Which event immediately led Southern states to begin seceding in December 1860?
AThe Dred Scott decision
BThe election of Abraham Lincoln as president
CThe attack on Fort Sumter
DThe Emancipation Proclamation
Lincoln won the 1860 election on a Republican platform opposing the spread of slavery into the territories. South Carolina seceded on December 20, 1860, and six more states followed before Lincoln took office. Fort Sumter came in April 1861.
Question 2 True / False
The Emancipation Proclamation freed enslaved people in the border states that stayed loyal to the Union.
TTrue
FFalse
Answer: False
The Proclamation, effective January 1, 1863, applied to areas still in rebellion. Lincoln issued it as a war measure under his authority as commander in chief and left out the loyal border states such as Kentucky and Maryland. The Thirteenth Amendment ended slavery everywhere in the United States.
Question 3 Short Answer
Give two advantages the Union had over the Confederacy.
Think about your answer, then reveal below.
Model answer: Any two of: a much larger population; far more factories and industrial output; a larger railroad network; a navy able to blockade Southern ports; a functioning national government and financial system; the ability to recruit African American soldiers after 1863.
The Confederacy had skilled generals and the advantage of fighting on the defensive, but over four years the Union's greater resources allowed it to replace losses and keep up pressure on several fronts.
Question 4 Multiple Choice
Why were the Union victories at Gettysburg and Vicksburg in July 1863 important?
AThey ended the war immediately
BGettysburg turned back Lee's invasion of the North, and Vicksburg gave the Union control of the Mississippi River
CThey led Britain to join the war on the Union side
DThey caused the Confederacy to abolish slavery
Lee never again invaded the North after Gettysburg, and the fall of Vicksburg split the Confederacy in two. The war continued until Lee surrendered at Appomattox in April 1865.