This exhibit will feature the Northern and Southern perspectives in regard to the Civil War. The Civil War occurred from 1861 to 1865 between the Northern Union forces and the Southern Confederate forces. In 1861 several southern states decided to secede from the Union after Abraham Lincoln was elected president in the election of 1860. These states formed what is known as the Confederate States of America and appointed Jefferson Davis as their president. The North desired for there to be no conflict as but, war broke out with the South's attack on Fort Sumter in 1861. The Civil War began as the north trying to preserve the Union and eventually progressed as a moral war to abolish slavery.
Initially the North's main purpose in the Civil War was to preserve the Union however, as the war progressed this became harder to do until they reached a point where going back to the way things were would be impossible. The official start of the war came with the Confederate attack on Fort Sumter in April of 1861. When the southern states seceded from the Union, they claimed almost everything in their borders. However, the North was still in possession of Fort Sumter in South Carolina. Fort Sumter was running low on supplies and President Lincoln needed to make an important decision. He could either have the fort's commander surrender the fort once he ran out of supplies or he could send reinforcements knowing full well that the South would respond violently to this. Lincoln chose a third option, he decided to tell the people of South Carolina that he was going to send provisions to Fort Sumter and was very clear that he was not going to reinforce it. The South regarded this as an act of aggression by the North and decided to attack Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861. Although the North lost Fort Sumter, it increased morale among the northerners and caused a desire to further increase the war effort. Sentiments such as, "Remember Fort Sumter" and "Wayward sisters, depart in peace" were heard among northerners. In having the South attack unprovoked, Lincoln was able to successfully make the North the victim which justified any future military attack by the North. As a result of the attack on Fort Sumter, Lincoln was able to call for seventy-five thousand militiamen on April 15, 1861 and due to the recent increase of nationalism that resulted from the attack on Fort Sumter, Lincoln was able to achieve his quota and so many men volunteered that many had to be turned away. This strong sense of nationalism among the North lead to a remarkable sense of overconfidence entering the Battle of the First Bull Run on July 21, 1861. The North was so confident that many people followed the army to the Battle only to witness the Union Army defeated by the Confederates. Although the Union Army was defeated and this greatly extended the length of the war, which basically would have been over with a Northern victory, this defeat caused the Union Army to shed their overconfidence and become more focused. After the disastrous Battle of First Bull Run for the North, General George McClellan was given command of the Army. This gave the men a much needed boost in moral as McClellan, who was well known from his fighting in the Mexican War, idolized his men and valued their lives. This belief by McClellan led to President Lincoln thinking that he was overcautious. The next major victory for the North came in the Battle of Antietam on September 17, 1862. This battle is known as one of the bloodiest battles in the Civil War and it was important for two reasons. The first being that it prevented foreign aid from coming to help the South as the North had established itself as a capable force and second it allowed President Lincoln to issue an early version of the Emancipation Proclamation. The final version of the Emancipation Proclamation was issued on January 1, 1863 by Lincoln and it stated that all slaves in the confederate states in rebellion should be freed. This proclamation gave the North a stronger moral cause to fight for in addition to preserving the Union. This proclamation showed that there would be no chance for a possible negotiation between the North and the South over slavery. The Emancipation Proclamation also allowed for black men to enlist in the Union Army when they were rejected from enlisting at the start of the war. This helped the Union Army as it increased the amount of man power in the Union Army which helped revive the spirits of those fighting for the Union. By the end of the war 180,000 black men served in the Union Army and that made up about ten percent of the total enlistments for the Union forces. The next major battle that had a profound impact for the North was the Battle at Chancellorsville on May 2-4, 1863. Under the command of General Hooker the Union Army fought against the confederate Army which was led by General Robert E. Lee and "Stonewall" Jackson. Although the Union Army was defeated, this was a Pyrrhic victory for the Union as General "Stonewall" Jackson was killed when he was shot by one of his own soldiers and then died of pneumonia. The loss of "Stonewall" Jackson was a huge victory for the North as it placed less competent Generals in his place which allowed for the North to achieve victory in future battles. The impact of the loss of General "Stonewall" Jackson was witnessed in the