Unit 1: Sectionalism and War (1840-1865)

Unit Overview: Sectionalism and War

This unit covers the decade before the Civil War to the war's conclusion in 1865 . Some important themes covered in this unit:

Regional and sectional differences between the North and South.
The Conflict over pro and anti-slavery forces in the decades preceding the Civil War.
Territorial expansion from the 1840's through 1861
Causes and major battles of the Civil War and the war's consequences.

Unit Essay: Northern Victory

In order to get credit for this project write an essay on the following topic:

Northern Victory:

The Civil War represents the only serious struggle between the states of our nation and claimed more lives than all other wars we have ever fought. Both sides thought that the war would be short and both sides were certain of their own victory, but in the end, the North triumphed over the South and preserved the Union. Write a five paragraph essay of no less than 600 words explaining why the North won the Civil War.

This essay is actually fairly easy: come up with three reasons why the North won (like economy/industry, population, and military) and these become your body paras.

Illustration of the Anaconda Plan, sometimes nicknamed "Scott's Great Snake"

Helpful links:

General info on Industry: History of the US 1849-1865

Comparison of North v South on population and other matters: The Division of the States During the Civil War; North-South Comparison Chart;Resource Comparison; 1860 Comparison; Railroads in 1860

For strategic reasons for the Southern Defeat, check out the following: Anaconda Plan; Wilderness Campaign; Sherman's March to the Sea

Unit Videos:

Civil War Episode 1: The Cause

Civil War Episode 2: A Very Bloody Affair

Civil War Episode 5: The Universe of Battle

Civil War Episode 6: The Valley of the Shadow of Death

Civil War Episode 7: Most Hallowed Ground

Civil War Episode 8: War is All Hell

Civil War Episode 9: The Better Angels of Our Nature

God in America 3: A Nation Reborn

Unit Lectures:

The Politics of Slavery

Northern Victory Essay Class

Primary Sources:

US History Recon to Present A Unit 1 Key Terms

For this project you must define the terms listed below and explain each term's significance to the unit/era being studied. Your definition should be 2-3 sentences long and may be copied and pasted from a source like Wikipedia, but the significance of the term must be in your own words and based on your own understanding. To fill out a term's significance, ask yourself, "Why is this item included in my study of this unit? Why is this term in a history book?" The answer to this question is your term's significance.

Unit 1 Key Terms:

3/5th Compromise

Uncle Tom's Cabin

Election of 1860

Battle of Gettysburg

Fugitive Slave Act of 1793

Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854

Confederate States of America

Anaconda Plan

Compromise of 1820

Frederick Douglass

Battle of For Sumter

Wilderness Campaign

Slavery Abolition Act of 1833

Harper's Ferry

Battle of Antietam

Sherman's March to the Sea

Eli Whitney

Lincoln Douglas Debates

Emancipation Proclamation

John Wilkes Booth

Below is an example of a key term done with the proper format:

William the Conqueror: William I (c. 1028[2] – 9 September 1087), also known as William the Conqueror (Guillaume le Conquérant), was the first Norman King of England from Christmas 1066 until his death. He was also Duke of Normandy from 3 July 1035 until his death, under the name William II. Before his conquest of England, he was known as William the Bastard because of the illegitimacy of his birth.To press his claim to the English crown, William invaded England in 1066, leading an army of Normans, Bretons, Flemings, and Frenchmen (from Paris andÎle-de-France) to victory over the English forces of King Harold Godwinson at the Battle of Hastings, and suppressed subsequent English revolts in what has become known as the Norman Conquest.[3] (I copied and pasted this definition from Wikipedia)

Significance: William the Conqueror is significant because his conquest of England created the first nation state in Europe. His rearrangement of English feudal territories to give himself dramatically more power than the the barons and nobles around him caused him to be the most powerful monarch in Europe and eventually led to the rise of other nation states over the next few centuries. (These are my words based on my knowledge of English and European history.)