The Importance Of Battles During The Civil War

There were a bunch of battles during the Civil War (1861-1865). The Civil War lasted 4 years with nearly 50 major battles. Charley served in 4 of them. It was the Unions vs. the Confederates. The Confederate believed in slavery and the Unions did not. In 1860 Abraham Lincoln was elected president of the united states. March 4, 1861 seven slave states with cotton-based providence formed the Confederates. Hostilities began on April 12, 1861, when Confederate forces fired upon fort sumter. The first bloodshed of Civil War was on April 19, 1861 at Maryland during the Baltimore Riot. In 1862 Confederate campaign into Maryland ended with Confederate retreat. Then in 1863 Robert E. Lee Confederate incursion north ended at the Battle of Gettysburg. There were two main battles

The Bull Run Battle-
The Battle was in July 21, 1861. It was Confederates win but with the Unions retreat. The Unions had a Brigadier General (Irvin McDowell) and a Major General (Robert Patterson) and The Confederates had 2 Brigadier Generals (P.G.T. Beauregard and Joseph E. Johnston). Just months after the start of the war a fort sumter, the Northern public clamored for a march against the Confederate capital of Virginia. The COnfederates who have been planning an attack on the Unions left flank and found themselves at an initial disadvantage. Confederate reinforcements under Brig. Gen. Joseph E. Johnston arrived from the Shenandoah Valley by railroad and the course of the battle changed. Thomas Jackson stood strong and told the men they could fight and he stood the ground and received the name “Stonewall Jackson”. The Confederate launched a strong attack and the Union troops began to panick and then retreat. The war was going longer and bloodier than many had