Battle of Gettysburg on July 1-3, 1863. The Confederate perhaps could have won if General "Stonewall" Jackson were alive because the less competent General that took his place ordered Pickett's charge which resulted in the death of many Confederate soldiers. The victory at Gettysburg was further amplified by the Victory at Vicksburg. On July 4, 1863 Union General Ulysses S. Grant was able to make the Confederate fortress of Vicksburg surrender after a several month siege. This gave the Union control of the Mississippi river and it established General Grant as one of the few capable leaders for the Union Army. Despite these two monumental victories for the North, many northerners were upset over the Federal Draft Law which was instituted in March of 1863. The Federal Draft Law stated that men could be subject to military service even if they didn't want to serve in the military. The most notable defiance of the Federal Draft Law was the New York City Draft Riots of 1863. On July 13, 1863 the Civil War Draft Riots broke out and these riots lasted five days. The rioters initially attacked government and military property as a symbol of the unfairness of the draft. However the rioters soon turned to attacking black people due to their dissatisfaction with the Emancipation Proclamation and how they didn't want to fight an abolitionist war. Another major event during the Civil War was the reelection of Abraham Lincoln in the election of 1864. After the North's victories in the battle of Gettysburg and Vicksburg it already appeared evident that the North was currently winning the war and the South would need to win the election of 1864 to have any chance at winning the Civil War however, Lincoln was able to prevail with 212 electoral votes to only 21 electoral votes for McClellan. Following the victories of Vicksburg and Gettysburg, General Grant was placed in command of the Union's forces. The northerners were not fans of Grant's tactics as they believed that he put his soldiers in harms way through his "Blood and Guts" method of fighting. This even earned him the nickname, "Grant the Butcher". Although the general public did not agree with Grant's tactics, his tactics did prove to be successful as in April 1865 General Grant forced Robert E. Lee to surrender at Appomattox Courthouse in Virginia. When General Lee surrendered to Grant, the men of the Union Army cheered however, Grant told them not to for they were no longer enemies but countrymen once more. The North began the Civil War by trying to preserve the Union however, as the war progressed their reason for fighting changed to accommodate Lincoln's vision with the Emancipation Proclamation and thus they ended the war fighting for a much higher moral stance.
For the South to gain independence from the North all it had to do was fight off the invading northerners as the South was fighting the Civil War on its own soil. This made the war much more personal for the South as each of its citizens would be fighting in his own back yard. Although the South lacked the raw industrial power of the North it was fortunate enough to have impeccable leadership in the form of Robert E. Lee. General Lee was a native of Virginia who was offered by President Lincoln to serve as commander of the Union Army however, lee rejected this notion in favor of serving in the Confederate Army after his home state of Virginia seceded. The first time the Confederate Army was tested in battle was their victory at Manassas Junction (known as First Bull Run in the North) in 1861. The South chose to name this battle after the town in which it took place rather than the river like the North did, this succeed in making the war feel more personal for the people of the South. The South's victory at Manassas Junction was achieved in large part due to the leadership of General Jackson who earned his nickname "Stonewall" due to how he and his men stood like a stone wall against the Union Army. This victory by the South extended the duration of the war due to how the war most likely would have ended with a southern defeat at Manassas Junction. Despite extending the war, it also made many soldiers of the South overconfident thinking that the war was over because they had won one battle. The South's military prowess was further demonstrated through their defense against the Peninsula Campaign. In the spring of 1862, the Union forces lead by General McClellan tried to capture the South's capital of Richmond. Although the Union forces came very close to Richmond, General Robert E. Lee was able to launch a counterattack known as the Seven Days' Battles from June 26-July 2, 1862. These battles successfully drove the Union forces back and it also established Robert E. Lee as the brilliant strategist for the South. The South's victories further extended to naval ones as well due to the Confederate ship known as the Merrimack being used. The Merrimack was a former United States warship that was reissued by the Confederates in 1862 to deal with the blockade formed by the Union Navy. The Merrimack had great success for the South before battling the Union ship known as the Monitor to a standstill. Although the Merrimack did not defeat the Monitor it still gave the people of the South hope that the Union's blockade could be defeated. Despite the South's initial success in the Civil War, a major blow was struck against