Literature
Who wrote Uncle Tom’s Cabin
Harriet Beecher Stowe
What was “Bleeding Kansas”?
a violent period of civil unrest in the Kansas Territory, where pro-slavery and anti-slavery settlers clashed fiercely over whether Kansas would enter the Union as a free or slave state
First state to secede?
South Carolina
Souths biggest export
Cotton
First battle of the civil war?
Fort Sumter
What did The Impending Crisis argue?
slavery was economically disastrous for the South
Who led the Pottawatomie Massacre?
John Brown led the Pottawatomie Massacre
What did Emancipation Proclamation do?
declared enslaved people in Confederate states "free," transforming the Civil War's purpose and allowing Black men to join the Union Army
Norths advantages
superior industrial capacity, larger population, extensive infrastructure, railroads, established government, and naval supremacy
Why was Antietam key?
Its tactical Union “victory” (repelling the first Confederate invasion of the North) gave Lincoln the political leverage to issue the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, shifting the war's focus to ending slavery and discouraging European intervention for the South.
What did Dred Scott sue for?
his freedom
What was the Lecompton Constitution?
a pro-slavery state constitution drafted in Kansas in 1857 by Southern supporters, aiming to make Kansas a slave state
What happened at Fort Sumter?
Confederate forces bombarded the Union-held fort starting April 12, 1861, after the Union garrison refused to surrender
What were border states?
Border States during the Civil War were slave-holding states (Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky, Missouri, and later West Virginia) that remained in the Union
The First Major Battle of the Civil War?
Battle of Bull Run
What did John Brown try at Harpers Ferry?
John Brown tried to start a massive slave rebellion at Harpers Ferry in 1859
What did the Dred Scott decision say?
people of African descent, enslaved or free, were not U.S. citizens and had no right to sue in federal court, asserting slaves were property protected by the Fifth Amendment, thus making the Missouri Compromise unconstitutional and preventing Congress from banning slavery in territories.
Why did South expect foreign help?
believing Europe's reliance on Southern cotton for textiles would force them to intervene militarily to break the Union blockade and secure the raw material
What was conscription?
When a government legally requires citizens (usually young men) to serve in the military, often during wartime, to build up forces beyond volunteers
What happened after Gettysburg?
Tens of thousands of dead and wounded soldiers, piles of dead horses, and destroyed property overwhelmed the town, leading to widespread suffering and the urgent need for burials. This culminated in the creation of the National Cemetery at Gettysburg and President Lincoln's iconic Gettysburg Address, dedicating the ground to a “new birth of freedom” for the nation.
How did books fuel disunion?
Books and other published materials fueled disunion before the Civil War by shaping public opinion, popularizing abolitionist arguments, and hardening sectional divisions over slavery.
What did Kansas-Nebraska Act allow?
settlers in the new Kansas and Nebraska territories to decide for themselves whether to permit slavery through popular sovereignty
Why did secession spread fast?
Abraham Lincoln's 1860 election as president was seen as an existential threat to slavery, fueling fears that the Republican party would abolish their way of life, economy, and political power
South’s weakness?
Weak industrial base, reliance on slave labor (limiting manpower and no potential European allies), limited financial resources, poor transportation (railroads), a smaller population, and a fragmented government structure
Grant’s final strategy? (The Union)
A total war approach focused on destroying the main Confederate armies (Lee's in Virginia, Johnston's in the West) and crippling the South's economic infrastructure