What are some war words that begin with the letters A-Z?

Answer 1

A - is for: Abraham Lincoln, the President of the US during the Civil War. His main aim was to preserve the Union, not necessarily end slavery. He was assassinated on April 14, 1865.Amnesty, which was part of Lincoln's program to give a full pardon to all the southerners that would take an oath of allegiance to the Union and who would promise to accept federal laws and proclamations dealing with slavery.Antislavery and Abolitionists, which were part of the cause of the Civil War. Due to the split of views on slavery, unequal representation in Congress of the free and slave States, and the election results, the Southern States seceded.Antietam Creek, was one of the bloodiest and bitterest battle sites in the war. Militarily, it was a draw between McClellan and Lee. However, the latter retired across the Potomac, and since McClellan did not pursue, he was removed from his field command.

B - is for:Battle of Bull Run, which ends Lincoln's hope of a quick war. There were actually two battles of Bull Run. One was on July 21, 1861, where the Union fled in confusion from "Stonewall" Jackson's unyielding "wall" of men. The second battle was between Lee and John Pope, where the north was crushed because of the boastful Pope.Border States, which were very crucial to both the Union and the Confederate States. In the end, they kept with the Union. Also because of them, Lincoln was slow to free the slaves. Even in the Emancipation Proclamation, he only freed the slaves in the Confederate States.

C - is for:Confederates, which was formed out of the Southern States that seceded. They fought against the Union in the Civil War, even though they were not that well equipped. They lost on April 9, 1865 where Lee surrendered to Grant.Civil War, was the name of the war fought between the north and the south from 1861 at Fort Sumter to 1865 at the surrender of Appomattox Court House.Cold Harbor Battle, which was fought on June 3, 1864, where Grant ordered a frontal assault on the impenetrable Harbor. It was a "ghastly gamble" as seven thousand men were killed or wounded in only a few minutes.

D - is for:Draft Riot, which broke out in New York City in 1863 where underprivileged and anti-black Irish-Americans shouted: "Down with Lincoln!" and "Down with the draft!" They caused scores of lives as the city was full of burning, and drunken angry mobs.

E - is for:Emancipation Proclamation of 1863, which was issued by Abraham Lincoln and freed all slaves in the Confederate States. Therefore, it was more a proclamation than emancipation since it freed the slaves where he had no control over, instead of the ones in the Border States where he had control. He wanted this to strengthen the moral cause of the Union and yet prevent the disunion of the Border States.

F - is for:Fredericksburg battle, where more than ten thousand Northern soldiers were killed or wounded due to Burnside's rash frontal attack against Lee's army in Fredericksburg, Virginia. He had replaced McClellan and protested that he was unfit for such a position and he proved it.

G - is for:Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, where the turning point of the war took place. It was marked as the "high tide of the Confederacy" since it was the highest point reached by any significant Southern force. For them, it was also the last real chance for victory. Countless lives were lose in Gettysburg as Lincoln later said in his famous Gettysburg Address. After that battle, the southern cause was doomed.George McClellan and the Peninsula Campaign. McClellan was an able commander, yet also a great perfectionist. He was reluctant to sacrifice his army and it wasn't until after a warning from Lincoln did he actually move his army toward Richmond. He advanced toward the Confederate capital in the spring of 1862 with one hundred thousand men. Taking a month to capture Yorktown, he was finally about to near Richmond when Lincoln diverted McClellan's anticipated reinforcement to chase "Stonewall Jackson". After Lee launched the Seven Day's Battle, McClellan was driven back toward the sea. Therefore, the Peninsula Campaign was a failure.

H - is for:Hunger, which was one of the many problems of the South, due to the blockade and since almost all of the able-bodied men were called to arms. Starvation also was the cause of the surrender at Vicksburg.Honest Abe, was a nickname of Lincoln. Here was a rhyme that sneered at his honesty:

"Honest old Abe, when the war first began,

Denied abolition was part of his plan;

Honest old Abe had since made a decree,

The war must go on till the slaves are all free.

As both can't be honest, will some one tell how,

If honest Abe then, he is honest Abe now?"

"Fighting Joe" Hooker, who replaced General Burnside. He was an aggressive officer but too headstrong. At Chancellorsville, Virginia, he was crushed by Lee's brilliant strategy although Lee had lost "Stonewall" Jackson.

I - is for:Irish Immigrants, which continued to pour in to the U.S. even during the Civil War. They contributed to the war effort through labor at the factories. A large number of them also enlisted in the army. Iron Works, which was crucial to both the Union and the South during the War. Even so, south needed it more. Their most important iron works was the Tredgar Iron Works in Richmond, Virginia. Without these iron works, the south would have collapsed.

J - is for:Jefferson Davis, who was the President of the Confederate States. His family had moved south from Kentucky and he was a recent member of the US senate from Mississippi. He was also a former cabinet member with very wide military and administrative experience. Therefore, he was considered an extremely able man, except for his chronic bad health.

K - is for:King Cotton No More as cotton failed the southern economy. Due to its mass production of cotton in the years before the war, England received a lot of surpluses. Therefore, the product was not in such a great demand anymore. Also, transportation in the Confederacy slacked off as metals were made into bullets etc. Overall, cotton reduced in value and only contributed 12 percent to the national wealth instead of the former 30 percent.

