His goal was a ninety-day campaign to put down the Southern rebellion. THE FIRST BATTLE OF BULL RUNĪfter the fall of Fort Sumter on April 15, 1861, Lincoln called for seventy-five thousand volunteers from state militias to join federal forces. Soon the carnage and slaughter would awaken them to the horrors of war. In 1861, Americans in both the North and South romanticized war as noble and positive. Militarily, however, the North and South were more equally matched than Lincoln had realized, and it soon became clear that the war effort would be neither brief nor painless. Both sides thought it would be over quickly. The continuation of slavery was a central issue in the war, of course, although abolitionism and western expansion also played roles, and Northerners and Southerners alike flocked eagerly to the conflict. The Confederacy, which by the summer of 1861 consisted of eleven states, fought for its independence from the United States. The North fought to restore the Union, which Lincoln declared could never be broken. In 1861, enthusiasm for war ran high on both sides. Explain the strategic importance of the Battle of Bull Run and the Battle of Shiloh. Assess the strengths and weaknesses of the Confederacy and the Union.By the end of this section, you will be able to:
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