US Civil War

The Civil War officially began when Confederate forces attacked Fort Sumter, South Carolina, on April 12, 1861. President Abraham Lincoln called from 75,000 volunteers to join the Union Army and suppress the Southern rebellion. Although both sides expected a short war, the conflict lasted four years, during which time the Union saw terrible defeats at Bull Run and Fredericksburg and important victories at Gettysburg and Vicksburg. The war ended on April 9, 1865, when Robert E. Lee surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse. The Civil War resulted in over 365,000 Union deaths and more than 450,000 additional causalities. The Civil War is the bloodiest conflict in American history.