Warm Up QuestionMay 16, 2011

Read pg 530 and answer the question, Why was the Civil War sometimes called a poor man’s fight? Answer in 4 sentences.

Tear off a piece of paper put your name on it and the role you would like to play in the Trial of William Tecumseh Sherman

Decisive Battles and

the End of the Civil War

The Struggles of the Union

-Not all people of the North supported the war. Many opposed the Emancipation Proclamation.

-People who opposed the war were called Copperheads and blamed Lincoln for causing the war.

-In 1863, the North passed a draft law which required all male citizens from 18-35 to serve in the military for 3 years.

-On July 1863, the large mob of Irish laborers and factory workers rioted in New York City for several days. The army was required to squash the riot after several deaths and looting

The Struggles of the Union-Lincoln sacked McClellan for being too cautious so he hired General Ambrose Burnside.

-Burnside marched straight to Richmond with 120,000 and was crushed at the Battle of Fredericksburg by General Lee.

-So…Lincoln fired Burnside for being too aggressive and hired General Joseph “Fighting Joe” Hooker.

-”May God have mercy on General Lee, for I will have none.” His army was destroyed at the Battle of Chancellorsville by a Southern army half his size.

-These victories boosted confidence in the South but also took its toll on its army.

-For the Union it was a disaster and Lincoln was becoming worried that he might lose the war.

The Battle of Gettysburg

-General Lee took a chance to win a battle in the North and marched his army into the North. An invasion could persuade the Union to sue for peace.

-In June 1863 Lee march north. The Union army now commanded by General Meade pursued.

Read pg 534-535 and take notes.

The Siege of Vicksburg

-On July 4, 1863, the only successful general, General Grant puts the city of Vicksburg to siege.

What is the definition of siege?

-Day after day, Grant’s artillery pounded the last city on the Mississippi for 6 weeks.

-The 30,000 Confederates surrendered finally surrendered after they had run out of food.

-The Mississippi was in the hands the Union and Grant was promoted to General of the Union Armies.

Grant v. Lee

-The 2 generals played a game of cat and mouse and for a year maneuvered their armies fighting battle after battle.

-Grant was able to keep his supply lines open and his army was able to fight these battles and continue to fight the next day. While Lee on the other hand was unable to supply his army like Grant and every battle whether he won or lost the battle, his army suffered.

-Men were forced to search the dead for ammo and fight barefoot.

-Grant lost of 55,000 men after 7 weeks of fighting while Lee suffered 35,000.

General William Tecumseh Sherman’s Man, Myth the Legend

-Lincoln and Grant decided to launch their secret weapon, General William Tecumseh Sherman!!

-Sherman’s army was able to march his army into Atlanta, Georgia and he burned the entire city down after looting it first of food, water, ammo, and other supplies.

-Grant and Lincoln agreed that Sherman had the right idea and let him loose to march to the sea launching a campaign of total war on the population of the South.

What is the definition of total war?

-Sherman marched his army east to the Atlantic Ocean creating a path of destruction 60 mile wide. After burning down Savannah, he marched his army north into the Carolinas burning Charlestown February 1865.

-He caused $100 million dollars worth of destruction ($1.378 billion in today’s money)

-Over 100,000 newly freed slaves will die of hunger because Sherman could not support them.

Peace-General Grant was able to trap General Lee at Petersburg Virginia.

-For months, the siege of Petersburg saw for the first time trench warfare. The two sides left their trenches to charge the opposing enemy trench with horrendous casualties.

-General Lee knew the game was up when his lines broke.

-General Le was forced to surrender at the Court House of Appomattox on April 2,1865. Following his surrender, the rest of the Confederate forces surrendered and the war was finally over.

It’s Toll

-The Civil War was the bloodiest conflict the United States have and will fight in it’s history.

-About 260,000 Confederate soldiers gave their lives for the cause of freedom and revolution.

-The Union on the other hand lost over 360,000 soldiers for the reunification of the United States of America.

-A total of 620,000 men were killed from 1861-1865.

-It will take a century before African Americans though can feel the full effects of what freedom really means.