Class VIII Subject: History

Chapter 4: The American Civil War

Events

1852 Stwoe writes 'Uncle Tom's Cabin'

1861 Abraham Lincoln becomes President

1861 Attack on Fort Sumter

1862 Emancipation Proclamation

1863 Gettysburg Address

1864 War at Virginia

1865 Slavery was abolished

1865 Unity of USA

was preserved
 NOTES: AMERICAN CIVIL WAR

Reasons for slave labour and the slave trade in the Southern States of the
USA:
• The economy of the Southern States was mainly agricultural since the climate
favoured the growth of plantation crops like cotton, rubber, and tea.
• Such plantations required a large amount of labour, for which slaves were
used.
• As a result, all the Southern States depended on slave labour and the slave
trade.

Reasons for the strong opposition to slavery in the Northern States of the
USA.
• An Industrial Revolution had been occurred in the Northern States between
1815
and 1860. These states had huge factories, several big cities, and flourishing
commerce.
• Wage-earning and skilled workers were needed for these factories, but not
the
slaves.
• There was also a strong anti-slavery movement in the Northern States, led by
English
reformers and other social groups.
• As a result, slavery had been practically abolished there. These states wanted
slavery banned in the southern states too.

Effects of the American Civil War

• Slavery was formally abolished in the USA
• The unity of the USA was preserved.
• The Civil War left the southern states damaged. Policies were therefore
devised to reconstruct them. This period of American history is known as the
Reconstruction Period.

Role of Abraham Lincoln:

 Abraham Lincoln was known for his anti-slavery position.
 He was elected the President of America in 1861.
 Lincoln believed that the union of the states of the USA was permanent and
that no state had the right to secede from the Union.

The course of the Civil War:

 Attack on Fort
The Confederates started the war in 1861 by launching an attack on Fort
Sumter.
 Blockade
In April 1861, Lincoln ordered the Union Navy to close the ports of the
Southern Confederacy. Vessels attempting to enter these harbours were to
be captured.
 Emancipation Proclamation
In 1862, Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing the slaves of
the southern states and winning him their support.
 Gettysburg Address
Abraham Lincoln delivered the famous Gettysburg Address at the dedication
of the military cemetery at Gettysburg.
 War at Virginia
The Southern states surrendered in 1865. In 1864, General Grant attacked
the Confederate army in Virginia. After four years of war, the southern
states submitted in 1865.