2024 State of Marketing Report – by HubspotMarius Sescu
https://www.hubspot.com/state-of-marketing
· Scaling relationships and proving ROI
· Social media is the place for search, sales, and service
· Authentic influencer partnerships fuel brand growth
· The strongest connections happen via call, click, chat, and camera.
· Time saved with AI leads to more creative work
· Seeking: A single source of truth
· TLDR; Get on social, try AI, and align your systems.
· More human marketing, powered by robots
ChatGPT is a revolutionary addition to the world since its introduction in 2022. A big shift in the sector of information gathering and processing happened because of this chatbot. What is the story of ChatGPT? How is the bot responding to prompts and generating contents? Swipe through these slides prepared by Expeed Software, a web development company regarding the development and technical intricacies of ChatGPT!
Product Design Trends in 2024 | Teenage EngineeringsPixeldarts
The realm of product design is a constantly changing environment where technology and style intersect. Every year introduces fresh challenges and exciting trends that mold the future of this captivating art form. In this piece, we delve into the significant trends set to influence the look and functionality of product design in the year 2024.
How Race, Age and Gender Shape Attitudes Towards Mental HealthThinkNow
Mental health has been in the news quite a bit lately. Dozens of U.S. states are currently suing Meta for contributing to the youth mental health crisis by inserting addictive features into their products, while the U.S. Surgeon General is touring the nation to bring awareness to the growing epidemic of loneliness and isolation. The country has endured periods of low national morale, such as in the 1970s when high inflation and the energy crisis worsened public sentiment following the Vietnam War. The current mood, however, feels different. Gallup recently reported that national mental health is at an all-time low, with few bright spots to lift spirits.
To better understand how Americans are feeling and their attitudes towards mental health in general, ThinkNow conducted a nationally representative quantitative survey of 1,500 respondents and found some interesting differences among ethnic, age and gender groups.
Technology
For example, 52% agree that technology and social media have a negative impact on mental health, but when broken out by race, 61% of Whites felt technology had a negative effect, and only 48% of Hispanics thought it did.
While technology has helped us keep in touch with friends and family in faraway places, it appears to have degraded our ability to connect in person. Staying connected online is a double-edged sword since the same news feed that brings us pictures of the grandkids and fluffy kittens also feeds us news about the wars in Israel and Ukraine, the dysfunction in Washington, the latest mass shooting and the climate crisis.
Hispanics may have a built-in defense against the isolation technology breeds, owing to their large, multigenerational households, strong social support systems, and tendency to use social media to stay connected with relatives abroad.
Age and Gender
When asked how individuals rate their mental health, men rate it higher than women by 11 percentage points, and Baby Boomers rank it highest at 83%, saying it’s good or excellent vs. 57% of Gen Z saying the same.
Gen Z spends the most amount of time on social media, so the notion that social media negatively affects mental health appears to be correlated. Unfortunately, Gen Z is also the generation that’s least comfortable discussing mental health concerns with healthcare professionals. Only 40% of them state they’re comfortable discussing their issues with a professional compared to 60% of Millennials and 65% of Boomers.
Race Affects Attitudes
As seen in previous research conducted by ThinkNow, Asian Americans lag other groups when it comes to awareness of mental health issues. Twenty-four percent of Asian Americans believe that having a mental health issue is a sign of weakness compared to the 16% average for all groups. Asians are also considerably less likely to be aware of mental health services in their communities (42% vs. 55%) and most likely to seek out information on social media (51% vs. 35%).
AI Trends in Creative Operations 2024 by Artwork Flow.pdfmarketingartwork
This article is all about what AI trends will emerge in the field of creative operations in 2024. All the marketers and brand builders should be aware of these trends for their further use and save themselves some time!
2024 State of Marketing Report – by HubspotMarius Sescu
https://www.hubspot.com/state-of-marketing
· Scaling relationships and proving ROI
· Social media is the place for search, sales, and service
· Authentic influencer partnerships fuel brand growth
· The strongest connections happen via call, click, chat, and camera.
· Time saved with AI leads to more creative work
· Seeking: A single source of truth
· TLDR; Get on social, try AI, and align your systems.
· More human marketing, powered by robots
ChatGPT is a revolutionary addition to the world since its introduction in 2022. A big shift in the sector of information gathering and processing happened because of this chatbot. What is the story of ChatGPT? How is the bot responding to prompts and generating contents? Swipe through these slides prepared by Expeed Software, a web development company regarding the development and technical intricacies of ChatGPT!
Product Design Trends in 2024 | Teenage EngineeringsPixeldarts
The realm of product design is a constantly changing environment where technology and style intersect. Every year introduces fresh challenges and exciting trends that mold the future of this captivating art form. In this piece, we delve into the significant trends set to influence the look and functionality of product design in the year 2024.
How Race, Age and Gender Shape Attitudes Towards Mental HealthThinkNow
Mental health has been in the news quite a bit lately. Dozens of U.S. states are currently suing Meta for contributing to the youth mental health crisis by inserting addictive features into their products, while the U.S. Surgeon General is touring the nation to bring awareness to the growing epidemic of loneliness and isolation. The country has endured periods of low national morale, such as in the 1970s when high inflation and the energy crisis worsened public sentiment following the Vietnam War. The current mood, however, feels different. Gallup recently reported that national mental health is at an all-time low, with few bright spots to lift spirits.
To better understand how Americans are feeling and their attitudes towards mental health in general, ThinkNow conducted a nationally representative quantitative survey of 1,500 respondents and found some interesting differences among ethnic, age and gender groups.
Technology
For example, 52% agree that technology and social media have a negative impact on mental health, but when broken out by race, 61% of Whites felt technology had a negative effect, and only 48% of Hispanics thought it did.
While technology has helped us keep in touch with friends and family in faraway places, it appears to have degraded our ability to connect in person. Staying connected online is a double-edged sword since the same news feed that brings us pictures of the grandkids and fluffy kittens also feeds us news about the wars in Israel and Ukraine, the dysfunction in Washington, the latest mass shooting and the climate crisis.
Hispanics may have a built-in defense against the isolation technology breeds, owing to their large, multigenerational households, strong social support systems, and tendency to use social media to stay connected with relatives abroad.
