Portal:American Civil War

   The American Civil War Portal

Fort Sumter

This flag flew over Fort Sumter during the bombardment

The American Civil War (1861–1865) was a sectional rebellion against the United States of America by the Confederate States, formed of eleven southern states' governments which moved to secede from the Union after the 1860 election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States. The Union's victory was eventually achieved by leveraging advantages in population, manufacturing and logistics and through a strategic naval blockade denying the Confederacy access to the world's markets.

In many ways, the conflict's central issues – the enslavement of African Americans, the role of constitutional federal government, and the rights of states  – are still not completely resolved. Not surprisingly, the Confederate army's surrender at Appomattox on April 9,1865 did little to change many Americans' attitudes toward the potential powers of central government. The passage of the Thirteenth, Fourteenth and Fifteenth amendments to the Constitution in the years immediately following the war did not change the racial prejudice prevalent among Americans of the day; and the process of Reconstruction did not heal the deeply personal wounds inflicted by four brutal years of war and more than 970,000 casualties – 3 percent of the population, including approximately 560,000 deaths. As a result, controversies affected by the war's unresolved social, political, economic and racial tensions continue to shape contemporary American thought. The causes of the war, the reasons for the outcome, and even the name of the war itself are subjects of much discussion even today. (Full article)

   Featured article

The Battle of Gettysburg by Thure de Thulstrup

The Battle of Gettysburg (locally /ˈɡɛtɪsbɜːrɡ/ ) was a three-day battle in the American Civil War fought between Union and Confederate forces between July 1 and July 3, 1863, in and around Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle, which was won by the Union, is widely considered the Civil War's turning point, ending the Confederacy's aspirations to establish an independent nation. It was the Civil War's bloodiest battle, claiming over 50,000 combined casualties over three days.

In the Battle of Gettysburg, Union Major General George Meade's Army of the Potomac defeated attacks by Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia, halting Lee's invasion of the North and forcing his retreat. (Full article...)

   Grand Parade of the States

Nevada's entry into statehood in the United States on October 31, 1864, in the midst of the American Civil War, was expedited by Union sympathizers in order to ensure the state's participation in the 1864 presidential election in support of President Abraham Lincoln. Thus Nevada became one of only two states admitted to the Union during the war (the other being West Virginia) and earned the nickname that appears on the Nevada state flag today: "Battle Born".

Because its population at statehood was less than 40,000, Nevada was only able to muster 1,200 men to fight for the Union Army, but Confederate forces never posed any serious threat of territorial seizure, and Nevada remained firmly in Union control for the duration of the war. Largely isolated from the major theaters of the conflict, Nevada nonetheless served as an important target for political and economic strategists before and after gaining statehood. Its main contribution to the cause came from its burgeoning mining industry: at least $400 million in silver ore from the Comstock Lode was used to finance the federal war effort. In addition, the state hosted a number of Union military posts. (Full article...)

   Featured biography

Lilly in 1885

Eli Lilly (July 8, 1838 – June 6, 1898) was a Union Army officer, pharmacist, chemist, and businessman who founded Eli Lilly and Company.

Lilly enlisted in the Union Army during the American Civil War and recruited a company of men to serve with him in the 18th Independent Battery Indiana Light Artillery. He was later promoted to major and then colonel, and was given command of the 9th Indiana Infantry Regiment. Lilly was captured in September 1864 and held as a prisoner of war until January 1865. After the war, he attempted to run a plantation in Mississippi, but it failed and he returned to his pharmacy profession after the death of his first wife. (Full article...)

   WikiProjects

• Military history WikiProject
• American Civil War task force
• United States military history task force
• United States WikiProject
• History WikiProject
• Biography WikiProject

   Selected picture

The following are featured images from various American Civil War articles on Wikipedia.

