The American Civil War In Photos 1861-1865

Yorktown’s defences during the 1862 Peninsula Campaign in Virginia.

The American Civil War was fought from April 12, 1861, up till May 26, 1865. The Americans engaged themselves in a civil war. The warring factions were the United States “The Union”, otherwise known as “the North” and the Confederacy which was “the South”, which was made up of states that broke out.

The civil war, recorded as the most tragic happening in the history of America, witnessed a casualty of over 600,000 northern and southern Americans who lost their lives during the civil war.

The war lasted for over four years witnessing 237 named battles which started as a result of the disagreement on allowing slavery spread into the western territories. This would result in the creation or prevention of more slave states and be said to push slavery to a path of gradual disappearance.

Stacks of cannon balls, presumably a scene from a Washington, District of Columbia, arsenal yard.

To begin, the Seven initial states began an alliance in Montgomery, during this period, the total number of members of the United States Army was 16,000. On the other hand, the Northern governors had given a go-ahead to begin the recruitment of military personnel. The Confederate Congress empowered the new nation with an army of up to 100,000 military troops. In May, Jefferson Davis asked for 100,000 soldiers for one year or the duration, and in turn, was assigned to him by the U.S. Congress.

During the start of the war, both parties had an outpour of individuals willing to participate in the war, the numbers made it difficult for them to professionally train and arm them. However, soon enough the zeal died down and the recruiting numbers could not be attained.

The South Carolina island of Morris. A 300-pound Parrott rifle’s burst muzzle that was captured on camera in July or August of 1863.

As a result, the warring parties used the draft law as a tool to forcefully and voluntarily recruit new members. The law passed in April 1862, made provision for young men between the age bracket of 18 to 35 to be conscripted. These laws excluded overseers of slaves, government officials, and clergymen. In the United States Congress in July kept to this by approving militia conscription in a state when it could not meet its target with volunteers. This saw the conscription of 177,000 European immigrants born in Germany and 144,000 born in Ireland into the union army.

In January 1863, the Emancipation Proclamation by President Abraham Lincoln went into effect, and former slaves who were still full of strength and healthy were enrolled by the states to meet their requirements. On the other hand, monetary bonuses for the white volunteers kept increasing. In March 1863, congress made the laws tougher, however, still gave room for the provision of replacement up till the middle of 1864. This resulted in massive avoidance and resistance to military drafting and recruitment.

69th Infantry New York officers with Col. Michael Corcoran at Fort Corcoran, Virginia.

Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation of 1863, resulted in the debate finally coming to an end. Lincoln became aware that only the elimination of slavery would reunite the union and being the debate to an end. The Union victory also brought to conclusion the debates over states’ rights versus federalism.

The war had come to an end, with as many as 50,000 casualties in a single battle. The South specifically suffered a high death toll as they had a smaller population involved in the war. Almost every American lost someone to the war: a friend, relative, brother, son, or father. The war nonetheless aided in uniting the states in the North and South together.