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The American Civil War Portal
TheAmerican Civil War (1861–1865) was a sectionalrebellion against theUnited States of America by theConfederate States, formed of elevensouthern states'governments which moved tosecede from theUnion after the1860 election ofAbraham Lincoln asPresident of the United States. The Union's victory was eventually achieved by leveraging advantages inpopulation,manufacturing andlogistics and through astrategicnavalblockade denying the Confederacy access to the world'smarkets.
In many ways, the conflict's centralissues – theenslavement of African Americans, the role ofconstitutionalfederal government, and therights of states – are still not completely resolved. Not surprisingly, theConfederate army's surrender atAppomattox on April 9,1865 did little to change manyAmericans' attitudes toward the potential powers ofcentral government. The passage of theThirteenth,Fourteenth andFifteenthamendments to the Constitution in the years immediately following the war did not change theracial prejudice prevalent among Americans of the day; and the process ofReconstruction did not heal the deeply personal wounds inflicted by four brutal years of war and more than 970,000 casualties – 3 percent of the population, including approximately 560,000 deaths. As a result, controversies affected by the war's unresolved social, political, economic and racial tensions continue to shape contemporary American thought. Thecauses of the war, the reasons for the outcome, and eventhe name of the war itself are subjects of much discussion even today.(Full article)
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Pickett's Charge was aninfantry assault on July 3, 1863, during theBattle of Gettysburg. It was ordered by Confederate GeneralRobert E. Lee as part of his plan to break through Union lines and achieve a decisive victory in the North. The charge was named after Major GeneralGeorge Pickett, one of the Confederate Army's division commanders. The assault was aimed at the center of the Union Army's position onCemetery Ridge, which was believed to be a vulnerable point in the Union defenses. As the Confederate troops marched across nearly a mile of open ground, they came under heavy artillery and rifle fire from entrenched Union forces. The open terrain offered little cover, making the Confederate soldiers easy targets, and their ranks were quickly decimated. Although a small number of the Confederate soldiers managed to reach the Union lines and engage in hand-to-hand combat, they were ultimately overwhelmed.
The charge ended in a disastrous defeat for the Confederates, with more than half of the men involved either killed, wounded, or captured. Pickett's Charge marked the climax of the Battle of Gettysburg, and its furthest advance is called the "high-water mark of the Confederacy". The failure of the charge crushed the Confederate Army's hopes of winning a decisive victory in the North and forced General Lee to retreat back to Virginia. The charge has often been mythologized in American narratives about theCivil War, especially in the South. (Full article...)
Grand Parade of the States
TheAmerican Civil War significantly affectedTennessee, with every county witnessing combat. During the War,Tennessee was aConfederate state, and the last state to officially secede from the Union to join theConfederacy.Tennessee had been threatening to secede since before theConfederacy was even formed, but would not officially do so until afterthe fall of Fort Sumter when public opinion throughout the state drastically shifted.Tennessee seceded in protest toPresident Lincoln's April 15 Proclamation calling forth 75,000 members of state militias to suppress the rebellion. Tennessee provided the second largest number of troops for theConfederacy, and would also provide moresouthern unionist soldiers for theUnion Army than any other state within the Confederacy.
In February 1862, some of the war's first serious fighting took place along theTennessee andCumberland rivers, recognized as major military highways, and mountain passes such asCumberland Gap were keenly competed-for by both sides. TheBattle of Shiloh and the fighting along the Mississippi brought glory to the then little-knownUlysses S. Grant, while his area commanderHenry Halleck was rewarded with a promotion toGeneral-in-Chief. TheTullahoma campaign, led byWilliam Rosecrans, drove the Confederates fromMiddle Tennessee so quickly that they did not take many casualties, and were strong enough to defeat Rosecrans soon afterward. AtNashville in December 1864,George Thomas routed theArmy of Tennessee underJohn Bell Hood, the last major battle fought in the state. (Full article...)
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Lawrence Sullivan "Sul"Ross (September 27, 1838 – January 3, 1898) was the 19thgovernor of Texas, aConfederate States Army general during theAmerican Civil War, and the 4th president of the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas, now calledTexas A&M University.
Ross was raised in theRepublic of Texas, which was later annexed to the United States. Much of his childhood was spent on thefrontier, where his family founded the town ofWaco. Ross attendedBaylor University (then located inIndependence, Texas) andFlorence Wesleyan University inFlorence, Alabama. On one of his summer breaks, he suffered severe injuries while fightingComanches. After graduation, Ross joined theTexas Rangers, and in 1860, led Texas Rangers in theBattle of Pease River, where federal troops recapturedCynthia Ann Parker, who had been captured by the Comanches as a child in 1836. (Full article...)
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