Age and Gender
When asked how individuals rate their mental health, men rate it higher than women by 11 percentage points, and Baby Boomers rank it highest at 83%, saying it’s good or excellent vs. 57% of Gen Z saying the same.
Gen Z spends the most amount of time on social media, so the notion that social media negatively affects mental health appears to be correlated. Unfortunately, Gen Z is also the generation that’s least comfortable discussing mental health concerns with healthcare professionals. Only 40% of them state they’re comfortable discussing their issues with a professional compared to 60% of Millennials and 65% of Boomers.
Race Affects Attitudes
As seen in previous research conducted by ThinkNow, Asian Americans lag other groups when it comes to awareness of mental health issues. Twenty-four percent of Asian Americans believe that having a mental health issue is a sign of weakness compared to the 16% average for all groups. Asians are also considerably less likely to be aware of mental health services in their communities (42% vs. 55%) and most likely to seek out information on social media (51% vs. 35%).
AI Trends in Creative Operations 2024 by Artwork Flow.pdfmarketingartwork
This article is all about what AI trends will emerge in the field of creative operations in 2024. All the marketers and brand builders should be aware of these trends for their further use and save themselves some time!
A report by thenetworkone and Kurio.
The contributing experts and agencies are (in an alphabetical order): Sylwia Rytel, Social Media Supervisor, 180heartbeats + JUNG v MATT (PL), Sharlene Jenner, Vice President - Director of Engagement Strategy, Abelson Taylor (USA), Alex Casanovas, Digital Director, Atrevia (ES), Dora Beilin, Senior Social Strategist, Barrett Hoffher (USA), Min Seo, Campaign Director, Brand New Agency (KR), Deshé M. Gully, Associate Strategist, Day One Agency (USA), Francesca Trevisan, Strategist, Different (IT), Trevor Crossman, CX and Digital Transformation Director; Olivia Hussey, Strategic Planner; Simi Srinarula, Social Media Manager, The Hallway (AUS), James Hebbert, Managing Director, Hylink (CN / UK), Mundy Álvarez, Planning Director; Pedro Rojas, Social Media Manager; Pancho González, CCO, Inbrax (CH), Oana Oprea, Head of Digital Planning, Jam Session Agency (RO), Amy Bottrill, Social Account Director, Launch (UK), Gaby Arriaga, Founder, Leonardo1452 (MX), Shantesh S Row, Creative Director, Liwa (UAE), Rajesh Mehta, Chief Strategy Officer; Dhruv Gaur, Digital Planning Lead; Leonie Mergulhao, Account Supervisor - Social Media & PR, Medulla (IN), Aurelija Plioplytė, Head of Digital & Social, Not Perfect (LI), Daiana Khaidargaliyeva, Account Manager, Osaka Labs (UK / USA), Stefanie Söhnchen, Vice President Digital, PIABO Communications (DE), Elisabeth Winiartati, Managing Consultant, Head of Global Integrated Communications; Lydia Aprina, Account Manager, Integrated Marketing and Communications; Nita Prabowo, Account Manager, Integrated Marketing and Communications; Okhi, Web Developer, PNTR Group (ID), Kei Obusan, Insights Director; Daffi Ranandi, Insights Manager, Radarr (SG), Gautam Reghunath, Co-founder & CEO, Talented (IN), Donagh Humphreys, Head of Social and Digital Innovation, THINKHOUSE (IRE), Sarah Yim, Strategy Director, Zulu Alpha Kilo (CA).
Trends In Paid Search: Navigating The Digital Landscape In 2024Search Engine Journal
The search marketing landscape is evolving rapidly with new technologies, and professionals, like you, rely on innovative paid search strategies to meet changing demands.
It’s important that you’re ready to implement new strategies in 2024.
Check this out and learn the top trends in paid search advertising that are expected to gain traction, so you can drive higher ROI more efficiently in 2024.
You’ll learn:
- The latest trends in AI and automation, and what this means for an evolving paid search ecosystem.
- New developments in privacy and data regulation.
- Emerging ad formats that are expected to make an impact next year.
Watch Sreekant Lanka from iQuanti and Irina Klein from OneMain Financial as they dive into the future of paid search and explore the trends, strategies, and technologies that will shape the search marketing landscape.
If you’re looking to assess your paid search strategy and design an industry-aligned plan for 2024, then this webinar is for you.
5 Public speaking tips from TED - Visualized summarySpeakerHub
From their humble beginnings in 1984, TED has grown into the world’s most powerful amplifier for speakers and thought-leaders to share their ideas. They have over 2,400 filmed talks (not including the 30,000+ TEDx videos) freely available online, and have hosted over 17,500 events around the world.
With over one billion views in a year, it’s no wonder that so many speakers are looking to TED for ideas on how to share their message more effectively.
The article “5 Public-Speaking Tips TED Gives Its Speakers”, by Carmine Gallo for Forbes, gives speakers five practical ways to connect with their audience, and effectively share their ideas on stage.
Whether you are gearing up to get on a TED stage yourself, or just want to master the skills that so many of their speakers possess, these tips and quotes from Chris Anderson, the TED Talks Curator, will encourage you to make the most impactful impression on your audience.
See the full article and more summaries like this on SpeakerHub here: https://speakerhub.com/blog/5-presentation-tips-ted-gives-its-speakers
See the original article on Forbes here:
http://www.forbes.com/forbes/welcome/?toURL=http://www.forbes.com/sites/carminegallo/2016/05/06/5-public-speaking-tips-ted-gives-its-speakers/&refURL=&referrer=#5c07a8221d9b
ChatGPT and the Future of Work - Clark Boyd Clark Boyd
Everyone is in agreement that ChatGPT (and other generative AI tools) will shape the future of work. Yet there is little consensus on exactly how, when, and to what extent this technology will change our world.
Businesses that extract maximum value from ChatGPT will use it as a collaborative tool for everything from brainstorming to technical maintenance.
For individuals, now is the time to pinpoint the skills the future professional will need to thrive in the AI age.
Check out this presentation to understand what ChatGPT is, how it will shape the future of work, and how you can prepare to take advantage.
A brief introduction to DataScience with explaining of the concepts, algorithms, machine learning, supervised and unsupervised learning, clustering, statistics, data preprocessing, real-world applications etc.