• 
  Robert E. Lee, by Levin Corbin Handy (restored by Adam Cuerden)
• 
  Abraham Lincoln's private secretary and biographer John Hay
• 
  Quaker Guns, by George Barnard and James F. Gibson (restored by Adam Cuerden)
• 
  The original sketch of Sherman in South Carolina: The burning of McPhersonville, at and by William Waud (restored by Adam Cuerden)
• 
  John Lorimer Worden, by Mathew Brady (restored by Adam Cuerden)
• 
  Richmond in the American Civil War, by Andrew J. Russell (edited by Durova)
• 
  Charles Pomeroy Stone, author unknown (edited by Mvuijlst)
• 
  Military execution of the conspirators in the Abraham Lincoln assassination
• 
  Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, by author unknown (restored by Adam Cuerden)
• 
  Harriet Tubman, author unknown (edited by Durova)
• 
  David Dixon Porter, by Mathew Brady (restored by Adam Cuerden)
• 
  Braxton Bragg, author unknown (restored by Adam Cuerden)
• 
  Allan Pinkerton, President Lincoln, and John A. McClernand in 1862 by Alexander Gardner
• 
  George Atzerodt, by Alexander Gardner (edited by Durova)
• 
  Lithographic facsimile of the Bixby letter, by Huber's Museum (edited by Crisco 1492)
• 
  African-American Civil War soldiers, author unknown (edited by Durova)
• 
  Christian Fleetwood, author unknown (restored by Adam Cuerden)
• 
  Battle of Kennesaw Mountain, by Alfred Waud (edited by Durova)
• 
  Andersonville survivor, author unknown (restored by Jujutacular)
• 
  Abner Doubleday, author unknown (edited by Durova)
• 
  Atlanta roundhouse ruin at History of Atlanta, by George Barnard (edited by Durova)
• 
  Francis B. Spinola, Brigadier General for the Union in the American Civil War, and Congressman from New York
• 
  Battle of Fort Sanders, by Kurz and Allison (restored by Adam Cuerden)
• 
  The Chickahominy – Sumner's Upper Bridge at Peninsula Campaign, by William McIlvaine (restored by Adam Cuerden)
• 
  Andersonville Prison at Andersonville National Historic Site, by John L. Ransom (restored by Jujutacular)
• 
  Siege of Yorktown, by James F. Gibson (edited by Durova)
• 
  William Birney, author unknown (restored by Adam Cuerden)
• 
  Confederate casualties at Chancellorsville during the American Civil War, by the the National Archives and Records Administration (edited by Mfield)
• 
  Ambrose Burnside, by Matthew Brady (edited by Mvuijlst)
• 
  First Battle of Bull Run map, author unknown (edited by Durova)
• 
  Pickett's Charge, by Thure de Thulstrup (restored by Adam Cuerden)
• 
  President Rutherford B. Hayes was the 19th President of the USA
• 
  John F. Reynolds, by Alfred Rudolph Waud (edited by Jujutacular and Papa Lima Whiskey)
• 
  Charles Griffin, author unknown
• 
  George Armstrong Custer, by George L. Andrews
• 
  Battle of Franklin, by Kurz and Allison (restored by Adam Cuerden)
• 
  The print version of Sherman in South Carolina: The burning of McPhersonville at McPhersonville, South Carolina, by William Waud (restored by Adam Cuerden)
• 
  Ulysses S. Grant, by Thure de Thulstrup (edited by Adam Cuerden)
• 
  Battle of Harpers Ferry, by Robert Knox Sneden (edited by Durova)
• 
  Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, by Thure de Thulstrup, restored by Adam Cuerden
• 
  Christopher Raymond Perry Rodgers, author unknown (restored by Eddie891)
• 
  Daniel McCallum, by the Brady National Photographic Art Gallery (restored by Adam Cuerden)
• 
  The burning of Columbia at Columbia, South Carolina in the American Civil War, by William Waud (edited by Adam Cuerden)
• 
  Richmond, Virginia after the American Civil War
• 
  John A. Dahlgren, by Mathew Brady (restored by Jebulon
• 
  United States President (and former Brigadier-General) Benjamin Harrison
• 
  William H. Seward, United States Secretary of State during the American Civil War

   Did you know...