them in the Battle of Antietam on September 17, 1862. This battle is widely regarded as one of the bloodiest battles of the war and with a loss the South lost the chance to obtain aid from Britain and France. This battle gave the North the momentum moving forward as it established the Union as a capable fighting force and it addition it allowed for President Lincoln to springboard the Emancipation Proclamation which called for the freeing of all slaves in the Confederate states in rebellion. With this loss the South found itself in a bad position moving forward. Another blow to the South was the final version of the emancipation Proclamation which was issued by President Lincoln on January 1, 1863. Not only did this provide the North with new found moral grounds on which to fight but it also caused many slaves to flee plantations to join the Union forces. The loss of the slave labor in the South deeply impacted the South's economy as it relied on the plantation system. This also affected the moral of the Confederate soldiers as it caused them to think of the rundown state of their plantations rather than on concentrating on the Civil War. The Union was able to gain another major victory in the Battle of Chancellorsville on May 2-4, 1863. General Lee and General Jackson were far outnumbered by the Union forces which was led by General Hooker. Although the South was outnumbered, General Lee had a brilliant strategy to divide the Confederate Army to face the oncoming Union Army. Although General Lee's plan succeeded, it came at a great cost as General "Stonewall" Jackson was killed after his own soldier shot him and he later died of pneumonia. Following the win at the Battle of Chancellorsville, the Confederate Army was faced with a difficult defeat at the Battle of Gettysburg on July 1-3, 1863. This loss came largely due to the death of General "Stonewall" Jackson as a less competent general was forced to take his place. In addition the ordering of Pickett's Charge caused the South greatly as many Confederate soldiers were killed by the waiting Union Army. In this battle General Lee lost nearly one third of his officers and when word spread to the South, many people started selling their war bonds as they had lost faith in the Army and didn't want to be left with nothing. Another crucial loss that occurred to the South was the loss of the fortress of Vicksburg. The loss of this fortress to General Grant on July 4, 1863 after a several month siege was devastating to the South as it resulted in the North gaining control of the Mississippi river. The Confederate's cause suffered a seemingly final blow when the South lost the election of 1864. If the South had won this election it is possible that it could have giving them the power to win or at least extend the war however the South's candidate who was General McClellan, the former Union General and known enemy of the incumbent Lincoln. General McClellan received 45 percent of the popular vote but was killed in the electoral vote 212 to 21. With this defeat the South sealed its fate for the end of the Civil War with virtually no hope of winning. Although the South did not succeed in winning the Civil War, it put up a better fight than most people anticipated due to the tremendous leadership of its Generals as well as the convictions of its followers.
Initially the North's main purpose in the Civil War was to preserve the Union however, as the war progressed this became harder to do until they reached a point where going back to the way things were would be impossible. The official start of the war came with the Confederate attack on Fort Sumter in April of 1861. When the southern states seceded from the Union, they claimed almost everything in their borders. However, the North was still in possession of Fort Sumter in South Carolina. Fort Sumter was running low on supplies and President Lincoln needed to make an important decision. He could either have the fort's commander surrender the fort once he ran out of supplies or he could send reinforcements knowing full well that the South would respond violently to this. Lincoln chose a third option, he decided to tell the people of South Carolina that he was going to send provisions to Fort Sumter and was very clear that he was not going to reinforce it. The South regarded this as an act of aggression by the North and decided to attack Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861. Although the North lost Fort Sumter, it increased morale among the northerners and caused a desire to further increase the war effort. Sentiments such as, "Remember Fort Sumter" and "Wayward sisters, depart in peace" were heard among northerners. In having the South attack unprovoked, Lincoln was able to successfully make the North the victim which justified any future military attack by the North. As a result of the attack on Fort Sumter, Lincoln was able to call for seventy-five thousand militiamen on April 15, 1861 and due to the recent increase of nationalism that resulted from the attack on Fort Sumter, Lincoln was able to achieve his quota and so many men volunteered that many had to be turned away. This strong sense of nationalism among the North lead to a remarkable sense of overconfidence entering the Battle of the First Bull Run on July 21, 1861. The North was so confident that many people followed the army to the Battle only