The Battle Of The American Civil War

The American Civil War has become a point of controversy and argument when discussing key events in shaping America. The arguments that arise when discussing the war tend to focus on whether the Confederate was constitutionally justified in seceding, or whether the North had the right to prevent the secession. However, when discussing the America Civil War and the idea of separation, it is important to be mindful that separation did not simply end at the state level. Letters written by Jesse Rolston, Jr. and Jedediah Hotchkiss portray two significantly different attitudes toward the war, despite the fact that the writers both fought for the Confederate States and give accounts of the same battle, one of which ended in the Confederate’s favor. When examining the documents, both writers express different viewpoints on life on and off the battlefield. This significant difference represents a division amongst the Confederate army.

A Civil War is a battle between the same citizens in a country. The American Civil War was fought from 1861 to 1865 to determine the independence for the Confederacy or the survival of the Union. By the time Abraham Lincoln was elected president in 1861, in the mist of 34 states, the constant disagreement caused seven Southern slave states to their independence from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America. The Confederacy, generally known as the South, grew to include eleven states. The states that remained devoted to the US were known as the Union or the North. The number one question that is never completely understood about the Civil War is what caused the war. There were multiple events that led to the groundbreaking, bloody, and political war.

Abraham Lincoln once stated “America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.” Abraham Lincoln is a hero for the citizens of America because his determination and courage to ending slavery even if it meant war caused peace in this nation. Slavery was the vital cause of the American Civil War. The north and the south both had their differences on how to run the country. People in the North believed in unity and that slavery should not exist because “all men are created equally.” On the other hand, the South believed in continuing slavery. People tried to talk it out and come to a middle ground after both sides compromising, however that didn’t work and caused war. Ideological differences were a vital role to making the American Civil War an inevitable event.

In Nicholas Lemann’s story Redemption: The Last Battle of the Civil War, it shows a theme of leadership through the main character of the story, and Adelbert Ames effectively demonstrates the required traits of a main character and a leader. The book focused on a lot of events that happened in the Reconstruction era. It tells about both the political characteristics and the social characteristics that are unraveled throughout the reformation of the South and giving the African Americans the right to vote along with other political freedoms. Throughout the story, Adelbert Ames successfully demonstrates the qualities of a great protagonist and a leader. Adelbert Ames shows the theme of leadership and how his change in his ambition and morality would make him a better leader in his life.

When the American Civil War began in the spring of 1861, those flocking to enlistment stations in states both north and south chiefly defined their cause as one of preservation. From Maine to Minnesota, young men joined up to preserve the Union. From Virginia to Texas, their future foes on the battlefield enlisted to preserve a social order, a social order at its core built on the institution of slavery and racial superiority . Secession had not been framed by prominent Southerners like Robert Toombs as a defensive measure to retain the fruits of the revolution against King George, a fight against those who sought to “intrique insurrection with all its nameless horrors.” (Toombs Speech) On January 1, 1863, when Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation went into effect the war became a revolution. The Union, the soldiers in blue fought to preserve could no longer exist. On every mile of soil, they would return to the Stars and Stripes from that moment on, the fabric of society would be irrevocably changed. In May of 1865, with the abolition of slavery engrained into the Constitution with the passage of the 13th Amendment, the Confederate armies of Lee and Johnston disbanded, and Lincoln dead of an assassin’s bullet; this change was the only certainty the torn fabric of the newly reunited states was left to be resown. Andrew Johnson and Southern Democrats believed the revolution of 1863 had gone far enough. Radical Republicans and African-Americans sought instead to bring it to

The battle began on July 1st, 1863 when Brigadier General John Buford met the Confederate forces just northwest of the town to slow their advances. General Buford and his troops successfully stalled the enemy until their reinforcements arrived. The Confederate reinforcements, led by Generals Hill and Ewell. The Confederacy forced the Union Army to retreat back through Gettysburg to the south of the town. There they joined the main Union forces led by Major General George Gordon Meade, who had been at the same time preparing to meet the Confederacy’s main forces led by General Robert E. Lee (www.history.com, 2015).

Throughout the Civil War, there is a constant reference to states. The obvious answer is that this represented the composition of the armies at that time. It also demonstrates that each military unit carrying that state representation formed a shared identity among the soldiers. The Confederate and Union armies both suffered from failures of leadership. These failures put strain on the rank and file soldiers to which they turned to their state identity, to their fellow soldiers from the same state, to maintain the rationale for their personal sacrifice and remember why they were in the war at all.