It's part of a Data Science Corner Campaign where I will be discussing the fundamentals of DataScience, AIML, Statistics etc.
Time Management & Productivity - Best PracticesVit Horky
Here's my presentation on by proven best practices how to manage your work time effectively and how to improve your productivity. It includes practical tips and how to use tools such as Slack, Google Apps, Hubspot, Google Calendar, Gmail and others.
The six step guide to practical project managementMindGenius
The six step guide to practical project management
If you think managing projects is too difficult, think again.
We’ve stripped back project management processes to the
basics – to make it quicker and easier, without sacrificing
the vital ingredients for success.
“If you’re looking for some real-world guidance, then The Six Step Guide to Practical Project Management will help.”
Dr Andrew Makar, Tactical Project Management
Unlocking the Power of ChatGPT and AI in Testing - A Real-World Look, present...Applitools
During this webinar, Anand Bagmar demonstrates how AI tools such as ChatGPT can be applied to various stages of the software development life cycle (SDLC) using an eCommerce application case study. Find the on-demand recording and more info at https://applitools.info/b59
Key takeaways:
• Learn how to use ChatGPT to add AI power to your testing and test automation
• Understand the limitations of the technology and where human expertise is crucial
• Gain insight into different AI-based tools
• Adopt AI-based tools to stay relevant and optimize work for developers and testers
* ChatGPT and OpenAI belong to OpenAI, L.L.C.
More than Just Lines on a Map: Best Practices for U.S Bike Routes
This session highlights best practices and lessons learned for U.S. Bike Route System designation, as well as how and why these routes should be integrated into bicycle planning at the local and regional level.
Presenters:
Presenter: Kevin Luecke Toole Design Group
Co-Presenter: Virginia Sullivan Adventure Cycling Association
Ride the Storm: Navigating Through Unstable Periods / Katerina Rudko (Belka G...DevGAMM Conference
Has your project been caught in a storm of deadlines, clashing requirements, and the need to change course halfway through? If yes, then check out how the administration team navigated through all of this, relocating 160 people from 3 countries and opening 2 offices during the most turbulent time in the last 20 years. Belka Games’ Chief Administrative Officer, Katerina Rudko, will share universal approaches and life hacks that can help your project survive unstable periods when there seem to be too many tasks and a lack of time and people.
This presentation was designed to provide strategic recommendations for a brand in decline. The deck also incorporates a situational assessment, including a brand identity, positioning, architecture, and portfolio strategy for the Brand.
Presentation originally created for NYU Stern's Brand Strategy course. Design by Erica Santiago & Chris Alexander.
A report by thenetworkone and Kurio.
The contributing experts and agencies are (in an alphabetical order): Sylwia Rytel, Social Media Supervisor, 180heartbeats + JUNG v MATT (PL), Sharlene Jenner, Vice President - Director of Engagement Strategy, Abelson Taylor (USA), Alex Casanovas, Digital Director, Atrevia (ES), Dora Beilin, Senior Social Strategist, Barrett Hoffher (USA), Min Seo, Campaign Director, Brand New Agency (KR), Deshé M. Gully, Associate Strategist, Day One Agency (USA), Francesca Trevisan, Strategist, Different (IT), Trevor Crossman, CX and Digital Transformation Director; Olivia Hussey, Strategic Planner; Simi Srinarula, Social Media Manager, The Hallway (AUS), James Hebbert, Managing Director, Hylink (CN / UK), Mundy Álvarez, Planning Director; Pedro Rojas, Social Media Manager; Pancho González, CCO, Inbrax (CH), Oana Oprea, Head of Digital Planning, Jam Session Agency (RO), Amy Bottrill, Social Account Director, Launch (UK), Gaby Arriaga, Founder, Leonardo1452 (MX), Shantesh S Row, Creative Director, Liwa (UAE), Rajesh Mehta, Chief Strategy Officer; Dhruv Gaur, Digital Planning Lead; Leonie Mergulhao, Account Supervisor - Social Media & PR, Medulla (IN), Aurelija Plioplytė, Head of Digital & Social, Not Perfect (LI), Daiana Khaidargaliyeva, Account Manager, Osaka Labs (UK / USA), Stefanie Söhnchen, Vice President Digital, PIABO Communications (DE), Elisabeth Winiartati, Managing Consultant, Head of Global Integrated Communications; Lydia Aprina, Account Manager, Integrated Marketing and Communications; Nita Prabowo, Account Manager, Integrated Marketing and Communications; Okhi, Web Developer, PNTR Group (ID), Kei Obusan, Insights Director; Daffi Ranandi, Insights Manager, Radarr (SG), Gautam Reghunath, Co-founder & CEO, Talented (IN), Donagh Humphreys, Head of Social and Digital Innovation, THINKHOUSE (IRE), Sarah Yim, Strategy Director, Zulu Alpha Kilo (CA).
Trends In Paid Search: Navigating The Digital Landscape In 2024Search Engine Journal
The search marketing landscape is evolving rapidly with new technologies, and professionals, like you, rely on innovative paid search strategies to meet changing demands.
It’s important that you’re ready to implement new strategies in 2024.
Check this out and learn the top trends in paid search advertising that are expected to gain traction, so you can drive higher ROI more efficiently in 2024.
You’ll learn:
- The latest trends in AI and automation, and what this means for an evolving paid search ecosystem.
- New developments in privacy and data regulation.
- Emerging ad formats that are expected to make an impact next year.
Watch Sreekant Lanka from iQuanti and Irina Klein from OneMain Financial as they dive into the future of paid search and explore the trends, strategies, and technologies that will shape the search marketing landscape.
If you’re looking to assess your paid search strategy and design an industry-aligned plan for 2024, then this webinar is for you.
5 Public speaking tips from TED - Visualized summarySpeakerHub
From their humble beginnings in 1984, TED has grown into the world’s most powerful amplifier for speakers and thought-leaders to share their ideas. They have over 2,400 filmed talks (not including the 30,000+ TEDx videos) freely available online, and have hosted over 17,500 events around the world.
With over one billion views in a year, it’s no wonder that so many speakers are looking to TED for ideas on how to share their message more effectively.
