1. Background Information on the Eve of the Civil War
The North v. The South

2. Format Information about the North will be in the left column
Information about the South will be in the right column

3. Other Names Union, United States of America, Federals, USA Billy Yanks
Confederacy, Confederate States of America, CSA, Johnny Rebs

4. Flags
Stars and Stripes
Stars and Bars, and a separate battle flag

5. Number of States
23 states
11 states

6. Population
22,000,000
Between 10-12,000,000
(3,500,000-4,000,000 of which were slaves)

7. Industrial Development
92% of the Nation’s industries were in the North
Very little industrial development; mostly an agrarian (farming) economy

8. Railroad Mileage 75% of the nation’s railroad miles were in the North
Many fewer miles of railroads in the South (25%)
The map on the next slide shows American railroads in 1851

10. Financial Resources
Had 75% of the nation’s wealth in banking, manufacturing and shipping industries
Most of the wealth was in land and slaves

11. Leadership Abraham Lincoln Jefferson Davis
Experience as a lawyer, limited experience in Congress, and virtually no military experience
Jefferson Davis
Senator from Mississippi and Secretary of War
Military experience in the Mexican War

12. Generals Perhaps the South’s greatest advantage
West Point Military Academy graduates
Few Union Generals were effective in leading Union Armies until Ulysses S. Grant.
Perhaps the South’s greatest advantage
Brilliant, bold military leaders from Virginia Military Institute (VMI), West Point and other academies

13. Northern Fighting Strategies
Bring the South back to the Union ASAP
Never recognize the South’s independence
Strangle the South with a naval blockade (Anaconda Plan)
Defeat Rebel Armies, split the South in two and capture the capital (Richmond, VA)

14. Southern Fighting Strategies
Fight a defensive war until the Union no longer has the will to fight
Stress how secession is a parallel with the 13 colonies pulling out of the British Empire in 1776
Capture Washington, D.C.

15. Capital Cities
Washington, D.C.
Richmond, Virginia

16. Naval Power Large navy which grew even larger as the war progressed
Virtually no navy at the start of the war

17. Cause for Fighting To preserve the Union (at first)
Later the emancipation of slaves became a cause
To gain independence
To save “The Southern Way of Life” which included slavery
States rights

18. Slang Names for Troops
Federals, Yanks, Billy Yanks, Yankees, Blues, Bluebellies
Rebels, Rebs, Confederates, Graybacks, Butternuts, Johnnies, Johnny Rebs

19. Northern Miscellany Battles were fought away from home
Less skilled in the military arts
Thousands of immigrants were fighting for no purpose that made sense to them
Farm Acreage: 65%; dominant crops- wheat and corn
Divided politically into at least four groups (included anti-war groups)

20. Southern Miscellany
Traditionally protecting their homes and way of life
Fought on their own land, which they therefore knew better than their opponents
Military tradition: nearly every male citizen skilled at riding horses and using rifles
Violence was a traditional aspect of Southern Society