18.3 The War in the East pp. 572-576

Objective: Explain how the Emancipation Proclamation changed Northerners’ views of the war.

A. Rebels and Yankees (p. 572) Confederate (Southern) soldiers were called Rebels, or Johnny Rebs, and their official uniform color was gray. Union (Northern) soldiers were called Yankees (or Billy Yanks) and wore dark blue uniforms.

Civil War Uniforms

B. Bull Run (p. 573) On July 21, 1861, the first major battle of the war, the Battle of Bull Run, was fought in northern Virginia, only 25 miles from Washington DC. Despite early setbacks, the Southern army rallied behind General Thomas J. Jackson (who that day earned his nickname—“Stonewall”) and forced the Union army to retreat back to Washington DC.

C. More Southern Victories (pp. 573-574) The Union disaster at Bull Run prompted Lincoln to summon General George McClellan to command all Northern armies. But McClellan proved to be overly cautious, a trait that brought the Union two more serious defeats: the Battle of the Seven Days in June 1862 and the Second Battle of Bull Run two months later.

D. The War at Sea (pp. 575-576) Southern ships called blockade-runners—fast ships that outran the Union ships—often slipped through the blockade. To break the blockade, the South fitted a captured Union ship (the Merrimack) with thick iron armor and renamed it the Virginia. However, the North had its own ironclad, the Monitor, and its battle with the Virginia in 1862 revolutionized naval warfare.

Confederate Submarine CSS Hunley Recovered

E. The Battle of Antietam (p. 576) Hoping to win European support with a victory in the North, Confederates invaded Maryland in September, 1862. On September 17, 1862, Lee’s forces clashed with McClellan’s Union army at the Battle of Antietam. Antietam was the bloodiest single day in American history, with over 26,000 soldiers killed or wounded.

F. “Forever Free” (pp. 576-577) Antietam’s importance: a. a much-needed Union victory b. discouraged European assistance to the South c. led to the Emancipation Proclamation. 2. The Emancipation Proclamation (September 22, 1862) declared all slaves in the seceded states “forever free” unless the states returned to the Union by January 1, 1863. 3. The Emancipation Proclamation transformed the war into a struggle against slavery.

Review: What nickname did Confederate General Thomas J. Jackson earn at the First Battle of Bull Run? What new type of warship was developed during the Civil War? What battle was the bloodiest single day in American history? How did the Emancipation Proclamation transform the goals of the Union?