The article “5 Public-Speaking Tips TED Gives Its Speakers”, by Carmine Gallo for Forbes, gives speakers five practical ways to connect with their audience, and effectively share their ideas on stage.
Whether you are gearing up to get on a TED stage yourself, or just want to master the skills that so many of their speakers possess, these tips and quotes from Chris Anderson, the TED Talks Curator, will encourage you to make the most impactful impression on your audience.
See the full article and more summaries like this on SpeakerHub here: https://speakerhub.com/blog/5-presentation-tips-ted-gives-its-speakers
See the original article on Forbes here:
http://www.forbes.com/forbes/welcome/?toURL=http://www.forbes.com/sites/carminegallo/2016/05/06/5-public-speaking-tips-ted-gives-its-speakers/&refURL=&referrer=#5c07a8221d9b
ChatGPT and the Future of Work - Clark Boyd Clark Boyd
Everyone is in agreement that ChatGPT (and other generative AI tools) will shape the future of work. Yet there is little consensus on exactly how, when, and to what extent this technology will change our world.
Businesses that extract maximum value from ChatGPT will use it as a collaborative tool for everything from brainstorming to technical maintenance.
For individuals, now is the time to pinpoint the skills the future professional will need to thrive in the AI age.
Check out this presentation to understand what ChatGPT is, how it will shape the future of work, and how you can prepare to take advantage.
A brief introduction to DataScience with explaining of the concepts, algorithms, machine learning, supervised and unsupervised learning, clustering, statistics, data preprocessing, real-world applications etc.
It's part of a Data Science Corner Campaign where I will be discussing the fundamentals of DataScience, AIML, Statistics etc.
Time Management & Productivity - Best PracticesVit Horky
Here's my presentation on by proven best practices how to manage your work time effectively and how to improve your productivity. It includes practical tips and how to use tools such as Slack, Google Apps, Hubspot, Google Calendar, Gmail and others.
The six step guide to practical project managementMindGenius
The six step guide to practical project management
If you think managing projects is too difficult, think again.
We’ve stripped back project management processes to the
basics – to make it quicker and easier, without sacrificing
the vital ingredients for success.
“If you’re looking for some real-world guidance, then The Six Step Guide to Practical Project Management will help.”
Dr Andrew Makar, Tactical Project Management
Unlocking the Power of ChatGPT and AI in Testing - A Real-World Look, present...Applitools
During this webinar, Anand Bagmar demonstrates how AI tools such as ChatGPT can be applied to various stages of the software development life cycle (SDLC) using an eCommerce application case study. Find the on-demand recording and more info at https://applitools.info/b59
Key takeaways:
• Learn how to use ChatGPT to add AI power to your testing and test automation
• Understand the limitations of the technology and where human expertise is crucial
• Gain insight into different AI-based tools
• Adopt AI-based tools to stay relevant and optimize work for developers and testers
* ChatGPT and OpenAI belong to OpenAI, L.L.C.
More than Just Lines on a Map: Best Practices for U.S Bike Routes
This session highlights best practices and lessons learned for U.S. Bike Route System designation, as well as how and why these routes should be integrated into bicycle planning at the local and regional level.
Presenters:
Presenter: Kevin Luecke Toole Design Group
Co-Presenter: Virginia Sullivan Adventure Cycling Association
Ride the Storm: Navigating Through Unstable Periods / Katerina Rudko (Belka G...DevGAMM Conference
Has your project been caught in a storm of deadlines, clashing requirements, and the need to change course halfway through? If yes, then check out how the administration team navigated through all of this, relocating 160 people from 3 countries and opening 2 offices during the most turbulent time in the last 20 years. Belka Games’ Chief Administrative Officer, Katerina Rudko, will share universal approaches and life hacks that can help your project survive unstable periods when there seem to be too many tasks and a lack of time and people.
This presentation was designed to provide strategic recommendations for a brand in decline. The deck also incorporates a situational assessment, including a brand identity, positioning, architecture, and portfolio strategy for the Brand.
Presentation originally created for NYU Stern's Brand Strategy course. Design by Erica Santiago & Chris Alexander.
2. Lecture Preview
• The First Modern War
• The Coming of Emancipation
• The Second American Revolution
• The Confederate Nation
• Turning Points
• Rehearsals for Reconstruction and the
End of the War
79. Review
• The First Modern War
Focus Question: Why is the Civil War considered the first modern
war?
• The Coming of Emancipation
Focus Question: How did a war to preserve the Union become a war
to end slavery?
• The Second American Revolution
Focus Question: How did the Civil War transform the national
economy and create a stronger nation-state?
80. Review
• The Confederate Nation
Focus Question: How did the war effort and leadership problems
affect the society and economy of the Confederacy?
• Turning Points
Focus Question: What were the military and political turning points
of the war?
• Rehearsals for Reconstruction and the
End of the War
Focus Question: What were the most important wartime "rehearsals
for Reconstruction"?
81. MEDIA LINKS
—— Chapter 14 ——
Order Title Filename Media link
1
Eric Foner comparing modern events
with the American Civil War
foner_liberty08 http://wwnorton.com/common/mplay/6.7/?
p=/college/history/foner4/&f=foner_liberty08
2
Eric Foner on the American Civil War,
pt 2: both sides fighting for freedom
civil_war_ideas_of_freedm http://wwnorton.com/common/mplay/6.7/?
p=/college/history/foner4/&f=civil_war_ideas
3
Eric Foner on the American Civil War,
pt 3: from preserving the Union to
emancipation
question077 http://wwnorton.com/common/mplay/6.7/?
p=/college/history/foner4/mp4/&f=question0
77
4 Eric Foner on the American Civil War,
pt 4: Lincoln's leadership
question078 http://wwnorton.com/common/mplay/6.7/?
p=/college/history/foner4/mp4/&f=question0
78
5 Eric Foner on the American Civil War,
pt 5: the legacy of the war
question079 http://wwnorton.com/common/mplay/6.7/?
p=/college/history/foner4/mp4/&f=question0
79
6 Eric Foner on the American Civil War,
pt 6: the Civil Rights Bill of 1866
question080 http://wwnorton.com/common/mplay/6.7/?
p=/college/history/foner4/mp4/&f=question0
80
7 Eric Foner on balancing political power
and social movements
balancing_poltics_society http://wwnorton.com/common/mplay/6.7/?
p=/college/history/foner4/&f=balancing_polti
cs_society
8 Eric Foner on republicanism in the
antebellum period
antebellum_republicanism http://wwnorton.com/common/mplay/6.7/?
p=/college/history/foner4/&f=antebellum_rep
ublicanism
82. Next Lecture PREVIEW:
—— Chapter 14 ——
“What Is Freedom?”:
Reconstruction, 1865–1877
• The Meaning of Freedom
• The Making of Radical Reconstruction
• Radical Reconstruction in the South
• The Overthrow of Reconstruction
83. Norton Lecture Slides
Independent and Employee-Owned
http://wwnorton.com/college/history/give-me-liberty4/
by
Eric Foner
This concludes the Norton Lecture Slides
Slide Set for Chapter 14
Give Me Liberty!
