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Essay on south carolina secession
Essay on south carolina secession
Essay on south carolina secession
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On December 20, 1860, South Carolina made a decision to secede from the United States Union. A few days later, from Charleston, South Carolina over 50 federal troops took off to Fort Sumter. Fort Sumter is an island in the Charleston Harbor which was considered part of the Northern United States government. However, southerners from South Carolina thought it belonged to the new Confederacy. Four months later, the earliest Civil War engagement took place on this disputed soil.
Before his administration ended, President James Buchanan sent 200 soldiers and supplies on an unarmed merchant vessel to reinforce Commander Robert Anderson. Robert Anderson was the commanding officer at Fort Sumter, and he was labeled as a former slave owner who was unquestionably loyal to the Union. When the unarmed merchant boat reached its destination it quickly left because South Carolina weaponry began firing on it. Unfortunately, Anderson and his soldiers stationed at the harbor, no longer got support, food or supplies. The fate of Fort Sumter lay in the hands of the incoming president or presidents.
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Although Lincoln thought of the Southern secession as artificial, Jefferson Davis sent a group of commissioners to Washington to transfer Fort Sumter to South Carolina which was part of the Confederacy and solidify the separation. Now, it was more than evident that Lincoln needed to act urgently in order to reunite the United States and Fort Sumter. Lincoln was caught between a rock and a hard place because Fort Sumter was quickly running out of supplies and nearly every decision he made had the potential to end
South Carolina had many important battles fought on its territory, Fort Sumter. Fort Sumter is an island in the Charleston Harbor, its main purpose for being built was to protect the harbor. The Confederacy felt like the Charleston harbor would be a key port in this area. When the first shots were fired, at Fort Sumter, by the Confederate soldiers this began one of the darkest periods in American history.
It is April 1861; the Civil War has just begun with the first attack on Fort Sumter. The Southern states have already seceded from the Union and formed the Confederate States of America. Now the country is split, Union in the North and the Confederacy in the South. Both the Union and the Confederacy will soon be in need of resources especially since war is about to be declared by Abraham Lincoln. Leadership for the Union and the Confederate armies are given away mostly to those with seniority rather than to those who deserve it by merit. James Ewell Brown (“Jeb”) Stuart is among the Confederacy leaders to gain his position as general not only because of his age but also because of his experience with fighting the Indians and other whites on the frontier in Bleeding Kansas. Jeb Stuart along with thirteen other Virginian’s was part of the Confederate leadership which was made up of a total forty-four men. Jeb Stuart was given his position because of the seniority he had over the other men signed up for the war, but did he also earn the position by merit and if so, does he keep his merit throughout the Civil War?
As the result, due to the difference between the north and south. They north and south viewed each other differently as two different kind of people. Stephen Douglas explained that the view of southern plantation owners (document 5). They believed the laws fit the northern, not the southern. Therefore, they made their own rules and treated themselves as individual nation which then turned into the confederacy. As a result, Abraham Lincoln gives a speech explaining that in order to succeed we need to work as a nation instead diving each other setting disputes with one in others. (document 4) Therefore, Lincoln goes on to say that two house can’t be divided because they can’t not stand by themselves, but Lincoln challenge the secession of the south because he wonders it would be erupting but he inferred because of slavery. Therefore, the north and south began to have
In the next pages I will explain why Fredericksburg was such a tragedy. Why it was a big morale booster for the South, but a disappointment for the North?
Major Anderson thought that the people of Charleston were about t attempt to seize Fort Sumter. He would not stand for this, so since he was commander of all the defenses of the harbor, and without any orders to disagree with him, he said that he could occupy any one of his choice. Since he was being watched he only told his plan to three or four officers that he knew that he could trust. He first removed the women and children with a supply of provisions. They were sent to Fort Johnson on Dec. 26 in vessels. The firing of tree guns at Moultrie was to be the signal for them to be conveyed to Sumter. In the evening the garrison went to Sumter. The people of Charleston knew that the women and children were at Fort Johnson and thought that Anderson would take his troops there. (www.sonofthesouth.net/leefoundation/battlefort-sumter.html)
On June, 17th 1775 began a fight between the British and the Americans, it took place on Breed’s HIll. In Charlestown Peninsula, North side of Boston Harbor, this battle was the bloodest of the Revoltionary in America. The British Commander, Lieutenant General Thomas Gage, Major General William Howe. There were about 2,400 troops being lead by Major general Howe.
