A Civil War Notes Chart
Famous Battles
Fort Sumter
First action of the war. Confederacy takes Union fort in Charleston
Bull Run
First major battle of the Civil War. Won by the Confederacy
Antietam
Union victory in Maryland. McClellan is too cautious so Lee escapes. Deadliest single day on American soil
Shiloh
Bloody 2-day battle in Tennessee won by Grant. Involved the Hornet’s Nest. Helped the Union win the Mississippi
Monitor v. Merrimack
Battle between 2 ironclad ships that ended in a draw. The Monitor was the Union ship, while the Merrimack was the confederate ship
Gettysburg
The bloodiest battle of the war, and ever on US soil. Victory for general meade and the union. Lee driven back from the North
Appomattox Courthouse
Lee surrenders to Grant, effectively ending the war
Famous People
Abraham Lincoln
President of the Union
Jefferson Davis
President of the Confederacy
Winfield Scott
Union general. Came up with the Anaconda Plan
Robert E. Lee
Top general in the Confederacy. Wins many victories, but forced to surrender by Grant
Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson
One of Lee’s best commanders. Turns the tide at Bull Run before being killed accidentally by his own men
George Mclellan
General from the Union who won at Antietam but was then fired for being cautious. Ran for President against Lincoln and lost
General Meade
Led the Union army at Gettysburg and won, but was fired
William Sherman
2nd in command for Grant. Led a total war campaign through the South (March to the Sea). Burned Atlanta
Robert Gould Shaw
Leader of the 54th Massachusetts. Killed in battle
Mary Edwards Walker
Woman who worked as a surgeon and won the Medal of Honor
William Carney
Part of the 54th Massachusetts. First African American to win the medal of honor
Vocab Terms
Secede
To break away, as the Southern states did from the Union
Anaconda Plan
Plan to encircle the South and “Suffocate” them. Cut them off from supplies and each other
Border States
States that remained in the Union but allowed slavery
54th Massachusetts
Unit of all African American soldiers
Emancipation Proclamation
Order from Lincoln that said that all slaves in the Rebelling States were free
Total War
Attacking the enemy on all fronts, including destroying supplies, attacking homes, burning crops, etc.
War of Attrition
Keeping your enemy from getting any supplies, even without attacking
Greenbacks
Northern money during the war
Ironclad
Ships covered in iron, such as the Monitor and Merrimack
Andersonville and Elmira
Andersonville (Confederate) and Elmira (North) were prisoners were soldiers were kept
Habeas Corpus
The right to a speedy trial. Suspended by Lincoln during the war to try and catch Confederate spies
Copperheads
Northerners, often Northern Democrats, who opposed the war and wanted peace and compromise with the South