The Super Summary of World History

by Alan Dale Daniel

  Because the landed elites ran the South (as usual—money talks), slavery was a major factor in every regional dispute in Congress. The northern states banned slavery by 1860. There was a virtual tie in the Senate between slave states and free states, and the South recognized maintaining the balance as new states came into the Union was vital, otherwise, they could not protect their regional interests. The Mexican-American War and the following land acquisitions made the problem acute. The timing and method of allowing states into the Union created a “perfect storm” where compromise broke down.

  Another problem was the emotional nature of the slavery issue. Southerners wanted the North to go away and leave them alone. Why should northerners be able to order them around? Why were the northerners so adamant about ending an institution not in their area and causing them no harm? Northern propaganda concerning mistreatment of slaves galled the South. Why would slave owners mistreat their property? Would they mistreat their horses? Northerners must know slaves were valuable, and mistreatment caused their value to decrease. The southerners believed that just because families might endure separation at slave sales or some slaves required physical punishment to keep them in line was no cause for concern on behalf of those not owing slaves. In the North, abolitionists were crying out for justice. In newspapers and speeches across the North, the abolitionists’ cause drew ever more attention to ending slavery.[127]

  Southerners argued northerners should pay slave owners to set the slaves free. Emancipation by purchase was a practical idea, but the abolitionists refused to pay because they thought the institution was ungodly, cruel, and immoral. And there was another rub; the Constitution, as we have discussed, told the government to pay for property it took and southerners said slaves were property. The southerners thought the Constitution was clear—the North must pay for any slaves it forced them to free. The abolitionist also thought morality was clear—no man had the callous right to own another. Because the two societies existed side by side, and the one would not leave the other alone, the problems failed to subside.

  The ultimate problem: the Constitution stood silent on a state departing the Union. Many in the South thought, as a legal matter, that if a state could vote to join the Union it could vote to leave the Union. In the North many feared a Union split up would significantly impair the nation and argued no state could leave without the consent of Congress. As southern congressional power declined, they considered the ultimate solution: leave the Union.

  The stage was set for an armed conflict to decide if a state had the right to leave the Union. This was the true issue of the war. Slavery along with vast cultural, economic, and emotional issues may have caused secession; however, none of that was directly at issue. The one issue to be decided as the war began was whether a state could separate from the Union without Congressional approval. Abraham Lincoln refused to debate the issue. After the South seceded, he called up the troops and immediately moved to force the secessionists’ states back into the Union. Blood spilling over countless battlefields would now answer the political question.

  The Republican Party, founded in 1854, was a reaction to the Kansas-Nebraska Act expanding slavery to the new territories. The new party opposed any expansion of slavery to the territories; however, many thought it also stood for abolishing slavery, but this was not an immediate goal. In 1860 its candidate for president of the United States, Abraham Lincoln, won the election because he received the most electoral votes. The fact that the southern vote was split actually gave the Republicans the white house. Worst of all, the vote was split along northern and southern lines. The election displayed the extent of the national split. Even though Lincoln was not going to abolish slavery, he would stop its expansion to the territories. The South knew they would soon be a minority in the Senate. Lincoln’s election triggered the immediate secession of seven Deep South states followed later by the relatively moderate Border States. As Lincoln entered office the secession was underway. From his first moments as president he faced the crisis of the Civil War.

  The time line to war:

  Dec 20, 1860: South Carolina secedes

  Jan 1861: Mississippi, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana, and Florida secede; Texas secedes Feb 1, 1861

  Feb 4: The seven seceding states meet in Montgomery, Alabama to draft a Confederate Constitution

  March 4: Lincoln’s inaugural address. Lincoln states he will not end slavery in states where it already existed; however, seven (7) states had by now seceded from the Union. The ones that will later secede (Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Arkansas) would be some of the most powerful in the Confederacy, but they were still with the Union after Lincoln spoke. Some would, in fact, vote to stay prior to April 15.

  April 12: Ft Sumter shelled (April 14, surrenders).

  April 15: Lincoln calls up 75,000 troops—each state to contribute troops. This move outrages Virginia and the other southern states still with the Union.

  Apr 17: Virginia secedes (8th state) on a vote of 88 to 55. Prior to the assault on Ft Sumter, secession was voted down 89 to 45 (April 4). Virginia was the key state.

  May 6: Arkansas secedes.

  May 7: Tennessee secedes.

  May 20: North Carolina secedes.

  Border States: Missouri, Kentucky, Maryland, Delaware do not secede. This was crucial to an eventual Union victory. In1863, W. Virginia was made a Union state by splitting it away from Virginia.

  It is arguable that the Southern States seceding after April 15 left for reasons other than slavery. In their Declarations of Disunion, some say oppression by the Federal Government caused the disunion. Historians ignore these declarations since it is felt they covered up the real cause of secession (slavery); yet, at that moment there was no reason to cover up anything. In fact, Virginia’s secession motion was soundly defeated in their legislature just prior to Lincoln calling for troops. Virginia left after the call for troops saying they feared Federal oppression. It seems they were telling the truth about their reasons for secession.

