Civil War Vocabulary – Flashcards
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Harper's Ferry
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Place in Virginia where John Brown led a raid on a federal arsenal. *He and his followers hoped to distribute weapons to slaves in Virginia and start a slave rebellion. His plan failed and he was later executed.
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Fort Sumter
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Union military post in South Carolina which was taken over by the Confederacy in 1861. *Officially began the Civil War
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slavery
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Condition of being owned by, and forced to work for someone else. *About 4 million slaves in the south in 1860; 1/3 of Southern farmers owned slaves; most worked in fields on plantations.
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Confederacy
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The southern states that seceded from the United States in 1861.
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Appomattox Courthouse
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Place where Civil War ended on April 9, 1865, when Lee surrendered to Grant.
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Sherman's March
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The march of an army of 62,000 men from Atlanta toward Savannah, Georgia which left a path of almost total destruction. *It is often cited as the first example of total war.
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Morse code
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Device that allowed messages to be sent by wires over long distances *Helped Union send battle information.
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"Stonewall"Jackson
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General for the South; got his nickname because he refused to retreat during battle - he held his position like a stone wall.
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Emancipation Proclamation
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Document freeing slaves in Union-controlled Confederate states *It did not end slavery.
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Battle of Antietam
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Civil War battle in which 25,000 men were killed or wounded *It is considered the bloodiest day of the Civil War.
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Uncle Tom's Cabin
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Novel written by Harriet Beecher Stowe that showed the horrors of slavery to Northerners.
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Union
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the United States (especially the northern states during the American Civil War)
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Gatling Gun
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Rapid-fire gun capable of shooting 600 rounds per minute.
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Battle of Vicksburg
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The fall of Vicksburg, Mississippi, to General Ulysses S. Grant's army on July 4th, 1863, after 48 days of seige.
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ironclad
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ship made of iron
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Kansas-Nebraska Act
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A law that allowed voters in Kansas and Nebraska to choose whether to allow slavery or not. *Violence erupted when people from Missouri crossed into Kansas to vote for slavery then went back to Missouri.
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Dred Scott Decision
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U.S. Supreme Court decision which determined that slaves (Dred Scott) could not sue in federal court because they did not have the rights of citizenship.
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Missouri Compromise
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A series of agreements passed by Congress in 1820-1821 to maintain the balance of power between slave states and free states. Missouri was admitted as a slave state and Maine was admitted as a free state to keep the balance of power.
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secede
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To leave or withdraw *Eleven Southern states seceded from the Union in 1860 which precipitated the Civil War.
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Battle of Gettysburg
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Turning point of the Civil War that made it clear the North would win. *It stopped the South's advance in the North.
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Abraham Lincoln
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President of the United States of America during the Civil War; born in Kentucky; helped preserve the United States by leading the country in the defeat of the Confederacy; against slavery; freed slaves; assassinated by John Wilkes Booth
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Robert E. Lee
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General of the Confederacy considered to be one of the greatest generals of all time *He was against slavery but didn't want to fight against his home state of Virginia. He also believed in states' rights.
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Ulysses S. Grant
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Successful Union general who attended West Point Military Academy; against slavery
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Anaconda Plan
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Union strategy for winning by "squeezing" on all sides * The Union blocked the South's coastline and Mississippi River to stop movement of people and supplies in the South.
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Border states
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Slave states that remained in the Union (Missouri, Kentucky, Maryland, and Delaware). *Lincoln did not call for abolition (free all slaves) at the beginning of the war because these states had slaves and would fight for the Union.
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Gettysburg Address
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Speech given by Abraham Lincoln at the dedication of the Gettysburg National Cemetery *His three minute speech inspired the North to keep fighting for a united country and the end of slavery.
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Jefferson Davis
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President of the Confederacy; born in Kentucky; for slavery; believed states had the right to leave the Union
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casualties
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people that are wounded or killed *There were a lot of these in the battles of the Civil War because weapon technology had improved, but battle techniques had not.
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Civil War
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War between the North and South. *The North believed that the states should not have slaves and the Union should make decisions together. The South believed that states had the right to have slaves and make their own decisions.
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William Sherman
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Union general who believed in TOTAL WAR *He was a hero in the North and a villain in the South.
