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CHAPTER 14
The War of the Union
1861–1865
This chapter begins by discussing the advantages of the North and the South, along with their respective
strategies. After this is a discussion of the Emancipation Proclamation and its impact, as well as the
CORE OBJECTIVES
1. Identify the respective advantages of the North and South in the war, and explain how they affected the
military strategies of the Union and the Confederacy.
2. Evaluate Lincoln’s decision to issue the Emancipation Proclamation and its impact on the war.
3. Analyze how the war affected social and economic life in the North and South.
4. Describe the military turning points in 1863 and 1864 that ultimately led to the Confederacy’s defeat.
5. Explain how the Civil War changed the nation.
CHAPTER OUTLINE
1. Mobilizing Forces in the North and South
A. Taking Sides
B. Regional Advantages
C. The War’s Early Strategies
i. First Bull Run
ii. The Union’s “Anaconda” Plan
iii. Confederate Strategy
iv. Forming Armies
v. Why They Fought
vi. The Life of a Soldier
vii. Becoming Warriors
viii. Blacks in the South
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D. Fighting in the West
i. Kansas and Indian Territory
ii. Kentucky and Tennessee
iii. Shiloh
iv. New Orleans
v. Perryville
E. Fighting in the East
i. McClellan’s Peninsular Campaign
ii. Second Bull Run
2. Emancipation
A. Slaves at War
B. Antietam—The Turning Point
C. Emancipation Proclamation
D. Reactions to Emancipation
E. Fredericksburg
F. New York City Draft Riots
G. Blacks in the Military
3. The War behind the Lines
A. Women and the War
B. Government during the War
C. Union Finances
D. Confederate Finances
E. Union Politics and Civil Liberties
F. Confederate Politics and States’ Rights
G. Chancellorsville
4. The Faltering Confederacy
A. Vicksburg
B. Gettysburg
C. Chattanooga
D. The North Prevails
E. A Wartime Election
F. Grant’s Strategy
G. Grant’s Pursuit of Lee
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H. Sherman Pushes through the South
I. Lincoln Reelected
J. Sherman’s “March to the Sea”
K. Appomattox
5. A Transforming War
A. The Union Preserved
B. The First “Modern” War
C. Social Changes Wrought by the War
D. Thirteenth Amendment
E. The Debate Continues
LECTURE IDEAS
1. Give a lecture on one of the major Civil War battles. This discussion will serve as a microcosm for the
war in terms of tactics, weaponry, casualties, sources of soldier motivation, and so on. An intriguing
choice for this would be the Battle of the Petersburg Crater, which is excellent for illustrating military
2. With the battle lines clearly drawn, the Union and the Confederates both had advantages and
disadvantages. From a geographic standpoint, create a lecture that examines factors such as population,
physical location, industrial capacity, transportation networks, and food production. Compare and
contrast the strengths and weaknesses of both sides. Relevant sources include:
3. A general lecture on Lincoln and the war could be very valuable in tying together the whole topic of
the Civil War. See the following:
4. An exciting topic for a lecture is the Myth of the Lost Cause, with its continuing nostalgia for the Old
South and the Confederacy and the political contention it continues to generate. See Gaines Foster’s
Ghosts of the Confederacy: Defeat, the Lost Cause, and the Emergence of the New South (1988) and
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5. The year 1863 was a significant turning point in the war militarily and socially. In that year, Lincoln
issued the Emancipation Proclamation and the Union army had significant victories at Gettysburg and
6. Consider a lecture on the divisive nature of the Civil War. Most people are familiar with families being
divided and taking sides. William Freehling’s The South vs. the South: How Anti-Confederate
IN-CLASS ACTIVITIES / FLIPPED CLASSROOM SUGGESTIONS
1. Divide the class into groups and have them look into the Civil War regionally. Then, have them present
the war from perspectives of the North, South, and West. See the following:
2. There is no better or more powerful Civil War film than Glory. Use the concluding half of it (which
would cover a fifty-minute class period) to tell the story of the 54th Massachusetts Regiment and
3. Access the Library of Congress’s Civil War photographs collection and pull up photographs from the
Battle of Antietam. Have your students offer their impressions of the photographs and the insights they
offer into the battle. After consideration of the photographs, have your students read some
contemporary newspaper accounts of the battle. The New York Times, for example, offers free access
to its accounts of the battle (go to www.nytimes.com then enter “Antietam” in the search box; on the
results page, click on the link to have the results ordered beginning with the oldest articles first, and the
list should then start with the articles about the battle). Have your students read selected accounts from
4. Ask students to choose a major figure in the Civil War to research in-depth. You might provide a list
that includes figures such as Henry W. Halleck, Lew Wallace, Ulysses S. Grant, Nathan Bedford
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Forrest, Stonewall Jackson, Jefferson Davis, Newton Knight. Ask the students to explore the impact
these men had on the war between the states. Allow the students to share their research through an in–
class presentation by creating a PowerPoint or designing a newspaper cover story about the individual.
Relevant sources include:
5. Have your students read a selection of Civil War–era letters (you can access such letters at
http://valley.lib.virginia.edu/VoS/choosepart.html). Engage the class in a discussion about the
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Beyond its superior resources and numbers, what other factors contributed to the Union victory? Of
these, which one would you identify as the most important?
2. At the conclusion of the war, General Robert E. Lee noted that his army had “been compelled to yield
to overwhelming numbers and resources.” Did the Confederacy have any realistic options that might
have allowed it to overcome those disadvantages in numbers and resources and see a conclusion to the
war that was more favorable to its objectives?
3. At one point during the Civil War, most of the three million fighting in uniform were volunteers, not
draftees. What reasons led them to voluntarily risk their life? Explore the question from both the Union
and Confederate sides.
4. Soldiers on the front lines were not the only ones affected by the war. The effects were far reaching.
Explain how this conflict affected social and economic life in both the North and South.
5. How much power should a president have to limit civil liberties during wartime? Did President Lincoln
exercise his power appropriately in this regard?
6. What mistakes did the Confederacy make that made it unlikely it would be able to overcome its
significant disadvantages?
7. Why did religion assume such a prominent role in the Civil War?
PRACTICING CITIZENSHIP
There is ongoing controversy about the threat to Civil War battlefields posed by impending commercial
development. Many historians and activists feel that valuable parts of our national heritage might be lost
if there is no argument for preservation made. Research the issues and arguments from perspectives of
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