautious approach
B. Naval operations
1. In the spring of 1862, Union won series of naval victories
2. Union captured New Orleans in April 1862
3. Fort Henry and Fort Donelson, February 1862
a. Unlikely hero was Union�s Ulysses S. Grant
-Experienced series of failures after leaving military in 1854
-Unlike McClellan, not afraid to take risks
b. Located on Tennessee and Cumberland rivers just south of Kentucky-Tennessee border
c. Stunning Union victory
-Gave Union access to Tennessee River all the way to northern Alabama
-Led Nashville to surrender, becoming first Confederate state capital to do so
C. The Battle of Shiloh, April 1862
1. Confederates attacked Grant�s army along the Tennessee River
a. Initially caught by surprise, Grant recovered and went on offensive
b. Eventual Union victory, but at cost of 13,000 casualties
D. The Virginia theater
1. Bickering between McClellan and Lincoln prevented a coordinated strategy
a. McClellen wanted more men
2. Stonewall Jackson scored series of important Confederate victories in the Shenandoah in Spring 1842
3. McClellan cautiously marched toward Richmond
F. The Seven Days� Battles
1. Emergence of Robert E. Lee
a. Earned reputation for boldness, a willingness to take risks, and loyalty from his men
b. Assumed command of what he called the Amy of Northern Virginia in June 1862
2. Lee attacked McClellan�s forces repeatedly, driving them from Richmond
a. Confederate victory was costly, but reversed momentum of the war
VII. Confederate Counteroffensives
A. Tide of battle seemed to turn after Seven Days� Battles
1. Northern morale shattered
2. Compounded by string of Confederate victories in the west
B. Second Battle of Bull Run, August 1862
1. Great victory for Confederacy
2. Led to Confederate invasion of Maryland in September