AN AMERICAN HISTORY
FOURTH EDITION
Editor's Notes
Chapter 14A New Birth of Freedom: The Civil War, 1861–1865
The subtopics for this lecture are listed on the screen above.
The purpose of the focus questions is to help students find larger themes and structures to bring the historical evidence, events, and examples together for a connected thematic purpose.
As we go through each portion of this lecture, you may want to keep in mind how the information relates to this larger thematic question. Here are some suggestions: write the focus question in the left or right margin on your notes and as we go through, either mark areas of your notes for you to come back to later and think about the connection OR as you review your notes later (to fill in anything else you remember from the lecture or your thoughts during the lecture or additional information from the readings), write small phrases from the lecture and readings that connect that information to each focus question AND/OR are examples that work together to answer the focus question.
The American Civil War has been called the first modern war. This was the first time mass armies fought with weapons forged by the industrial revolution, and the scale of casualties was unprecedented in American history. The war became a conflict between societies, as the distinction between military and civilian targets diminished. Wars like this depend on the effectiveness of political leaders, the capacity to mobilize economic resources, and a society’s determination to continue the war, despite failures.
The Union seemed favored over the Confederacy. The North, including loyal border states, had a population of 22 million, while the South had only 9 million, 3.5 million of whom were slaves. The Union had far more manufacturing, railroad track, and financial resources. Yet, to end the rebellion, the Union had to invade and conquer a huge area and defeat spirited Confederate soldiers defending homes and families. Even if the South lost most battles, it could win by exhausting the enemy.
The outbreak of war stimulated powerful feelings of patriotism, and recruits hastened to enlist, thinking the war would be short and glorious. Both sides later resorted to a draft, the Confederacy in 1862, the Union the next year. By 1865, more than 2 million men had served in the Union army, and 900,000 in the Confederate. Few soldiers had any military experience, and their notions of war were romantic.
Soldiers and officers did not anticipate how technological advances changed warfare. The Civil War was the first major conflict in which the railroad moved troops and supplies. The war saw the famous battle between the Union vessel Monitor and Confederate Merrimac in 1862, which showed the advantage of ironclads over wooden ships and transformed naval warfare. The telegraph, observation balloons, and even hand grenades and submarines were used for the first time. Most important was the revolution in arms manufacturing, which replaced the musket, accurate only at a short range, with the rifle, deadly at 600 or more yards because of its grooved barrel. This changed the nature of combat, making far more important heavy fortifications and trenches and giving defensive forces (usually Confederates) a significant advantage. This development produced the awful casualties of the war’s battles.
Medical care was primitive, and large numbers of Americans for the first time were captured and held as prisoners of war in camps, leading to high death rates. At least 620,000 died in the war, the equivalent of more than 6 million in today’s population, and more than the entire number of Americans killed in all other wars in U.S. history, from the Revolution to the Iraq War.
The Civil War was also modern in the use of propaganda by both sides to mobilize public opinion. In the North, patriotic organizations and the War Department reaffirmed northern values, portrayed the Democratic Party as treasonous, and accused the South of crimes against Union soldiers and loyal civilians. The South engaged in similar campaigns. Modern media, with newspapers, telegraphs, and especially photographs, for the first time captured the often shocking reality of war and communicated it to the public.
Both sides were unprepared for war. There was no national banking system, no tax system to raise revenue for the war, and few accurate maps of the South. After Fort Sumter, Lincoln enacted a blockade of the South, intended to destroy its commerce, but the navy at first had too few ships to enforce it.
The problems of purchasing and distributing food, weapons, and other supplies for the armies were huge. While the Union army eventually became the best-fed and best-supplied force in history, southern soldiers lacked food, uniforms, and shoes. Lacking sufficient industrial capacity, the Confederate government imported many items for the military from abroad and established its own arsenals.
Each side tried to exploit its advantages—the South, by adopting a defensive strategy to wear down the North, led by the brilliant Robert E. Lee, and the North, by using its superiority in manpower and technology. But the northern army was at first small, its officers and leadership were poor, and it was focused on capturing Richmond, the Confederacy’s capital, a difficult task. Lincoln soon realized that capturing and occupying territory would not win the war; defeating the South’s armies would. Lincoln’s eventual embrace of emancipation acknowledged that slavery was the basis of the Confederacy, and that to win the conflict, the Union had to make this institution, the economic and social foundation of the South, a military target.
Most of the war in the East occurred in a narrow corridor between Washington and Richmond, as a series of Union generals led the North’s Army of the Potomac toward the Confederate capital, only to be repeatedly repulsed by the main Confederate army. The first significant clash at Bull Run ended in the defeat and chaotic retreat of Union forces. This battle ended the widespread belief that the war would end quickly. George B. McClellan soon took command of the Union’s main army, but after thoroughly training this army’s tens of thousands of volunteer soldiers, he proved reluctant to commit them to battle. McClellan was a Democrat, and he hoped that compromise might end the conflict without many casualties or weakening slavery.
