5.8 Military Conflict in the Civil War

Union advantages, Confederate strategy

The Union had greater industrial capacity, railroads, population, and naval power, favoring a long war of attrition. The Confederacy relied on cotton diplomacy, hoping for European recognition/aid, and pursued a defensive strategy on home turf, needing only to avoid defeat rather than conquer the North outright.

Turning points and total war

Early Confederate victories (Bull Run) gave way to key Union turning points: Antietam (1862) enabled the Emancipation Proclamation; Gettysburg and Vicksburg (1863) crippled the Confederacy. Union general Ulysses S. Grant waged a war of attrition, while William T. Sherman's March to the Sea introduced brutal total war, targeting civilian infrastructure and morale.

Emancipation and war's end

The Emancipation Proclamation (1863) reframed the war as a fight against slavery, allowing Black men to enlist in the Union Army (e.g., 54th Massachusetts). The war caused unprecedented casualties (~750,000 dead) and ended with Lee's surrender at Appomattox (1865), preserving the Union and abolishing slavery.

Key terms

Union military advantages

Greater industry, railroads, population, and naval power, enabling a long war of attrition and blockade strategy.

Confederate strategy

Defensive war on home territory, hoping to outlast Northern will and gain European recognition via cotton diplomacy.

Antietam (1862)

Bloody Union victory that gave Lincoln political cover to issue the Emancipation Proclamation.

Gettysburg & Vicksburg (1863)

Twin turning points: Gettysburg stopped Lee's Northern invasion; Vicksburg gave the Union the Mississippi River, splitting the Confederacy.

Sherman's March to the Sea

Union campaign of total war destroying Southern infrastructure and civilian resources to break Confederate morale.

Try an AP-style question

The Union's Anaconda Plan aimed to…

1. capture London and force a peace treaty
2. invade Canada and seize British ports
3. blockade the South and seize the Mississippi
4. surrender quickly to the Confederacy