Key People of the Civil War
Harriet Beecher Stowe
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In 1852, she published Uncle Tom's Cabin. This book stressed
that slavery was not just a political contest, but also a great
moral struggle. Uncle Tom's Cabin expressed Harriet's lifetime
hatred of slavery. It also stirred Northern abolitionists to increase
their protest against the Fugitive Slave Act, which was seen as
an attack on the South.
Charles Sumner
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Charles Sumner was an American politician and senator from
Massachusetts. He was a lawyer who was the leader of the
antislavery forces in Massachusetts during the Civil War. He
worked to destroy the Confederacy, and to free all the slaves,
while also keeping on good terms with Europe. During Reconstruction,
he fought to minimize the power of the ex-Confederates and guarantee
equal rights to the newly freed slaves.
John Brown
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John Brown was an anti-slavery activist. He believed that God had
called him to fight against slavery. When he heard about Lawrence,
he decided to go and he wanted revenge. His judgement was clouded
and he mistakenly heard that five people had been killed. So he found
five pro slavery settlers and chopped off their hands while stabbing them.
This was known as the Pottawatomic Massacre.
Stephen Douglas
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Stephan Douglas was a Democrat who ran against Lincoln in
the 1858 race. He was a well-known two-term senator. Lincoln
challenged Douglas to a series of debates on slavery during the
race. Douglas stated that he did not want slavery in his territory,
but the two parties disagreed on how to keep it out. While Lincoln
believed that slavery was immoral, Douglas believed very strongly
in popular sovereignty. He then won the senate seat, but widened
a split within the Democratic party.
Abraham Lincoln
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Abraham Lincoln was a Republican man who ran against
Stephan Douglas in the 1858 race. Lincoln was a self-educated
man who had been elected to one term in Congress in 1846.
Many knew that this match was uneven, even Lincoln. To counter
act the given thoughts, he challenged Douglas to a series of
debates on the topic of slavery. They both simply stated that
they did not want slavery in their territories, but disagreed on how
to keep it away and out. Lincoln believed that slavery was immoral,
but he did not except individuals to give up slavery unless Congress
abolished slavery with an amendment. He asked his opponent if
settlers of a territory could vote slavery out before it became a state,
implying that popular sovereignty was an empty phrase. Lincoln's
attacks on the "vast moral evil" of slavery drew national attention,
leading him right into becoming a candidate for the presidency in
1860.
Jefferson Davis
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After the North and the South split, both sides had to elect
representatives. The South, also known as the Confederacy,
elected Jefferson Davis as president, who was a former senator
in Mississippi. The North had heard many threats of a secession,
and when it happened no one was shocked. However, the key
question that lead both sides to war was: Would the North allow
the South to leave the Union without a fight.
Ulysses S. Grant
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In February of 1862, a Union army invaded western Tennessee.
The leader of this attack was Ulysses S. Grant, a brave military
commander. In less than two weeks Grant lead his soldiers to
capture two Confederate forts. However, two months later, Grant
narrowly escaped a disaster near Shiloh, a small church in
Tennessee. After he failed to have his troops dig trenches or set
out good guards, the Confederates carried out a surprise attack.
Even though Grant and his troops drove the Confederate out, this
battle still showed how dangerous the war was becoming.
Robert E. Lee
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A series of battles in 1862 wounded the Confederates, so Robert
E. Lee was given the leadership role of commander. Lee was
modest and willing to go beyond military textbooks in his tactics.
He was determined to save the Confederate capital. Lee became
the center of Union talk, which lead to a battle at Antietam. This
clash is known to be the bloodiest single-day battle in American
history.
William Tecumseh Sherman
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When Lincoln appointed Grant commander of all Union armies,
he in turn appointed Sherman as commander of the military
division of the Mississippi. He believed in waging total war. They
said that the war would keep going because of the strength of the
people. They thought that if they could destroy the South's will
to fight, the Confederacy would collapse. He then began a march
through Georgia to the sea, creating a wide path of destruction.