Pressured by public opinion, President Lincoln, and Congress, McClellan, in the spring of 1862, led his army of more than 100,000 men into Virginia. Approaching the Confederate capital on the peninsula southwest of Richmond, McClellan’s advance was ably deflected by Lee in a series of battles, forcing McClellan back to Washington, D.C. After Lee won the second Battle of Bull Run in August, 1862, he invaded the North, hoping to bring border slave states into the Confederacy, gain French and British recognition of southern independence, influence the North’s elections in the fall, and perhaps capture Washington, D.C. At the Battle of Antietam, McClellan and the Army of the Potomac repelled Lee’s invasion. In one day at Antietam, nearly 4,000 men were killed and 18,000 wounded. More Americans died in this battle on September 17, 1862, than on any other day in American history, including Pearl Harbor and D-Day in World War II and the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Northern triumph was short-lived. General Ambrose E. Burnside, who replaced McClellan, was repulsed by Lee’s army at Fredericksburg, Virginia, in December 1862, with heavy losses.
The North had better luck in the West. There, Ulysses S. Grant, a West Point graduate whose army career had been ruined by his excessive drinking, captured several important forts in Tennessee in early 1862. In April 1862, naval forces under Admiral David G. Farragut steamed into New Orleans and captured that city for the Union, which now controlled the South’s largest city and its lucrative nearby sugar plantations. After Grant repelled a surprise Confederate attack at Shiloh, Tennessee, Union success in the West stalled.
The purpose of the focus questions is to help students find larger themes and structures to bring the historical evidence, events, and examples together for a connected thematic purpose.
As we go through each portion of this lecture, you may want to keep in mind how the information relates to this larger thematic question. Here are some suggestions: write the focus question in the left or right margin on your notes and as we go through, either mark areas of your notes for you to come back to later and think about the connection OR as you review your notes later (to fill in anything else you remember from the lecture or your thoughts during the lecture or additional information from the readings), write small phrases from the lecture and readings that connect that information to each focus question AND/OR are examples that work together to answer the focus question.
The Civil War had revolutionary effects on American society, the most important of which was the destruction of slavery, the fundamental institution of southern society. The emancipation of America’s 4 million slaves, in numbers, scale, and economic value, was far greater than any other emancipation of slaves or serfs (in Russia) in the world. At the war’s beginning, Lincoln identified the North’s cause with the cause of free labor. But Lincoln also initially stated that the conflict was not being fought to end or limit slavery, but to preserve the Union. He wanted to keep the border slave states of Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky, and Missouri in the Union and build the broadest possible base of support for the war in the North.
As Confederates used slave labor for military purposes and blacks began to escape to Union lines, this initial policy of ignoring slavery became untenable. By the end of 1861, Union commanders had begun treating escaped slaves as “contraband” of war—property of military value subject to confiscation. Southern blacks themselves took actions that propelled the Union toward ending slavery. Well before Lincoln’s Emancipation Act, slaves saw the war as an opportunity to gain their freedom. Thousands escaped to the safety of Union lines, crippling many plantations. In areas occupied by northern soldiers, slaves refused to work unless paid.
Antislavery northerners pressed the federal government to realize that slavery was the basis of the southern economy and its military capacities, and they insisted emancipation was required in order to weaken the South. Abolitionists and Radical Republicans demanded, none more adamantly than Frederick Douglass, that abolition become a war aim. Congress, frustrated by military failures, prohibited the army from returning fugitive slaves, abolished slavery in Washington, D.C., and the territories, and passed the Second Confiscation Act, which freed slaves of disloyal owners in Union-occupied territory and slaves who escaped to Union lines. But Lincoln reversed the policies of Union generals who declared emancipation in their districts, and he still endorsed colonization as a solution to slavery.
In summer 1862, Lincoln decided that emancipation had become a military and political necessity. He delayed his intention to free the slaves until after a Union victory, and after the battle of Antietam, he issued a preliminary Emancipation Proclamation. Democrats in the North used the declaration to gain votes, arguing that Republicans threatened to inundate the North with cheap black labor and allow blacks to marry white women. The Democrats gained considerable political victories in some northern states, and Lincoln, now on the defensive, revived plans for gradual emancipation and colonization and downplayed racial equality.
On January 1, 1863, Lincoln signed and issued the Emancipation Proclamation. The document did not free all the slaves and at first applied to very few. Based on Lincoln’s authority as military commander-in-chief, the proclamation exempted areas under Union control. Thus, it did not apply to loyal border slave states that had not seceded or to parts of the Confederacy occupied by Union forces, such as Tennessee and parts of Virginia and Louisiana. But it declared free the vast majority of the South’s slaves, more than 3 million men, women, and children. Still behind Confederate lines, these slaves would be free only when Union military success made them so.
The Emancipation Proclamation made the Union army an agent of freedom and promised the death of slavery by combining the goals of abolition and the Union. It altered the nature of the Civil War and the course of American history. It also represented a change in Lincoln’s thinking. Lincoln did not mention compensating slaveholders for the loss of their slaves, nor did he mention colonization. The order committed the North to enlisting blacks soldiers in the Union army.
Emancipation in the United States, unlike elsewhere, was immediate and offered no compensation. It anticipated the demise of slavery in Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Brazil (the last nation to abolish slavery in the Western Hemisphere, in 1888). The Civil War, begun to preserve the nation, now promised a revolutionary transformation of southern life and a redefinition of American freedom. Without colonization, emancipation meant incorporating freed slaves into American life. A new system of labor, politics, and race relations would have to replace slavery.
The proclamation’s provision allowing blacks to enlist in the army had far-reaching effects. Although the navy allowed blacks to serve as sailors, they had been excluded from the army. Lincoln’s administration first refused to allow blacks to enlist, fearing that it would alienate white soldiers and border slave states that stayed in the Union. But a few Union commanders enlisted soldiers who were contraband, as happened in South Carolina. Only with the Emancipation Proclamation did significant black enlistment begin. By the end of the war, 180,000 black men had served in the Union army, and 24,000 in the Union navy. One-third died in battle, from wounds, or disease. Black soldiers and units received considerable notoriety after showing great heroism in battle, such as the 54th Massachusetts and its assault on Fort Wagner, South Carolina, in 1863 (popularized in the film Glory). Most black soldiers were emancipated slaves who joined the army in the South. Many were slaves from loyal border states excluded from the Emancipation Proclamation, where enlistment was, for most of the war, the only road to freedom.
Military service was liberating for many black soldiers, who earned a new sense of dignity and rights. As veterans, many of these troops became community and political leaders, including many of the Reconstruction era. Within the army, however, black troops received discriminatory treatment, including being led only by white officers, being more often assigned to work rather than combat duty, and at first receiving unequal pay. They were targeted by Confederates, who executed some black prisoners. But black soldiers’ service ensured that they could make claims on the government for equal rights and citizenship in the war’s aftermath.
