Fort Sumter Essay

In 1861 and 1865, the United States engaged in a war known as the Civil War. After Abraham Lincoln become president in 1860, the country was divided, between the North and the South. President Lincoln wanted to end slavery, while the southern states did not want slavery to end. At the end of 1860 to the early months of 1861, eleven southern states seceded from the Union, meaning the states were no longer apart of the United States of America. Southern states include South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Texas, Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina. The states that seceded became a new country, the Confederate States of America. States that did not secede from the United States of America were called the Union. For the next four years, many soldiers lost their lives.

President Lincoln refused to give up Fort Sumter. Between January to April of 1861, the Union and Confederate guarded Fort Sumter. Early in the morning of April 12, 1861, Confederate guns around the harbor opened fire on Fort Sumter. The Union would not recapture Fort Sumter for nearly four years. The Confederate victory of Fort Sumter was the beginning of the Civil War.

In the beginning of the war, 1861-1863, the Confederates were winning most of the battles. The Confederacy of the United States had advantages of military strategic plans and the majority of the battles took place in the south. The first battle occured on July 21st, 1861 known as the First Battle of Bull Run. As the Confederate were winning, there was a major loss at the Battle of Antietam, known as the bloodiest day in the United States of America. Soon after this battle, Confederates invaded Pennsylvania leading into the Battle of Gettysburg. A turning point of the war was the Battle Of