Portal:American Civil War

The American Civil War Portal

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.

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The United States Military Academy (USMA) is an undergraduate college in West Point, New York that educates and commissions officers for the United States Army. The Academy was founded in 1802 and graduated its first class in October of the same year. It is the oldest of the five American service academies. Sports media refer to the Academy as "Army" and the students as "Cadets"; this usage is officially endorsed. A small number of graduates each year choose the option of entering the United States Air Force, United States Navy, or United States Marine Corps. Before the founding of the United States Air Force Academy in 1955, the Academy was a major source of officers for the Air Force and its predecessors. Most cadets are admitted through the congressional appointment system. The curriculum emphasizes various fields in sciences and engineering.

This list is drawn from alumni of the Military Academy who served as general officers in the Confederate States Army (CSA), including three members of the Lee family of Virginia: Robert E. Lee (class of 1829), his son George Washington Custis Lee (class of 1854), and his nephew Fitzhugh Lee (class of 1856). Other notable Confederate generals include James Longstreet (class of 1842), Stonewall Jackson (class of 1846), and J.E.B. Stuart (class of 1854).

Other notable graduates include 2 Presidents of the United States, 18 astronauts, 4 heads of state, 74 Medal of Honor recipients, 70 Rhodes Scholars, and 3 Heisman Trophy winners. Among American universities, the Academy is fourth on the list of total winners for Rhodes Scholarships, seventh for Marshall Scholarships and fourth for Hertz Fellowships.

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Grand Parade of the States

Indian Territory in the American Civil War period occupied most of what is now the U.S. state of Oklahoma and served as an unorganized region set aside for Native American tribes of the Southeastern United States that had been removed from their lands. The area hosted numerous skirmishes and seven officially recognized battles involving Native American units allied with the Confederate States of America, Native Americans loyal to the United States government, and Union and Confederate troops. Officers and soldiers supplied to the Confederacy from Native American lands numbered at 7,860 and came largely from the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole nations.

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Frank Dwight Baldwin, (June 26, 1842 – April 22, 1923) a native of Constantine, Michigan, and born in Manchester, Michigan, is one of only 19 servicemen to receive the Medal of Honor twice. Baldwin received this award for his actions during the Atlanta Campaign where he led his company to battle at Peachtree Creek and captured two commissioned officers in the American Civil War. He received his second Medal of Honor for conspicuous bravery in 1874 during the Indian Wars.

He served through the Civil War in the 19th Michigan Infantry, fighting in all his regiment's battles from 1862 to 1865. Upon the postbellum reorganization of the Regular Army, he was commissioned into the 19th United States Regular Infantry as a Second Lieutenant. He eventually was assigned to the 5th U.S. Infantry, with whom he fought in the various frontier conflicts with the Indians. His actions in an attack on an Indian village on the Red River in Montana on December 18, 1876, earned him a brevet of Captain, U.S. Regular Army (awarded on February 27, 1890).

He served with distinction under General Nelson A. Miles as chief of scouts during campaigns against Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse. Baldwin also served in the Philippines during the Spanish–American War. He was promoted to Brigadier General, U.S. Regular Army on June 9, 1902. In 1906, he was advanced to Major General, after which he retired from active duty.

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Credit: Andrew J. Russell

A photograph of damage done to Richmond, Virginia during the Confederate Army's retreat from the city in 1865

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Did you know...

... that salt workers in the Confederate States of America were immune from being drafted?
... that over 3,000 Nebraskans participated in the American Civil War, though only 35 were killed in action?
... that Edward Jardine, after commanding 200 Union troops in an attempt to quell the New York Draft Riots, only escaped the rioters by wearing civilian clothes?

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