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Sherman's Victory In The Civil War

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The Anaconda plan was completed to perfection by the Union troops, it brought the North to victory. The North’s most aggressive battlefield tactic took place during Sherman’s march to the sea. General Sherman believed that the only way to win the war would be to crush the Confederacy’s will to fight. He used a tactic called total war. Total war is when no mercy is given to anyone. Sherman completed this by burning everything in his path from the North to Savannah Georgia. As the Union used their offensive plan to attack in the South, Confederate troops stuck with a more defensive plan. Southern president Jefferson Davis, knew that the South lacked the factories and spending money for the war that the North had. So, he decided that the Confederacy…show more content…
The most famous Southern General was Robert E. Lee. Lee had worked as an engineer in the Mexican War, to find alternative routes around Mexican strong points. This helped him find ways to move his troops in the Civil war. After the Mexican War Lee worked as the superintendent at West Point. Lee’s experience helped him know how to command in the war. He became one of the most powerful commanders, but ended up losing to Union general Ulysses S. Grant. Grant served as a suitable opponent to Lee in the Civil War. Grant had a very similar background to Lee. He graduated wesdtpoint in the class of 1843, and then moved on to work as a regimental quartermaster in the Mexican War. Grant then was posted to the west coast with the rank of captain, but quickly resigned. General Grant’s similar background to Lee made them evenly matched competitors. But, Grant had an advantage because of his larger number of troops and supplies. The last battle that took place between the two was the Battle of Appomattox Courthouse in 1865. This battle was what is now known as the last battle in the Civil War. At that point, Lee had very few men left, so he desperately tried to merge together his troops and find more supplies. Then General Lee made a crucial mistake, when he saw Grant’s men at Appomattox he attacked. “To get the supply, he went to Appomattox Station. He had to surrender after…show more content…
Because the war, “... produced unique circumstances that required unique solutions…” (McNeese, Mountjoy, p. 14, 2009). The need for new inventions made the Civil War an important time for new inventions and creations. One of the most important inventions during the Civil War was the telegraph. Most people underestimated the importance of the new technology. But in 1862, Lincoln used the telegraph to communicate with his troops in the second battle of bull run. This was very important because it allowed Lincoln to command and advise troops from the White House. Tom Wheeler wrote a statement about Lincoln where he said, “The telegraph became a tool of his leadership and, thus, helped to win the Civil War” (historynewsnetwork.org). During the Civil War there were also improvements in the technology of weapons. One common new weapon was the Henry Repeating Rifle. The gun could fire sixteen shots in under one minute. Kyle Mizokami wrote, “The result was a single man with the firepower of an entire squad of musketmen” (Mizokami, 2016). The United States lost nearly two percent of its population during the time due to the powerful weapons that were used. One weapon that was turned down and not used in the War, but invented during the war was the Gatling Gun. Also recognized as the world's first machine gun. It could fire 190 bullets per minute (Wheeler, 2006). Another new technology that shaped the
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