to witness the Union Army defeated by the Confederates. Although the Union Army was defeated and this greatly extended the length of the war, which basically would have been over with a Northern victory, this defeat caused the Union Army to shed their overconfidence and become more focused. After the disastrous Battle of First Bull Run for the North, General George McClellan was given command of the Army. This gave the men a much needed boost in moral as McClellan, who was well known from his fighting in the Mexican War, idolized his men and valued their lives. This belief by McClellan led to President Lincoln thinking that he was overcautious. The next major victory for the North came in the Battle of Antietam on September 17, 1862. This battle is known as one of the bloodiest battles in the Civil War and it was important for two reasons. The first being that it prevented foreign aid from coming to help the South as the North had established itself as a capable force and second it allowed President Lincoln to issue an early version of the Emancipation Proclamation. The final version of the Emancipation Proclamation was issued on January 1, 1863 by Lincoln and it stated that all slaves in the confederate states in rebellion should be freed. This proclamation gave the North a stronger moral cause to fight for in addition to preserving the Union. This proclamation showed that there would be no chance for a possible negotiation between the North and the South over slavery. The Emancipation Proclamation also allowed for black men to enlist in the Union Army when they were rejected from enlisting at the start of the war. This helped the Union Army as it increased the amount of man power in the Union Army which helped revive the spirits of those fighting for the Union. By the end of the war 180,000 black men served in the Union Army and that made up about ten percent of the total enlistments for the Union forces. The next major battle that had a profound impact for the North was the Battle at Chancellorsville on May 2-4, 1863. Under the command of General Hooker the Union Army fought against the confederate Army which was led by General Robert E. Lee and "Stonewall" Jackson. Although the Union Army was defeated, this was a Pyrrhic victory for the Union as General "Stonewall" Jackson was killed when he was shot by one of his own soldiers and then died of pneumonia. The loss of "Stonewall" Jackson was a huge victory for the North as it placed less competent Generals in his place which allowed for the North to achieve victory in future battles. The impact of the loss of General "Stonewall" Jackson was witnessed in the Battle of Gettysburg on July 1-3, 1863. The Confederate perhaps could have won if General "Stonewall" Jackson were alive because the less competent General that took his place ordered Pickett's charge which resulted in the death of many Confederate soldiers. The victory at Gettysburg was further amplified by the Victory at Vicksburg. On July 4, 1863 Union General Ulysses S. Grant was able to make the Confederate fortress of Vicksburg surrender after a several month siege. This gave the Union control of the Mississippi river and it established General Grant as one of the few capable leaders for the Union Army. Despite these two monumental victories for the North, many northerners were upset over the Federal Draft Law which was instituted in March of 1863. The Federal Draft Law stated that men could be subject to military service even if they didn't want to serve in the military. The most notable defiance of the Federal Draft Law was the New York City Draft Riots of 1863. On July 13, 1863 the Civil War Draft Riots broke out and these riots lasted five days. The rioters initially attacked government and military property as a symbol of the unfairness of the draft. However the rioters soon turned to attacking black people due to their dissatisfaction with the Emancipation Proclamation and how they didn't want to fight an abolitionist war. Another major event during the Civil War was the reelection of Abraham Lincoln in the election of 1864. After the North's victories in the battle of Gettysburg and Vicksburg it already appeared evident that the North was currently winning the war and the South would need to win the election of 1864 to have any chance at winning the Civil War however, Lincoln was able to prevail with 212 electoral votes to only 21 electoral votes for McClellan. Following the victories of Vicksburg and Gettysburg, General Grant was placed in command of the Union's forces. The northerners were not fans of Grant's tactics as they believed that he put his soldiers in harms way through his "Blood and Guts" method of fighting. This even earned him the nickname, "Grant the Butcher". Although the general public did not agree with Grant's tactics, his tactics did prove to be successful as in April 1865 General Grant forced Robert E. Lee to surrender at Appomattox Courthouse in Virginia. When General Lee surrendered to Grant, the men of the Union Army cheered however, Grant told them not to for they were no longer enemies but countrymen once more. The North began the Civil War by trying to preserve the Union however, as the war progressed their reason for fighting changed to accommodate Lincoln's vision with the Emancipation Proclamation and thus they ended the war fighting for a much higher moral stance.
