EARLY YEARS OF THE WAR Chapter 17 Lesson 2 Pages 458 to 464

NEITHER SIDE GAINED A STRONG ADVANTAGE IN THE WAR’S EARLY YEARS. IT MATTERS BECAUSE:

GUIDING QUESTION WHAT WAS THE OUTCOME OF THE 1 ST MAJOR BATTLE OF THE WAR?

WAR ON LAND AND AT SEA  Both the Union and Confederacy mobilized their armies  April 1861 President Lincoln announced that all Confederate ports would be blockaded.  Page 458

FIRST BATTLE OF BULL RUN  The Confederates called this the First Battle of Manassas.  Union forces named battles after the closest body of water.  Confederate forces named battles after the closest town.  Took place on July 21, 1861 in northern Virginia.  Hundreds of spectators came out to watch from Washington, D.C. bringing picnic lunches.  Both sides thought this would be the only battle of the war.  Pages

 General Irvin McDowell, Commanding  30,000 troops  Objective: Push Confederates away from Washington, D.C.  General P.G.T. Beauregard, Commanding  22,000 troops  Objective: protect a key rail station at Manassas Junction COMPARISON OF FORCES United States Confederate States

BATTLE OUTCOME  McDowell attacks and drives Confederates back.  General Thomas Jackson earns nickname “Stonewall” as he holds his men in place and refuses to retreat.  Confederate troops rally around him and push the Union forces back.  Union line breaks – they turn and run in a panic through the civilian spectators.

BATTLE OUTCOME(CONT.)  Union troops are disorganized and cannot regroup.  The Confederates are also disorganized and do not chase the Union troops.  Confederates lose 2000 men.  Union loses 2700 – 1200 are captured by the Confederates.  The North is shocked – realizes this will be a long war.  Lincoln calls for another million soldiers to serve for 3 years.  Gen. McDowell is fired – Gen. George B. McClellan is given command of the army.

CONTROL OF THE WEST  Union objective is to control the Mississippi River and it’s tributaries.  If the Union controlled the river they could prevent Louisiana, Arkansas, and Texas from sending supplies to the eastern Confederacy.  Union gunboats would also be able to use the rivers to move into the heart of the Confederacy.

CONTROL OF THE WEST (CONT.)  Battle for the rivers began in February Union forces captured Fort Henry on the Tennessee River.  Gen. Grant commanded the army, Admiral Foote commanded the navy forces..  They attacked Fort Donelson on the Cumberland River. Foote was wounded and turned back but Grant was able to take the fort.  Grant earned the nickname “Unconditional Surrender,” when he told the Confederate commander that only an “unconditional and immediate surrender can be accepted.” U.S. Grant became a Union hero.

A BATTLE BETWEEN IRONCLADS  The blockade was causing serious problems for the South.  Using an abandoned Union frigate, Merrimack,the Confederates rebuilt it and covered it with iron. They renamed it the Virginia.  March 8, 1862, the Virginia attacked Union Navy ships in Chesapeake Bay. Union Navy ships fired on it but there cannonballs bounced off of it.  Union leaders feared it would head up the Potomac River and shell Washington, D.C.

A BATTLE BETWEEN IRONCLADS(CONT.)  March 9, 1862 the Union ironclad, Monitor, met the Virginia. The two ships did battle but fought to a stalemate (tie).  The battle caused both the Union and Confederacy to celebrate the strength of their navies.

THE BATTLE OF SHILOH  Gen. Grant and troops headed south to Corinth, Mississippi. In April 1862, they camped at Pittsburg Landing, 20 miles from Corinth, near Shiloh Church. Other U.S. forces came from Nashville, TN to meet up with Grant.  The Confederates decided to attack before more Union troops arrived to reinforce Grant. On the morning of April 6, 1862, Gen. Johnston & Gen. Beauregard launched a surprise attack on Grant’s forces.

THE BATTLE OF SHILOH (CONT.)  The battle lasted two days but the Union forces won – barely.  Losses for both armies were huge with over 23,000 casualties combined.  After this battle U.S. forces laid siege to Corinth and the Confederates withdrew. The Union took control on May 30.  On June 6, Tennessee was under Union control as well.

CAPTURING NEW ORLEANS  A few weeks after Shiloh the U.S Navy led by Admiral David Farragut captured New Orleans, LA – the largest city in the Confederacy.  Farragut had grown up in the South but remained loyal to the Union. His capture of New Orleans closed off the Mississippi River to the Confederacy preventing them from reaching the ocean.  Only Vicksburg, Mississippi remained an obstacle to the Union.

