In the year of 1861, the United States of America was officially divided. The southern Confederate states, having seceded from the Union, attacked Fort Sumter. This was the beginning of a great and terrible Civil War, in which many lives would be taken in many hard-fought battles. One such battle would to take place in the bay of Hampton Roads, where we find the USS Congress and her men at rest near the Virginia Coast. On the USS Congress, three seamen look to the night sky. Seeing the constellation of Draco in the southern sky, they are reminded of the wrath of Heaven, and begin to debate whether or not God is to blame for the war. Does their suffering come from God as a form of punishment or testing, or does their suffering arise from and …show more content…
Captaining this ship is a man by the name of Franklin Buchanan, a former Union officer that left when his home state of Maryland did not, and is now hungrier than ever for a fight. Soon, he would have one, as the Virginia was now approaching three Union ships: the Congress, the Cumberland, and the Minnesota. Alongside the CSS Beaufort, the Virginia moves to strike the Cumberland first. As the wooden planks are no match for the steel ram on the Virginia’s bow, the ship is near sunk in one fell blow. The men aboard the Virginia cheer as the ship turns to open fire on the Congress, which soon surrenders. However, the Minnesota continues to open fire, barraging the men aboard the Beaufort as they board the Congress. When Captain Buchanan is badly injured in the ensuing firefight, the Virginia and Beaufort decide to cut their losses and return at a later time with renewed strength. However, back in Washington D.C., Lincoln’s cabinet has a plan. After debating over their recent losses in the Congress and Cumberland, they decide to send in their own ironclad— the USS Monitor. While the Monitor did not hold the same firepower as the Virginia, it was low to the water and just as well protected. Praying to God that their decision is what is needed in their time of great need, Lincoln gives the order to send in the
The name Civil War is misleading because the war was not a class struggle, but a sectional combat, having its roots in political, economic, social, and psychological elements. It has been characterized, in the words of William H. Seward, as the “irrepressible conflict.” In another judgment the Civil War was viewed as criminally stupid, an unnecessary bloodletting brought on by arrogant extremists and blundering politicians. Both views accept the fact that in 1861 there existed a situation that, rightly or wrongly, had come to be regarded as insoluble by peaceful means.
Who would have thought that a nation could split and turn on each other? The Civil war has main causes, key people, and battles. All of the people, events, and causes effected how the war came to be and how the Civil War was fought. The important people of the Civil war made important decisions that may have caused one side to a victory or a horrific lose. The battles of the war were bloody and devastating, and the causes of the Civil War show how different the North was from the South. Many people know the Civil War was extremely significant, but most people don't know what caused this major battle in history.
Although some historians feel that the Civil War was a result of political blunders and that the issue of slavery did not cause the conflict, they ignore the two main causes. The expansion of slavery, and its entrance into the political scene.
Did you know America’s bloodiest battle fought on their own soil was the Civil War? The Civil War was fought on American soil between the northern states and the southern states. Many causes provoked the war, which would affect the nation for decades to come. Slavery, the Missouri Compromise, and John Brown’s attack on Harpers Ferry, Virginia, were some of the many causes. In turn hundreds of thousands of soldiers died, the South’s economy was devastated, and the northern ideals flourished.
His ended his speech with a plea for the restoration of the bonds of union. The South just ignored his plea. Violence and outrage turned to belligerence in the North, which in turn had many southerners clamouring for war. At 4.30am on April 12th 1861, Confederate gunners opened fire on Federal - held Fort Sumter, situated in the middle of Charleston Harbour. The only real casualty was a horse. This gentle brawl was the start of a longer, harder and bloodier war than anyone could dream of.
Until the 12th of April, 1861, the United States had never seen a war as big as the Civil War. The country, that, during the Revolutionary War, was small and united; now, was deeply divided by a (somewhat) imaginary line. This separated the Union into two independent countries: the Confederate States of America, also called the South or Confederacy, was pro slavery; and the United States of America, also called the North or Union, was against slavery. This division was long awaited. As someone who was against slavery on moral grounds, the election of Abraham Lincoln caused the secession of the following slave states in the Deep South: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina and Texas. After the Battle of Fort Sumter,
During the time of the American Civil War, the new Confederate States of America formed out of the previous Southern states. This new Confederacy formed its mission partially on a religious basis, with the Christian ministers leading the way. The South was a very Christian society, formed of a variety of Southern Protestant churches, and this stayed at the heart of who the Southerners wanted their new nation to be. When the Civil War started, the Southerners also looked to their religious leaders to help guide them through a difficult time, filled with heavy losses. Christian ministers began to preach about God’s plan for the Civil War, making their battle into more of a Crusade to protect their holy values. By speaking about religious issues
Although James McPherson presents Lincoln as having numerous qualities that defined him as a brilliant leader, he wastes no time in revealing what he believes to be Lincoln’s greatest strength. In his Introduction, McPherson states regarding Lincoln’s political leadership: “In a civil war whose origins lay in a political conflict over the future of slavery and a political decision by certain states to secede, policy could never be separated from national strategy…. And neither policy nor national strategy could be separated from military strategy” (McPherson, p.6). Lincoln could not approach the war from a purely martial standpoint—instead, he needed to focus on the issues that caused it. For the catalyst of the war was also the tool for its solution; a war started by differing ideologies could only be resolved through the military application of ideology. This non-objective approach to the waging of the war almost resembles the inspired approach McPherson brings to his examination of Lincoln himself.
