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From the opening bombardment of Fort Sumter in April 1861 to Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox Court House four years later, the American Civil War remains the most defining and devastating conflict in United States history. It pitted the industrial North against the agrarian South, tested the very idea of a unified republic, and ultimately ended the institution of slavery that had shaped the nation since its founding.
The war produced legendary figures and unforgettable moments: Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation, the three-day carnage at Gettysburg, Ulysses S. Grant's relentless campaigns, Stonewall Jackson's daring maneuvers, and Sherman's devastating march from Atlanta to the sea. More than 620,000 soldiers died — more than in any other American conflict — and entire cities like Richmond, Atlanta, and Vicksburg were scarred for generations. The battlefields of Antietam, Shiloh, Chancellorsville, and Bull Run became sacred ground.
Whether you're drawn to the political drama of secession, the tactical brilliance of its commanders, or the human stories of soldiers and civilians caught in the storm, the Civil War offers an inexhaustible trove of history. Step into the 1860s and discover how much you really know about the war that redefined America.