PROGRESS CHECK QUESTION  How did the loss of new Orleans affect the confederacy?

WAR IN THE EASTERN STATES  The Union was fighting a two front war – trying to take control of the Confederacy from the West – with important wins in Tennessee and near total control of the Mississippi River, and trying to capture the Confederate Capitol of Richmond, Virginia.  Richmond was only about 100 miles away from the U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C.  Confederates were more successful in battles in and near Virginia.

GUIDING QUESTION  How did the Union respond to important defeats in the East in 1862?

CONFEDERATE VICTORIES  General Robert E. Lee and General Stonewall Jackson led the eastern Confederate forces and won many battles.  Due to superior leadership, knowledge of the land, being able to inspire their troops, and being able to move their forces quickly from one place to another, they frequently defeated larger and better equipped Union forces.

CONFEDERATE VICTORIES (CONT.)  In the Confederates won several battles: 1. Seven Days Battle 2. Second Battle of Bull Run 3.Fredericksburg 4. Chancellorsville – Lee defeated Union forces 2x the size of the Confederates

LEE INVADES MARYLAND  CSA President Davis ordered Lee to move into Maryland (United States)  The objective was to move into Pennsylvania and push the war deep into the Union to give farmers in Virginia a chance to grow crops and livestock away from the war.

THE BATTLE OF ANTIETAM  Once in Maryland, Lee split his army into four units. They were to move in different directions in the hopes of confusing the Union army.  The Confederate battle plans were lost and discovered by a Union soldier. They were wrapped around some cigars lying on the ground  The orders were taken to Union General McClellan who now knew what the Confederates were going to do.

THE BATTLE OF ANTIETAM (CONT.)  McClellan thought the orders might be a ruse (fake) so he did not act immediately.  McClellan’s inaction gave Lee time to gather his troops into one large force again.  On September 17, 1862, the two forces fought the Battle of Antietam.  The Union won this battle but at a great cost. Over 6000 soldiers (both sides) died and over 17,000 were wounded. Lee retreated back to Virginia.

THE BATTLE OF ANTIETAM (CONT.)  The Union Army was so demoralized that they did not pursue the Confederates.  McClellan was afraid that the Confederates had more troops in Virginia and would lead the Union army into a trap.

THE EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION  Lincoln felt the war was about the Union more than slavery.  He changed his mind, or at least his tactics, later on in the war – especially after Antietam.

GUIDING QUESTION  What was the effect of the Emancipation Proclamation?

THE DEBATE OVER ENDING SLAVERY  Lincoln did not like slavery but he did not want to make the war about the end of slavery. He was afraid the border states would leave and join the Confederacy if he did.  “If I could save the Union without freeing any slave I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it; and if I could save it be freeing some and leaving others alone I would also do that.” – Abraham Lincoln

THE DEBATE OVER ENDING SLAVERY (CONT.)  Many Northerners didn’t like slavery but they didn’t necessarily want to be killed over it.  Abolitionists pressured Lincoln to make the war about slavery. Doing so would make the Confederacy look bad in the court of public opinion.  It would discourage Britain and France from helping the Confederacy because they would not want to be associated with the evils of slavery.

A CALL FOR EMANCIPATION  The Constitution did not give Lincoln the power to abolish slavery.  However, in war, it did give him the power to seize enemy property. Since slaves were considered property he felt he could take them away from their Confederate owners by proclamation.  On September 22, 1862 Lincoln announced he would issue the Emancipation Proclamation if the Southern states did not stop fighting by January 1, 1863.

A CALL FOR EMANCIPATION (CONT.)  The Confederacy did not stop fighting and on January 1, 1863 Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation – saying that slaves in the South were now free.  Lincoln said the slaves were allowing free southerners to fight because the slaves stayed behind to work the farms. Since slaves were property the Federal government could “release” them under the War Powers of the government.

A CALL FOR EMANCIPATION (CONT.)  Little changed for the slaves. After all, the Confederacy was a foreign country and did not have to listen to President Lincoln.  Slaves in Union border states were not affected by the proclamation.  Even though it did little to change the lives of the slaves it did make a statement that slavery was wrong.  A Union victory would mean the end of slavery.

PROGRESS CHECK  How did the Emancipation Proclamation change the focus of the war?