The Civil War
Southern states started announcing their intention to secede from the Union after Abraham Lincoln emerged victorious in the 1860 presidential contest, mostly due to disagreements over slavery.
The attack on Fort Sumter in South Carolina by the recently formed Confederate Army in 1861 marked the formal start of the Civil War. Thereafter, the Union and Confederate troops engaged in combat for four years. On January 1, 1863, Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, making the abolition of slavery a wartime objective.
When Confederate General Robert E. Lee’s advance north was halted at the Battle of Gettysburg in 1863, the conflict reached a turning point. The Union Army launched a multipronged assault on the Confederates once Ulysses S. Grant assumed leadership.
Following a 10-month Siege of Petersburg, Lee submitted to Grant on April 9, 1865, in the Battle of Appomattox Court House in Virginia. This essentially put an end to the conflict, outlawed slavery, and gave liberated slaves civic rights.
The American Civil War is the bloodiest in history, with almost 620,000 soldiers lost; 1,523 people were awarded the Medal of Honour during the fight.
United States Armed Forces
More than a year before the Declaration of Independence, on June 14, 1775, the U.S. Army was formally established, and it has since been essential to the expansion and advancement of the American people. After a difficult eight-year battle with Great Britain, it achieved the independence of the new republic by drawing on both long-standing militia traditions and recently adopted professional standards.
In this article, we will discuss the history, battles, branches of the United States Armed Forces, and much more!
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