The purpose of the focus questions is to help students find larger themes and structures to bring the historical evidence, events, and examples together for a connected thematic purpose.
As we go through each portion of this lecture, you may want to keep in mind how the information relates to this larger thematic question. Here are some suggestions: write the focus question in the left or right margin on your notes and as we go through, either mark areas of your notes for you to come back to later and think about the connection OR as you review your notes later (to fill in anything else you remember from the lecture or your thoughts during the lecture or additional information from the readings), write small phrases from the lecture and readings that connect that information to each focus question AND/OR are examples that work together to answer the focus question.
Because it radically transformed American government and society, some historians call the American Civil War the Second American Revolution. Notions of freedom were contested and transformed by the war. Union victory secured the North’s understanding of freedom as self-ownership and owning one’s own labor, as opposed to the South’s vision of freedom as mastership over others. The war advanced abolitionists’ definitions of freedom, and Lincoln’s emancipation of the slaves reinforced Americans’ sense that their nation was a progressive force in world history.
Lincoln did the most to link the war with northern values. The American Civil War was part of a worldwide phenomenon of nation-building. Throughout the world, powerful, centralized nation-states developed in old countries and new nations emerged where none had ever existed. Modern states consolidated their power and reduced local autonomy. Japan and Argentina are two examples where this occurred, and where rapid economic development quickly followed national unification. Lincoln has even been called the American Mazzini or Bismarck, figures who respectively created nation-states in Italy and Germany. But Lincoln’s America, unlike these nations, was based on universal ideas of political democracy, human liberty, and self-government; other nations were based on particular identities of ethnicity, culture, and language. In his November 1863 Gettysburg Address commemorating that battle’s dead, Lincoln reaffirmed that “all men are created equal” and stated the war heralded a “new birth of freedom.” Union soldiers’ sacrifices would ensure that “government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”
The Union war effort created a new American nation-state with greatly expanded powers and responsibilities. The United States remained a federal republic, with sovereignty divided between state and national governments. Yet, the war inaugurated a new national self-consciousness, as indicated by a greater use of the word “nation,” a unified political entity, rather than the older “Union” of individual states. More and more, Americans thought freedom required a nation and coherent national identity.
The war changed religion, as well. Northern Protestant clergy tried to give the war a religious justification and sanctify the sacrifices of Northern soldiers. In their sermons, they joined Christianity and patriotism into a civic religion, marking the war as God’s means of eradicating slavery and truly making America a land of liberty. Religion also enabled Americans to cope with the horrors of the battlefield and the enormous loss of life caused by the conflict.
Intensified northern nationalism made criticism of the war or Lincoln’s administration seem treasonous to Republicans. Thousands of opposition newspaper editors, Democratic politicians, opponents of enlistment and the draft, and ordinary civilians were arrested, often arbitrarily. As the Constitution did not clarify who had the authority to suspend habeas corpus, Lincoln claimed this right under his presidential war powers, and he suspended it twice for those charged with “disloyal activities.” Courts generally gave the administration a free hand, and Lincoln even ignored Supreme Court decisions in individual cases. Only in 1866 did the Supreme Court declare it unconstitutional to bring accused persons before military tribunals where civil courts were in operation. While Lincoln was no dictator, the conflict showed that civil liberties were fragile in wartime.
The northern war effort empowered both the federal government and a rising class of capitalist businessmen. Unlike the South, which was economically devastated, the northern economy flourished. Industrial profits soared from wartime inflation and government contracts to produce supplies, coal, and iron. Mechanization was spurred onward by war demands in boot and shoe production and meatpacking. Agricultural production also expanded during the war.
The northern government was committed to rapid economic growth and development, and Congress adopted policies that promoted this and transformed America’s financial system. With no South represented in Congress to block changes, lawmakers adopted policies advocated by many in the North. The Homestead Act spurred agricultural development by offering 160 acres of free public land to settlers in the West. The Land Grant College Act helped states establish agricultural and mechanical schools, many of which became the state universities of today.
Congress also made huge grants of money and land for internal improvements, including up to 100 million acres to the Union Pacific and Central Pacific to build the transcontinental railroad. This monumental project required 20,000 men to lay track, an enterprise that involved many Chinese contract laborers, called “coolies” by Americans. The transcontinental railroad, finished in 1869, expanded the national market, facilitated western settlement and investment, and sealed the fate of Indians in the West.
Because Lincoln removed soldiers from the West to fight in the East, soldiers could not keep white settlers from intruding on Indian territories. Conflict between whites and federal troops and the Indians increased. Sioux attacks on white farmers in Minnesota led to the sentencing and mass hanging of 38 Indians, the largest official execution in American history. In 1864, Colorado soldiers killed around 400 Arapaho and Cheyenne men, women, and children at Sand Creek. The Union army also launched a campaign against the Navajo in the Southwest, and forced them onto a reservation. The Confederacy ironically treated Indians more fairly than the Union, allowing tribes to elect representatives to its Congress, and allowing Indian tribes on reservations complete self-government.
The need to generate revenue to pay for the war transformed America’s financial system. To raise funds, the government increased the tariff to record levels, imposed new taxes on production and consumption, and passed the first income tax in American history. The Union government also borrowed more than $2 billion by selling interest-bearing bonds, creating a huge national debt. It also printed more than $400 million of paper money, called “greenbacks,” as legal tender. Congress rationalized banking by creating a system of nationally chartered banks required to buy government bonds, and allowed to issue bank notes as currency. A heavy tax drove money issued by state banks out of circulation. The United States, with a money supply before the war an anarchic mix of paper notes issued by state and local banks, during the war had two kinds of national paper money—greenbacks printed by the federal government—and notes issued by new national banks.
Wartime economic policies handsomely benefited northern manufacturers, railroad businessmen, and financiers. Many “captains of industry” of the Gilded Age made their fortunes in the war, including iron and steel man Andrew Carnegie, oil magnate John D. Rockefeller, financiers Jay Gould and J. P. Morgan, and Philip D. Armour, beef slaughterer. As a whole, Union economic policies vastly expanded the power and size of the federal government. The federal budget in 1865 was more than $1 billion, twenty times larger than 1860, and the federal government became the nation’s largest employer.