For the South to gain independence from the North all it had to do was fight off the invading northerners as the South was fighting the Civil War on its own soil. This made the war much more personal for the South as each of its citizens would be fighting in his own back yard. Although the South lacked the raw industrial power of the North it was fortunate enough to have impeccable leadership in the form of Robert E. Lee. General Lee was a native of Virginia who was offered by President Lincoln to serve as commander of the Union Army however, lee rejected this notion in favor of serving in the Confederate Army after his home state of Virginia seceded. The first time the Confederate Army was tested in battle was their victory at Manassas Junction (known as First Bull Run in the North) in 1861. The South chose to name this battle after the town in which it took place rather than the river like the North did, this succeed in making the war feel more personal for the people of the South. The South's victory at Manassas Junction was achieved in large part due to the leadership of General Jackson who earned his nickname "Stonewall" due to how he and his men stood like a stone wall against the Union Army. This victory by the South extended the duration of the war due to how the war most likely would have ended with a southern defeat at Manassas Junction. Despite extending the war, it also made many soldiers of the South overconfident thinking that the war was over because they had won one battle. The South's military prowess was further demonstrated through their defense against the Peninsula Campaign. In the spring of 1862, the Union forces lead by General McClellan tried to capture the South's capital of Richmond. Although the Union forces came very close to Richmond, General Robert E. Lee was able to launch a counterattack known as the Seven Days' Battles from June 26-July 2, 1862. These battles successfully drove the Union forces back and it also established Robert E. Lee as the brilliant strategist for the South. The South's victories further extended to naval ones as well due to the Confederate ship known as the Merrimack being used. The Merrimack was a former United States warship that was reissued by the Confederates in 1862 to deal with the blockade formed by the Union Navy. The Merrimack had great success for the South before battling the Union ship known as the Monitor to a standstill. Although the Merrimack did not defeat the Monitor it still gave the people of the South hope that the Union's blockade could be defeated. Despite the South's initial success in the Civil War, a major blow was struck against them in the Battle of Antietam on September 17, 1862. This battle is widely regarded as one of the bloodiest battles of the war and with a loss the South lost the chance to obtain aid from Britain and France. This battle gave the North the momentum moving forward as it established the Union as a capable fighting force and it addition it allowed for President Lincoln to springboard the Emancipation Proclamation which called for the freeing of all slaves in the Confederate states in rebellion. With this loss the South found itself in a bad position moving forward. Another blow to the South was the final version of the emancipation Proclamation which was issued by President Lincoln on January 1, 1863. Not only did this provide the North with new found moral grounds on which to fight but it also caused many slaves to flee plantations to join the Union forces. The loss of the slave labor in the South deeply impacted the South's economy as it relied on the plantation system. This also affected the moral of the Confederate soldiers as it caused them to think of the rundown state of their plantations rather than on concentrating on the Civil War. The Union was able to gain another major victory in the Battle of Chancellorsville on May 2-4, 1863. General Lee and General Jackson were far outnumbered by the Union forces which was led by General Hooker. Although the South was outnumbered, General Lee had a brilliant strategy to divide the Confederate Army to face the oncoming Union Army. Although General Lee's plan succeeded, it came at a great cost as General "Stonewall" Jackson was killed after his own soldier shot him and he later died of pneumonia. Following the win at the Battle of Chancellorsville, the Confederate Army was faced with a difficult defeat at the Battle of Gettysburg on July 1-3, 1863. This loss came largely due to the death of General "Stonewall" Jackson as a less competent general was forced to take his place. In addition the ordering of Pickett's Charge caused the South greatly as many Confederate soldiers were killed by the waiting Union Army. In this battle General Lee lost nearly one third of his officers and when word spread to the South, many people started selling their war bonds as they had lost faith in the Army and didn't want to be left with nothing. Another crucial loss that occurred to the South was the loss of the fortress of Vicksburg. The loss of this fortress to General Grant on July 4, 1863 after a several month siege was devastating to the South as it resulted in the North gaining control of the Mississippi river. The Confederate's cause suffered a seemingly final blow when the South lost the election of 1864. If the South had won this election it is possible that it could have giving them the power to win or at least extend the war however the South's candidate who was General McClellan, the former Union General and known enemy of the incumbent Lincoln. General McClellan received 45 percent of the popular vote but was killed in the electoral vote 212 to 21. With this defeat the South sealed its fate for the end of the Civil War with virtually no hope of winning. Although the South did not succeed in winning the Civil War, it put up a better fight than most people anticipated due to the tremendous leadership of its Generals as well as the convictions of its followers.