Civil War

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What was the US Civil War?

The American Civil War, also known as the War Between the States, was fought between the United States of America and the Confederate States of America from 1861 to 1865. The central cause of the war was the dispute over whether slavery would be permitted to expand into the western territories, leading to more slave states, or be prevented from doing so, which was widely believed would place slavery on a course of ultimate extinction.

The war began on April 12, 1861, when Confederate forces fired on Fort Sumter in South Carolina's Charleston Harbor. Less than 34 hours later, Union forces surrendered. Traditionally, this event has been used to mark the beginning of the Civil War. The war ended on April 9, 1865, when Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered to Union General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House in Virginia.

What was the deadliest war in American history?

The Civil War was the deadliest war in American history, with an estimated 620,000 deaths. It also had a profound impact on the course of American history, leading to the end of slavery and the strengthening of the federal government.