Background
The Civil War was a war between the states of the North and the states of the South. Three million soldiers fought , and 600,000 died, making this war the heaviest of casualties in all of history.
The American Civil War was fought from 1861- 1865. For many years the North and South had serious disagreements. Eventually, the southern states decided that they wanted to have their own nation, and be able to decide what laws to have. The north did not want the country to be broken apart. When Abraham Lincoln, a known opponent of slavery, was elected president, the South Carolina legislature perceived a threat. Calling a state convention, the delegates voted to remove the state of South Carolina from the Union known as the United States of America. The secession of South Carolina was followed by the secession of six more states -- Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas -- and the threat of secession by four more -- Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina. These eleven states eventually formed the Confederate States of America.
Lincoln would not allow this, and the Civil War began at Fort Sumter. For the first two years, the Confederacy (South) won most of the battles, but the Battles of Gettysburg and Vicksburg turned the war in the Union's (North's) favor. The South eventually surrendered.
Perhaps many study this war because more American soldiers died in this single war than all of the others combined, or perhaps it is because it was fought on American soil. Either way the Civil War is a fascinating study of American history.
The Civil War was a war between the states of the North and the states of the South. Three million soldiers fought , and 600,000 died, making this war the heaviest of casualties in all of history.
The American Civil War was fought from 1861- 1865. For many years the North and South had serious disagreements. Eventually, the southern states decided that they wanted to have their own nation, and be able to decide what laws to have. The north did not want the country to be broken apart. When Abraham Lincoln, a known opponent of slavery, was elected president, the South Carolina legislature perceived a threat. Calling a state convention, the delegates voted to remove the state of South Carolina from the Union known as the United States of America. The secession of South Carolina was followed by the secession of six more states -- Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas -- and the threat of secession by four more -- Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina. These eleven states eventually formed the Confederate States of America.
Lincoln would not allow this, and the Civil War began at Fort Sumter. For the first two years, the Confederacy (South) won most of the battles, but the Battles of Gettysburg and Vicksburg turned the war in the Union's (North's) favor. The South eventually surrendered.
Perhaps many study this war because more American soldiers died in this single war than all of the others combined, or perhaps it is because it was fought on American soil. Either way the Civil War is a fascinating study of American history.