The Civil War Visual Encyclopedia

THE CIVIL WAR THE BLOODIEST CONFLICT IN US HISTORY, THE CIVIL WAR KILLED ALMOST 620,000 SOLDIERS IN FOUR YEARS OF FIGHTING THAT BEGAN IN 1861. It erupted over the issue of slavery, which had a lot of support in the South. Eleven Southern states broke away to form the independent country of the Confederate States of America, leading to War with the twenty Northern states that remained in the Union. Five border states that allowed slavery also chose to remain in the Union. The Confederates held their own against the Union armies after the first major battle at Bull Run until the tide began to turn at Gettysburg in 1863. After more than 10,500 skirmishes and battles in the War, the Confederacy finally surrendered in 1865, leading to the restoration of the Union and the abolition of slavery. As the two sides tried to function as one again, there were ups and downs. The realities of freedom for former enslaved African Americans were harsh, and the social unrest that followed led to scars that have lasted.