L - is for:Lee's Last Lunge at Gettysburg, where all the hope of the south was placed. It was the northernmost point reached by any significant number of the South. It was also the last chance for the Confederates to win. Although there was no clear victory, Lincoln claimed it when he denied the Confederate peace mission to pass through the Union lines. Therefore, the Southern cause from then on was doomed.

M - is for:Monitor and Merrimack, which were two ironclad ships that fought each other in 1862. That year, on March 9, the tiny Union ironclad, the Monitor, fought for four hours with the Confederate made ironclad, the Virginia, which was actually a reconditioned wooden Merrimack. They had a standstill. Later, to keep it from the grasp of the Union troops, the Southerners destroyed the Merrimack.

N - is for:North, which was also known as the Union. Their conflict and difference of views caused the Civil War. Ninety-day War, which was what Lincoln said the Civil war would be like. He said it would only be for ninety days when he called to the states for seventy-five thousand militiamen. He was wrong as the Bull Run ended that ideal.

O - is for:"On to Richmond!", which was the cry of the Northern newspapers in 1861 that urged for a quick war. It called for an immediate capture of the Confederate capital of Richmond. This lead partly to the Battle of Bull Run, where all hopes of a short war ended.

P - is for:Port Hudson of Louisiana, which quickly fell into Union hands on July 9, 1863 after Vicksburg surrendered. This gave the North control of the Mississippi, which split the Confederacy in two.Presidential Election of 1864. In it, Lincoln ran against McClellan and won. Even so, it was a close race and one of the most effective slogans that helped to re-elect Lincoln was: "Don't swap horses in the middle of the river."

Q - is for:Quincy Adams's son, Charles Francis Adams, who was the American Minister who made Britain realize that it was not wise for them to allow the building of British Confederate raiders. London tried to remain neutral afterwards, but the Confederate commerce-destroyers already cripple more than 250 Yankee ships.

R - is for:Robert E. Lee, who was the general for the Confederacy. He was an ingenious commander and only helped the south because he owes loyalty to Virginia. Even Lincoln once asked him to lead the Union states. Finally, he surrendered at Appomattox Court House in Virginia in April 1865. Richmond, which was the capital of the Confederacy.

S - is for:Sherman Scorches Georgia, in which he utterly ruined the State. His soldiers burned buildings, tore up railroad rails, bayoneted family portraits, and ran off with valuable "souvenirs". In a way, it shorted the war. Yet, Sherman was forever hated in the South for it.South, which was the region of the Confederacy as they were the states that seceded from the Union. In the Civil war, they fought for their freedom but lost and suffered a lot.Stonewall Jackson, who was known for his solid defense at the First Bull Run. Lee called him his right hand, and was grieved when Jackson died as a result of accidental injuries at Chancellorsville (where he was hit by one of his own man by mistake). Fort Sumter, where the Civil War actually began. It was one of the two southern forts that remained loyal to the Union, and was bombarded by the rest of South Carolina when Lincoln wanted to send provision to the fort. Finally, it gave in, but the fire on the fort aroused great rage from the north.

T - is for:Thirteenth Amendment, which was created in 1865 and abolished all slavery within the United States of America.Trent Affair, where a Union warship stopped the British mail steamer, the Trent and removed two Confederate diplomats by force. The British were outraged by this and sent redcoats to Canada to begin war preparations. Lincoln released the prisoners and therefore avoided another war with England.

U - is for:Union, which was what the northern part of the United States was called. It remained under the government of the U.S., and had Abraham Lincoln as president.Ulysses Grant, who was the general that eventually defeated Lee's army. He was known for his basic strategy of assailing the enemy's armies simultaneously until they are ground down. Uncle Tom's Cabin, which aroused many people to go against slavery, which partially caused the Civil War. It was written by Harriet Beecher Stowe and also helped influence foreign governments such as Britain and France so that they became reluctant to help the South.

V - is for:Vicksburg, which was located in Mississippi where the South was defeated. On July 4, 1863, the stronghold of the Confederate forces on the Mississippi River fell. Even so, it had held out for six weeks until it faced starvation as Grant's cannons laid siege to the city.Victory for the Unions after the surrender of Lee's army to Grant's troops at the Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865.

W - is for:Washington D.C., which was the capital of the United States. During the war, Lincoln declared martial law and sent troops into Maryland because it threatened to cut the capital off from the North. Winfield Scott, who was the war hero General who was so feeble at seventy-five that he had to be boosted onto his horse. He was one of the many northerners that expressed sentiment toward the south in the beginning of the war.

X - is for:Dixie, which was the name of the Southern states. It especially referred to the Southeastern states that had slavery before the Civil War.Ex-Slaves, which was the result of the war, as all of the slaves were freed by the Thirteenth Amendment.Appomattox Court House in Virginia where Lee was cornered by the Northern troops that captured Richmond. Finally, in the April of 1865, he surrendered to Grant and the war ended. Grant gave the Confederates very generous terms of surrender as the hungry Southerners were allowed to keep their own horses for spring plowing.

Y - is for:Yankee, which was the name applied to the northerners. Yeeeahhh: Rebel Yell, which was the high-pitched cry of the Southerners that was designed to strike terror into the hearts of the "fuzz-chinned" Yankee recruits.

Z - is for:

Zeal of all the great commanders of the war, both on the Union and the Confederate Side. There was McClellan, Grant, Lee, Jackson and many more too.

'Half-crazed' John Wilkes Booth who slipped into Lincoln's box and assassinated the president.

ã 1999 Lady of Scartha. All rights reserved.