William Thomas was 36 and the owner of a plantation in Virginia near Norfolk. He had a wife, two daughters, and a son who he intended to pass the plantation on to just as he father had to him. Following the events of Fort Sumter, he elected to join the Confederate army to defend against what he saw as the Union’s invasion.

Months prior to the battle, the Confederate Army dealt a blow to the Union Army at the battle of Chancellorsville was in May 1863. At the battle of Chancellorsville Major General Joseph Hooker, who commanded the Army of the Potomac, lay in defeat by a smaller force under the command of General Robert E. Lee. The Army of the Northern Virginia had sent the Union forces retreating inflicting over 15,000 casualties. In mid June 1863, General Lee moved his army across the Potomac River for the second invasion of the North. On June 28th, General George Meade took command of the Union forces. On June 29th, the newly appointed Commander ordered his army to pursue General Lee. They would later meet at Gettysburg.

In the wake of the June 17th shooting in Charleston, South Carolina, protesters have been successful in their campaign against the Confederate Battle Flag resulting in its removal from state buildings. They have pursued the issue further, arguing that all Confederate Civil War memorials should be removed. I disagree; the Confederate monuments hold too great a historical value to simply dispose of them like last night’s dinner. The monuments and memorials under fire all possess similar traits that causes social and racial tension. By first identifying these traits we can then make the necessary adjustments to remedy the issue. Again, Confederate war memorials possess a valuable glimpse into the past and are worth preserving because if we

“See what a lot of land these fellows hold, of which Vicksburg is the key! The war can never be brought to a close until that key is in our pocket” (Korn, 1985, p. 17). This quotation from the 16th President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln, demonstrates how vital the city of Vicksburg was to the survival of the Confederacy during the Civil War. The city, which is located on the Mississippi River on the western border of Mississippi, was under Confederate control for over two years of the war, when it was surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant and his Union forces on July 4, 1863 after a successful siege. Many consider the Union takeover of Vicksburg, combined with the Union victory at the Battle of Gettysburg, which concluded just one day before, as the turning point of the war in favor of the United States.

Major civil war events took place between 1861 and 1865, which was a contribution of the division of nations. The war was between the southern and northern states. The northern states were not supportive of slavery in comparison to their southern counterparts. Although slavery was a major cause of the split between the north and south, it was not the only reason. The economic status, cultural activities and the position on state rights were also factors contributing to the division among the states. Slavery was a major issue that divided the northern and southern states. In this paper, the focus is on slavery as the divisive factor of the division of the northern and southern states.

The American Civil War, fought from 1861 to 1865, determined the condition of the United States. The Southern slave states, also known as the Confederate States of America upon their secession from the country, attempted to keep the system of slavery alive for as long as possible. Many combats were fought during this four-year period; specifically, the battle in the small town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania from July 1st – 3rd, 1863, proved to be a pivotal turning point in the war. Author Henry Pfanz describes the battle in great detail in his historical analysis, Gettysburg: The First Day, examining the choices and costs made by both the Union Army of the Potomac and the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. The vital decisions made during

The American Civil War was a battle that took place in the United States from 1861 to 1865. This war ripped the entire country into two opposing sides and forced them to fight against each other due to differences in beliefs. Although this War brought great tragedy across the entire nation, some refer to this time period as an American Revolution. But how could a time that caused mass amounts of death and terror be considered a period that revolutionized the country? By exploring this time period it can be recognized that this battle caused the reevaluation of many fundamental issues that were causing conflicts throughout the country. Many documents that created the foundation of our now existing United States were created due to the after affects of this conflict. This War brought great tragedy to the entire nation, yet complete revolutionized its way of thought; this period of time is often referred to as the “Second American Revolution”.

The American Civil war occurred about seventy-eight years after the American Revolution, and has many of the same characteristics of a revolution. In both wars, the American people fought for what they believed in and the way of life that they wished to live. However, the two wars differ from each other, as the soldiers that fought in the Civil War fought a new American Revolution that could have split the new world. The Confederate soldiers in the Civil War fought to keep their way of life without having to follow the laws of a strong developing federal government. Unlike in the American Revolution, where people had already left the rule of their king, moved away, and had fought in order to maintain their freedom from a well established country on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean. A war between neighbors stands apart from a war between two opposing countries. The reasons behind fighting the Civil War, the people who fought, and the outcomes the war created make the American Civil War a new Revolutionary War.