  Why rush to call up troops when the South harbored no intentions of invading the North? It appears Lincoln hurried into the war. Some Northerners thought that mustering the troops for action alone would end the rebellion. Others thought winning a battle or two might be necessary; nevertheless, they believed a short war was certain. Therefore, most northerners thought calling up the troops was necessary and good at this point. Both Sherman and Grant (famous generals for the North) knew the war would be difficult and long, as did Winfield Scott, the Union’s commanding general in 1861. One would hope Lincoln knew the South would fight relentlessly, but why move so quickly to build a Union army and prod it into action? Lincoln must have thought as other northerners did, that the South could be quickly defeated.

  Why fight for Fort Sumter when its strategic value was minimal and resupplying it could be very difficult? The reasons for trying to resupply Fort Sumter were probably political. If the South fired the first shots of the conflict they would take on the role of the aggressor. Southern aggression would rally the North to support the war and might keep the South from gaining overseas support.

  Lincoln asked each state to provide men for the war against the secessionist states; however, such a move would infuriate Virginia as well as other slave holding states. This action would surely result in Virginia, and others, joining the rebellion thereby increasing the combat and economic power of the Confederacy exponentially. Almost any move keeping Virginia and other non-secessionist states in the Union was better than driving them out. Why not negotiate with the individual secessionist states in a bid to split a few off and weaken the remainder? The defection of any of the original seven states would cripple the ability of the rest to survive. If political moves could mortally wound the session why not try them? How to lure at least one back? Find a state whose leadership was interested in projects that might buy them off, such as: bringing the transcontinental railroad through their state, building harbor facilities, new roads, or perha
ps guarantees on the tariff issue.[128] Lincoln decided to call on the military right away and either ignored the certain results of the move or thought the remaining slave holding states would stay with the Union. However, Virginia had sent unequivocal warnings about the results of using military force against the secession. Lincoln could not have missed those danger signs. Going ahead in the firm knowledge that Virginia, along with other powerful slave holding states, would join the Confederacy was pure insanity. Nonetheless, that was the president’s action. Lincoln’s claim to greatness comes from his absolute determination to save the Union; however, this inability to handle the secession with anything other than immediate war reflects badly upon him. His moves immediately before and after the inauguration in response to the secession crisis were abysmal.

  Casualties

  The American Civil War cost the North about six hundred thousand casualties (about 360,000 dead) and the South about four hundred thousand casualties (about 258,000 dead) out of a population of perhaps 32 million for the entire nation (all these are estimates). This puts the military casualty total at about 1 million out of 30 million; thus, a 3 percent casualty rate.[129] The total number of men who were under arms was over 2.2 million in the North and just over 1 million in the South; thus, over 3 million men were under arms, which was 10 percent of the population at the time. Most nations in critical wars manage to field about 10 to 20 percent of their population, and thereafter, they are scrapping the bottom of the manpower[130] barrel. This was the bloodiest war in US history as of 2010 because all the dead and wounded were American.

  Strategy—the North

  General Winfield Scott designed the North’s war strategy. Scott’s plan was to established a naval blockade and then split the South into sectors which could be defeated one by one if necessary. The first thrust went down the Mississippi to New Orleans. Once the Mississippi River was under Union control Texas would be isolated and could not give aid to the east. The second splitting thrust started in Tennessee and drove to the coast of Georgia, thereby breaking off the resources and men of the Deep South from states farther north. This was termed the anaconda strategy after the boa constrictor snake because it squeezed the South into submission; however, except for the naval blockade this was anything but a strangulation strategy. This was an aggressive plan that required extensive offensive action.

  General Scott’s strategy required extensive sets of armies and a large navy. Southern coastlines were long and peppered with small bays and harbors. A blockade of such a coastline required a substantial navy. The South gained an army and good military leadership upon secession as many excellent officers moved south to support their states. The strategy of General Winfield Scott recognized the need to conquer a map. To split the South into parts required at least two armies, both very large. The same applied to the naval blockade. The North had neither a large army nor navy, but it soon would have. The Federal navy expanded rapidly, and the blockade was one of the most important parts of winning the war. The blockade destroyed the South’s economy which was just as important as other strategic moves since it substantially weakened the ability of the South to fight. The other naval contribution was the riverboats that successfully bombarded the southern troops and forts in the west as the Union moved down the massive river systems into the South.[131]

  Throughout the war Lincoln ran an efficient and focused government. Immediately seeing the strategic weakness of the South, Lincoln knew victory would be his if he just kept fighting. Even after disasters such as Fredericksburg, he knew losses the Union sustained could be replaced, but Southern losses could not. Lincoln also recognized the importance of the blockade. Lincoln threatened war when Great Britain neared the completion of two powerful commerce raiders for the South. England wisely refused delivery. Lincoln became a good military strategist, and decision makers in the Union government were clear on their goals from the moment the war began.[132] All Lincoln needed was a set of generals equal to his resolve to win. It took time to find them, but after he appointed Grant and Sherman to assault the South the war was won.