Additionally, the first attack at Fort Sumter was poorly organized and was expected by the North. Lincoln had wanted to attack, but waited so as to retain the sympathies of any Northern moderates. The South's attack played into what he wanted.
The Civil War split our nation, Americans fighting Americans, brother against brother. The war lasted four long years, a key battle fought westward was the turning point in the war: the Battle of Vicksburg.
A Southern refugee once reflected, and referred to the Army of the Potomac as the “greatest army in the planet.” Although this is a clear exaggeration, from a Southern perspective following the Battle of Antietam, this was not too far off. Relative to the Army of Northern Virginia, the Federal army was vastly larger, in better spirits, and strategically in better positions. To direct this army of great potential, President Lincoln appointed the reluctant Major General Ambrose Everett Burnside. Almost immediately after receiving command, Burnside adopted a plan; the objective was Richmond. He was convinced that a victory at Richmond would cripple the Confederate’s ability to carry on; whether this would have been true is debatable. What is not arguable however, is Burnside’s neglect of a small city by the name of Fredericksburg, which lied directly in his path. He inherited every advantage a military leader of the time could hope for; however, every one of these advantages was dissolved with his disregard of mission command. The Army of the Potomac’s loss at the Battle of Fredericksburg was a direct result of General Burnside’s failure at conducting the commander’s activities of understanding, describing, leading, and assessing.
After the second Battle of Manassas, the Army of the Potomac was demoralized and President Lincoln needed someone that could reorganize it. President Lincoln liked General McClellan personally and admired his strengths as an administrator, organizer, and drillmaster. Lincoln was aware that the soldiers loved General McClellan and had nicknamed him “Little Mac.” Knowing this, President Lincoln ordered General McClellan to “assume command of Washington, its defenses and all forces in the immediate vicinity.”1 This was not a field command but intended for General McClellan to take the returning demoralized Army and the new soldiers coming into Washington and make them a fighting force, nothing more. Lincoln knew as well that although Ge...
The American Civil War was fought between the North (The Union) and the South (The Confederates), because of the South wanting to secede from the North. Lincoln's election as president in 1860, triggered southerners' decision to secede believing Lincoln would restrict their rights to own slaves. Lincoln stated that secession was "legally void" and had no intentions of invading the Southern states, but would use force to maintain possession of federal property. Despite his pleas for the restorations of the bonds of union, the South fired upon the federal troops stationed at Fort Sumter, in Charlestown, Virginia. This was the event that decided the eventual beginning of the Civil War. Despite the advantages of Northerners, their victory in the ...
To what extent was the election of Abraham Lincoln the primary cause of the secession of South Carolina? I will research the events leading up to the election of 1860, and South Carolina’s views leading up to the election. In my investigation, I will research the similarities and differences in the views and motives of Abraham Lincoln about South Carolina during the time of the election in November 1860 and the secession in December 1860. My investigation will also include other factors of why South Carolina seceded from the union. For my research, I will use reliable websites on the subject and primary documents including quotes, journals, and resolutions from the South Carolina General Assembly written in 1850-1860.
In congruence with President Lincoln’s statements regarding the differentiation between fighting the confederates and ending slavery, Union officers upheld slaveholders constitutionally guaranteed right to own slaves. They continually reassured slave holders in loyal boarder states that the Union would not be fighting against the institution of slavery and any runaway slaves would be returned. This policy was strictly followed by most generals and many runaway slaves were returned to their masters to face punishment or death. Despite this danger, slaves continued to run away and enter Union lines. As this persisted, many Union officers were forced to reconsider the official policy of their superiors. General Benjamin F. Butler was one of the first to break the trend, providing food and shelter to slaves who had previously worked for the Confederacy, and ultimately putting the able-bodied men to work. He justified his actions...
...ld not protect the interest of the Southern states. Coupled with the hostilities, lack of votes for Lincoln from the South and disregard for the constitutional protection of slavery is a justifiable reason from the Southern leaders to secede from the Union.
...e? Through the armed rebellion of its American residents against the Mexican authorities. Returning to the Civil War, the case can be made that secession in and of itself was not a guaranteed prelude to war. Yet the swift escalation of tensions into military action, as occurred in 1861 at Fort Sumter, suggests that Americans—Northerners and Southerners—were ready for a fight. As American history shows, fighting was something they knew something about.