The American Civil War

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The American Civil War
By Col. William Big Willy Ephraim, Cpt. Joe S.
Paterson and Pvt. Dominique G. Scotting
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The American Civil War 1861-1865

• Confederate States secede from the Union, over
  the issue of Slavery.
• Major battles at Manassas (Bull Run),
  Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Antietam,
  Chattanooga, Spotsylvania and Nashville.
• Use of Modern tactics e.g. the use of
  trenches.
• Union victorious over the Confederacy
  application of Total War.

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What was the Souths Strategy in the Civil War?
Did it have any prospect of Success?

• For the South to win all they had to do was not
  to lose The problem was how to do this?
• Adopted a defensive strategy that sought a
  preservation of their existing territory.
• Sought outside intervention and recognition from
  Europe King Cotton
• Kept forces concentrated to strike at Union
  encroachments into Southern territory.
• The South later adopted the defensive offensive
  using offensive means to achieve the
  preservation of the Confederacy.
• A change in the Union strategy under Grant in the
  winter of 1863-64 Undermined the effectiveness
  of Southern strategy.

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Was Robert E Lee truly a Great commander?

• Immense reputation seen as unbeatable by many
  in the Union.
• Believed that Southern forces needed to take the
  offensive to the North.
• Outflanking Hookers ambitious plan at
  Chancellorsville his greatest achievement as
  field commander.
• Sought a campaign of annihilation of Union armies
  as best chance for Confederate victory.
• Though he never won a victory so complete as to
  achieve annihilation
• Critics argue that Lee focused too much on
  Virginia and the Eastern campaigns.
• And that his preference for offensive tactics and
  strategy bled his army dry, when Southern forces
  couldnt afford the losses that the North could.

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Did the North win by industrial might alone?

• The North had the overwhelming industrial and
  economic advantage going into and through the
  war.
• The Union had the population advantage 22
  million to 9 million.
• Due to the Unions industrial strength the
  Confederacy had to look abroad for support and
  resources Hampered by the Unions naval
  blockade.
• Despite Northern supremacy in terms of industry
  the South still was able to fulfil many of their
  war time needs.
• Some historians have argued that the Union
  emphasis on the importance of logistics and
  supply was perhaps a greater factor in the
  outcome of the war.

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Assess the impact of the naval war to the defeat
of the South

• From April 1861 Lincoln imposed a blockade of the
  confederacies Atlantic coast Initially it
  wasnt very strong but by the end of 1862 the
  federal blockade grew stronger and presented an
  evident danger to ships seeking to enter or leave
  Southern ports.
• At the end of the war over 400 vessels blocked
  the coasts.
• The blockade ended any chance for routine
  commercial relations between the Confederacy and
  other nations hindering diplomatic attempts to
  encourage Britain to enter the conflict.
• The blockade also limited resources that were
  available from abroad to help the South offset
  the Northern industrial advantage.

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Did Shermans conduct of the march thru Georgia
simply confirm the American view of the utility
of violence?

• Shermans march was part of Grants new strategy
  to win the war
• Instead of occupying the territory Shermans
  21,000 men sought to destroy Southern economic
  infrastructure, denying resources to Confederate
  forces.
• An estimated 100,000,000 of damage was done.
• Key to understanding Shermans march was the
  Unions need for a total defeat of the South due
  to the war aims and the ideology of the Union.
• War is cruelty and you cannot retire from it
  General Sherman.
• Drawing upon this the historians argue that the
  North had commanders with a concept of total war
  and had the determination to make it succeed.

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So did the Souths strategy have any prospect of
Success?

• Initially it perhaps did, based upon historical
  examples of successful defence.
• But as the war progressed Northern commanders
  introduced total war concepts and moved away from
  a strategy that the South could respond to.
• Northern Generals moved away from the need to
  occupy and pacify the Confederate States, instead
  they sought to destroy Southern economic
  infrastructure and the Southern will to fight.

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So was Lee truly a Great commander?

• Pros Lee realized the importance of fighting a
  fast maneuverable war
• Able to deceive enemies
• Took the initiative and the offensive
• Capable on the defensive
• Saved the South in 1862 and kept it in the war
  for a further 3 years
• Cons- Didnt believe in the confederate cause,
  denounced it as a revolution
• Unable to adapt to the necessary style of war,
  e.g. possibility of fighting a gorilla war,
  sabotaging Union railroads.
• Too focused on the safety of Virginia.
• Over all fails to achieve objective of not
  losing the war
• Success are often of little real value as cost in
  lives is too high to sustain.

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So did the North win by industrial might alone?

• No, But- Amateurs study tactics professionals
  study logistics
• The main advantage the North had over the South
  was their overwhelmingly superior transport
  network, This was in the form of steam
  locomotives and naval superiority.
• At the outbreak of war the North had 21973 miles
  of railroad compared to the Souths 9283miles.
  The North's railroads were also far more
  efficiently integrated with each other.
• The Norths naval advantage meant that they were
  also able to blockade the South meaning that they
  could not acquire the raw materials needed for
  war.
• Without these two industrial factors the North
  could not have won the war.

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So was the Union naval strategy essential to the
defeat of the South?

• Answer Yes, through Naval superiority the North
  was able to starve the South of essential
  materials as well as commanding the water ways
  enabling Naval support and combined operations
  with the Union Army which would prove extremely
  successful in routing Confederate forces as well
  as denying them key supply routes.

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Did Shermans conduct of the march thru Georgia
simply confirm the American view of the utility
of violence?

• Yes.
• We argue that the desire for destruction and the
  lack of remorse shown by Sherman and his men on
  the march thru Georgia confirms the American
  view of the utility of violence they were
  willing to use whatever methods necessary to
  achieve what they desired, a total destruction of
  the Confederacy as a political entity Total War.

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Bibliography

• The Civil War and the Wars of the Nineteenth
  Century by Brian Holden Reid
• The American Civil War 1861-1865 by Reid Mitchell
• Jefferson Daviss Generals edited by Gabor S.
  Boritt
• The American Civil War edited by Susan-Mary Grant
  and Brian Holden Reid
• Battle Cry of Freedom by James M. McPherson