After the Union’s defeat at Fredericksburg in December of 1862, President Abraham Lincoln once again made a change in the Union Army’s leadership. General Ambrose Burnside was replaced with Major General Joseph Hooker. Hooker and Lincoln both agreed that the key to victory in the war was the destruction of Lee’s Army in a decisive battle (Sears 57-62). Hooker’s plan to accomplish this was to use his 130,000 soldiers and launch a double envelopment of Lee’s 60,000 men still camped at Fredericksburg.
General McDonnell attempted to flank the Confederates by moving north and west, and began several attacks on the Confederates right flank and the center of the Confederate line at Henry House.
History.com tells us that if it was not for the mission, Davis chose James Mason, a former chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and John Slidell, who had served as an American negotiator during the Mexican-American War. The two men were to emphasize the Confederacy's strengthened position and the potential commercial benefits of trade between Britain, France, and the South. Traveling to Charleston, SC, Mason and Slidell intended to embark aboard CSS Nashville (2 guns) for the voyage to Britain. As Nashville appeared unable to evade the Union blockade, they instead boarded the smaller steamer Theodora. History .com also tells that Using side channels, the steamer was able to evade the Union ships and arrived at Nassau, Bahamas. Finding they had missed their connection to St. Thomas, where they had planned to
On the morning of march 8 1862 the confederate ironclad CSS. Virginia steamed out of its port at Norfolk Virginia and towards the union blockade. The goal of the Virginia’s commander Franklin Buchanan was to break the blockade of Norfolk Harbor which held one of the largest naval bases in the Americas. At about 2 pm she spotted the USS Cumberland. Buchanan ordered the ship to ram the Cumberland with its 1500 pound ram which lodged itself in the cumberlands bow completely shredding it’s hull. The cumberland began to sink rapidly with the virginia still logged in its bow. The Virginia managed to pull herself free but in the process the iron ram broke off and sank. Not knowing this the nearby USS congress a nearby frigate attempted to take the fight to shallow water but in the process ran herself aground. The now helpless congress came under fire from the virginia’s 9 inch guns which ripped the frigate apart. The congress then raised a white flag and the Virginias captain came above deck to accept but a musket ball from shore hit him in the arm. The now angry Captain Buchanan ordered the Virginia to fire anti crew shots at the now barely afloat Congress.
The American Civil War, which began in 1861 to 1865, has gone down in history as the one of the most significant events to have ever occurred in the United States of America, thus far. At that time, questions had arose wondering how the United States ever got so close to hitting rock bottom, especially being that it was a conflict within the country itself. Hostility steadily grew through the years dividing the nation further and further, and finally leading to the twelfth day in April 1861 in Fort Sumter, North Carolina. The American Civil War was an irrepressible battle and aside from the obvious physical effects of the war, the disagreement over states rights, the act of slavery, and the raising of tariffs played crucial roles in the
The reason for writing this book from McPherson’s point of view was because out of all the material out there about President Lincoln the vast majority of it is about other topics besides his role as Commander in Chief. McPherson believes that this is surely unthinkable due to the sheer amount of time and energy Lincoln had to put into being the commander of our army throughout the four long years the Civil War reigned. This book, in the eyes of James McPherson, is a long overdue explanation of Lincoln in his main role as Commander in Chief. He tells of numerous occasions when Lincoln must make important decisions that could make or break the union army. These
The constant disputes between King Charles I and parliament would ultimately lead to further breakdown in negotiations up until these verbal breakdowns resulted in military actions from both sides. This would turn out to be a significant historical period for Britain as the different ideas both the king and parliament held slowly began to create divisions amongst the British people, some agreed with the king and others with parliament. It was evident that religion was a significant factor in the outbreak of civil war in 1642. However what’s clear is that other factors had key parts to play such as class divisions, geographic locations and politics. The main argument will be that religion was the core factor that influenced people into selecting