• ... that Carter Moore Braxton fought for the Confederacy throughout the American Civil War and, according to one report, had seven horses killed under him but avoided any wounds?
• ... that CSS Beaufort fought USS Albatross in the first ship-versus-ship action of the American Civil War?
• ... that Romeo and Juliet both served in the Union Navy?
• ... that Chinese-born Joseph Pierce enlisted as a Union Army soldier, fought at the Battle of Gettysburg during the American Civil War, and was made a corporal?
• ... that Enoch Marvin Banks resigned from the University of Florida because of public outrage over his belief that the American Civil War was caused by slavery?
• ... that singer Frank Croxton performed a duet with his father for the unveiling of a monument to a Confederate States Army general?

   Subcategories

American Civil War

American Civil War by state

American Civil War by location

American Civil War by year

American Civil War-related lists

Aftermath of the American Civil War

Confederate States of America

Cultural history of the American Civil War

Economic history of the American Civil War

Historiography of the American Civil War

Military awards and decorations of the American Civil War

Military history of the American Civil War

Military units and formations of the American Civil War

American Civil War on the National Register of Historic Places

Origins of the American Civil War

People of the American Civil War

Politics of the American Civil War

Secession crisis of 1860–61

Social history of the American Civil War

American Civil War timelines

Union (American Civil War)

American Civil War crimes

Works about the American Civil War

American Civil War stubs

   American Civil War topics

   Things you can do

Attention needed

...to referencing and citation  • ...to coverage and accuracy  • ...to structure  • ...to grammar  • ...to supporting materials 

Popular pages

Full list

Cleanup needed

The West Tennessee Raids

Requested articles

James Ashby (soldier) • Benjamin D. Fearing • James B. Speers • Charles S. Steedman • Battle of Barton's Station • Lawrence P. Graham • Frederick S. Sturmbaugh • Davis Tillson • Action at Nineveh (currently a redirect) • International response to the American Civil War • Spain and the American Civil War • Savannah Campaign Confederate order of battle • Native Americans in the American Civil War (currently disambiguation after deletion) • Battle of Lafayette • Battle of Sunshine Church • Requested American Civil War Medal of Honor recipients

Expansion needed

Battle of Boonsborough • Battle of Guard Hill • Battle of Rice's Station • Battle of Simmon's Bluff • Battle of Summit Point • Charleston Arsenal • Edenton Bell Battery • First Battle of Dalton • Blackshear Prison • Edwin Forbes • Hiram B. Granbury • Henry Thomas Harrison • Louis Hébert (colonel) • Benjamin G. Humphreys • Maynard Carbine • Hezekiah G. Spruill • Smith carbine • Edward C. Walthall • Confederate States Secretary of the Navy • Confederate States Secretary of the Treasury • David Henry Williams • Battle of Rome Cross Roads • Delaware in the American Civil War • Ironclad Board • United States Military Railroad • Kansas in the American Civil War • Rufus Daggett • Ebenezer Magoffin • Confederate Quartermaster-General's Department • First Corps, Army of Northern Virginia • Francis Laurens Vinton • Henry Maury • Smith's Expedition to Tupelo • Other American Civil War battle stubs • Other American Civil War stubs

Images needed

Battle of Lone Jack • Preston Pond, Jr. • Melancthon Smith

Merging needed

1st Regiment New York Mounted Rifles and 7th Regiment New York Volunteer Cavalry

Citations needed

1st Alabama Cavalry Regiment (Union) • 4th Maine Battery • 33rd Ohio Infantry • 110th New York Volunteer Infantry • Battle of Hatcher's Run • Camp Dennison • Confederate colonies • CSS Resolute • Dakota War of 1862 • Florida in the American Civil War • Ethan A. Hitchcock (general) • Fort Harker (Alabama) • Gettysburg (1993 film) • Iowa in the American Civil War • Second Battle of Fort Sumter • Samuel Benton

Translation needed

Add an article here!

   Associated Wikimedia

The following Wikimedia Foundation sister projects provide more on this subject:

• 

  Commons
  Free media repository

• 

  Wikibooks
  Free textbooks and manuals

• 

  Wikidata
  Free knowledge base

• 

  Wikinews
  Free-content news

• 

  Wikiquote
  Collection of quotations

• 

  Wikisource
  Free-content library

• 

  Wikiversity
  Free learning tools

• 

  Wiktionary
  Dictionary and thesaurus

• Shortcuts to this page: Portal:ACW • P:ACW