Chapter 15 Review Questions

Question 1

How did the Union and Confederacy compare in terms of resources, leadership, and military strategies in the period 1861–1863? How did these factors affect the course of the war?

Answer 1

Union had better financing, better equipment, better transportation, and better training. South had good leadership, formed first draft.

• Davis was eccentric. Compromise was weakness and thought any opposition was a personal attack.
• Lincoln was loved and appreciated. He diffused tense situations with humor and appears on the battle from to lift morale and inspire troops.
• south was defensive war, but their resources were limited. Could they hold out long enough to break Northern support?

Question 2

Why were the battles of Antietam and Gettysburg turning points in the war? What were the vital factors that led to a Union victory in the Civil War?

Answer 2

• Antietam was the victory Lincoln was looking for to put the emancipation proclamation into place to serve as an act of inspiration rather than desperation. It also discouraged the French/British from backing then confederacy and kept them out of the north.
• Gettysburg was important as it lifted morale in the north and reinvigorated the war support.
• Better coordination/strategic planning in the north. The loss of western support.

Question 3

How did the Emancipation Proclamation affect the Union and Confederate causes?

Answer 3

The emancipation proclamation was a large step forward for the North as they acquired 180,000 black troops who were fresh and ready to serve. Though they were still stuck with menial duties and lower pay they were still willing to fight as free men.

Question 4

What roles did women play in the North and in the South during the Civil War?

Answer 4

• Northern women had many jobs in factories, sewing rooms, classrooms, hospitals, and arsenals. Government paid women equally. women were to fulfill male roles in their absence.
• southern women had largely the same role as northern women

Question 5

What events show that people from both the North and South were becoming weary of the Civil War’s devastating effects? How did Ulysses S. Grant show that he, more than any other Union general, understood how to defeat the Confederacy? What key victories did he gain in the period 1861–1863? What were General Grant’s strategies for winning the war in the East? What key events characterized Sherman’s March to the Sea?

Answer 5

Desertion was common on both fronts. The Starvation parties.

• Grant’s victories in the southwest were key in cutting off supplies to the Confederacy.
• Grant’s strategy in the east was constant battling. Not given Lee time to regroup. It was a brute force tactic and ultimately failed. Grant recovered by capturing key rail road positions and forcing Lee to retreat.
• The taking of Richmond with black troops was a key event of the March.

Question 6

What changes resulted from the Civil War? Analyze the immediate effects of the Civil War. What was accomplished and what problems persisted?

Answer 6

-Northern economic prosperity, freedom of all blacks, southern destruction, relief, regret, anger, a large step in the right direction for equal rights.