  Strategy—the South

  The South decided on the classic cordon defense strategy, wherein their armies protected invasion routes around the Confederate perimeter and awaited attacks from the North. This strategy is teeming with problems because the defender cannot quickly mass forces against the enemy. When the blow falls the defender is weak at the point of attack and must rally troops to stop the advance. The power of the North also enabled it to invade simultaneously from several directions requiring the South to spread its forces thin. When reading about Hitler’s Europe in WWII, we will see the Nazis faced the same problem and adopted the same solution—with the same results.

  Early in the war, during the Peninsula Campaign by the Union, Stonewall Jackson attempted in vain to convince Robert E. Lee and Confederate President Jefferson Davis to invade the North. The Union Army of the Potomac was fighting east of Richmond, Virginia, leaving the way north lightly guarded. Jackson advocated an invasion driving for Baltimore, Maryland or Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, and destroying the rail lines and factories located in these regions. Such a strategy would also force the abandonment of the Richmond campaign. If this worked and resulted in an early southern victory, the South could remain intact. Only in this condition would the Confederacy have a chance of surviving as a nation. By waiting for the Union invasion it was bound to lose territory, thereby minimizing its chances of success even if it “won” the war.

  With few exceptions the South fought the war with fewer men and on its own soil. It is also estimated as many as 300,000 white male southerners fought for the Union Army, and another 200,000 mostly southern blacks joined the Union as well. A loss of nearly 500,000 men to the North was a telling blow to the South. If an infantry division in1860 was about 10,000 men, the defection equals the loss of between 30 to 50 divisions! Some northerners fought for the South, but the numbers are few and speculative.

  As their economy fell apart, the southern armies were reduced to rags and very little food (fried corn was a staple). Northern determination to continue the war and its nearly unlimited supply of men and materials crushed the South. As long as the North held its determination and focused its power on achieving victory the South was doomed. Only if the North quit could the war end with a southern victory; however, if we examine this “victory by the South” scenario we might notice a few problems. Assume the North ran out of steam in 1863 after capturing New Orleans, Kentucky, Missouri, and a lot of Tennessee. The remaining South would be in extremely poor shape, and the North would never give back the area it bled to win. The results of such a “victory” are impossible to discern, nevertheless, with its lack of resources, damaged economy, and weak central government the smart money would bet on a quick economic and political failure followed by a request to re-enter the Union.[133] The Confederate states were small in number and resources, hence, a “victory” that lost large tracts of territory to the Union guaranteed the non-viability of the remaining states. Why the South fought on after 1863 and the loss of the Mississippi River is a mystery; although, most pin it on pride (I pin it on stupidity).[134]

  The South’s political leadership and its governmental system started disjointed and uncoordinated, and then never changed. Many southern state governments held back men and resources to protect their own state, and constantly argued with their central government about recruitment and supplies as the war went on. As a result, the Confederacy failed to maintain its economy, muster troops, or feed and clothe its troops. In a very short time the roads, railroads, economy, and small industrial base were in shambles. The Union blockade stopped the export of cotton and tobacco devastating the Confederate economy. The southern nation only maintained itself through the superhuman exertions of its excellent armies. The Confederate troops held on through hell itself and then some. How these men kept fighting with such astounding bravery and endurance while starving and freezing is remarkable. It is clear from
the economic situation of the Confederacy they had lost the war economically before the Battle of Antietam in September of 1862. Yet they fought on, winning victory after victory; nevertheless, the end was not in doubt as long as the Union kept fighting. Lincoln recognized this fact from the first.

  Figure 37 Principle Campaigns of the Civil War—

  1: Split the South down the Mississippi,

  2: Split the South across Georgia,

  3: Defeat Lee in Virginia,

  4: Maintain a tight naval blockade

  The War Begins

  There are so many excellent books on the Civil War and its battles there is no need to recount the battles here (a few of the best books are listed at the end of the section); however, a couple of campaigns will be covered along with my opinions on what was going on in the war.

  From the outset, Lincoln was determined to keep the South in the Union. After Lincoln’s inaugural address, where he said slavery could continue to exist where it was then legal, Virginia voted to stay in the Union. The key Border States were Virginia, Tennessee, and North Carolina. Each of these Border States allowed slavery but did not want a war with the North. After the South fired on the Fort Sumter, a federal military post in Charleston Harbor in South Carolina, Lincoln used the event to call up troops to invade the South, thus making a tragic political blunder. He required each state to send men to put down the rebellion. Lincoln told Fort Sumter to fight, and he tried to resupply the fort, thereby guaranteeing the South would fire the first shots of the war. Then Lincoln used the fall of the fort as the reason to call up the troops. Thus, the South firing on Fort Sumter was not a surprise, and calling up troops was planned before the Confederates fired on the fort. All this makes it impossible to believe Lincoln tried to avoid the war. It is obvious he decided negations would serve no purpose, and went forward with a plan to start the war on his terms. Unfortunately, his moves pushed the states of Virginia, Tennessee, and North Carolina to join the Confederacy. Not smart. After the second wave of secession, Lincoln negotiated with Maryland, Kentucky, Missouri, and Delaware to keep them in the Union, and they stayed. At least he was a fast learner.