For many northern women, the war created economic opportunity. Women took manufacturing jobs and jobs in male professions, like nursing. Women found jobs as clerks in the expanding federal government. Women maintained a presence after the war in white-collar government jobs, retail sales, and nursing. Women worked as nurses in the armies, and hundreds of thousands of women indirectly supported the armies by raising money and supplies for soldiers and freed slaves. The U.S. Sanitary Commission became a centralized national relief agency to coordinate efforts on the home front. These activities brought women into the public sphere in new ways. The suffrage movement suspended its work during the conflict, but women’s contribution to the war effort heightened the sense of many women that they deserved the vote in its aftermath.
The war and Lincoln’s policies divided the North. Republicans called those opposing the war Copperheads, after a poisonous snake that strikes without warning. Increasing casualties and rapid social change caused internal conflict. States with a large southern-born population, like Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, and cities with large working-class Catholic immigrant populations, were at the center of disquiet. The growing power of the federal government challenged local autonomy, most notably in the draft law, which allowed individuals to provide a substitute or pay a fee to escape service. Wage earners resented the huge profits of manufacturers and financiers while inflation eroded their pay. The war saw the rebirth of the northern labor movement, which called many strikes.
Prospective changes in the status of blacks sparked a racist backlash in much of the North. Although divided between antiwar and prowar wings, the Democratic Party criticized Lincoln’s policies and the draft. Occasionally, dissent became violence, most notably the July 1863 riots against the draft in New York City, in which a mostly Irish immigrant mob attacked draft offices, the mansions of wealthy Republicans, industrial establishments, and city blacks. More than 100 people were killed before federal troops ended the tumult.
The purpose of the focus questions is to help students find larger themes and structures to bring the historical evidence, events, and examples together for a connected thematic purpose.
As we go through each portion of this lecture, you may want to keep in mind how the information relates to this larger thematic question. Here are some suggestions: write the focus question in the left or right margin on your notes and as we go through, either mark areas of your notes for you to come back to later and think about the connection OR as you review your notes later (to fill in anything else you remember from the lecture or your thoughts during the lecture or additional information from the readings), write small phrases from the lecture and readings that connect that information to each focus question AND/OR are examples that work together to answer the focus question.
Confederate President Jefferson Davis proved unable to rally the southern public behind the war. Although eloquent, Davis, a West Point graduate, senator, and Mississippi plantation owner, lacked charisma and an ability to connect with ordinary citizens. The Confederacy’s lack of a party system also was a liability, as southern leaders saw parties as a danger to national unity. Davis thus lacked a counterpart to the well-organized Republican Party, which organized support for Lincoln’s administration.
Under Davis, the South’s government became very centralized, raising armies, taking control of railroads, and building factories. But the Confederate government never effectively utilized the South’s main economic resource, cotton. A strategy to focus on food production as a means to compel Great Britain, whose mills used southern cotton, to side with the Confederacy, failed. Other nations increased their cotton production, such as Egypt and India, which helped produce a crisis of overproduction after the war when southern cotton production resumed.
Social change and internal strife consumed the South as the war dragged on. Initially, white southerners widely supported the Confederate cause and war effort, claiming the war was being fought to protect liberty against northern tyranny. Yet, public disaffection grew, especially over the draft, which allowed substitutes and exempted one white male for every twenty slaves on a plantation, thus releasing from service many overseers and planters’ sons and greatly increasing opposition to the war among poor whites.
Economic crisis also caused inner turmoil in the South. As the blockade became more effective, more of the South became occupied by Union forces and slave productivity declined, shortages of essential goods became widespread. Confederate policies that seemed to favor the wealthy and large slaveowners exacerbated the effects of economic troubles, as poor whites felt they faced unequal burdens.
While the Confederacy, like the North, borrowed heavily to finance the war, the planter-dominated Congress would not levy heavy taxes that planters would have to pay. Instead, it printed an enormous amount of paper money. Congress authorized military officers to seize goods and pay citizens with this money, which became increasingly worthless. Many southerners resented this practice. In some cities, food riots broke out. By the end of the war, nearly 100,000 men, mostly poor non-slaveholders, had deserted from the Confederate army.
By 1864, organized movements calling for peace surfaced in several southern states, and secret societies were actively promoting disloyalty. Confederate military tribunals imprisoned Unionists, drove them from their homes, and executed a few. By the end of the war, about 50,000 white southerners fought for the Union.
More than in the North, the war imposed many costs on women in the South. Often left alone on farms and plantations, women had to take over men’s responsibilities to conduct business and discipline slaves. Southern women organized to support soldiers and engaged in previously male occupations. “Government girls” worked as clerks in the Confederate government. While southern women’s contribution to the war was legendary, more women came to believe that the war was not worth the sacrifices they were making. Women’s disaffection helped decrease civilian morale and fostered desertion from the army.
Increasing shortages of white manpower led the Confederate government to authorize the arming of slaves to fight on the South’s behalf, an event no one anticipated in 1861. Many slaveholders resisted it, and the Confederate Senate rejected it. The Confederate Congress approved it only in March 1865, when Robert E. Lee endorsed it. The war ended before enlistment began, but Confederate forces did employ blacks, mostly slaves, as laborers. The decision to recruit blacks for combat had undermined slavery and the proslavery ideology on which it rested.
The purpose of the focus questions is to help students find larger themes and structures to bring the historical evidence, events, and examples together for a connected thematic purpose.
As we go through each portion of this lecture, you may want to keep in mind how the information relates to this larger thematic question. Here are some suggestions: write the focus question in the left or right margin on your notes and as we go through, either mark areas of your notes for you to come back to later and think about the connection OR as you review your notes later (to fill in anything else you remember from the lecture or your thoughts during the lecture or additional information from the readings), write small phrases from the lecture and readings that connect that information to each focus question AND/OR are examples that work together to answer the focus question.
Despite the apparent disintegration of slavery and eroding southern morale, the war’s outcome was uncertain in 1863 and 1864. In April 1863, “Fighting Joe” Hooker, a new Union commander in the East, invaded central Virginia. Outnumbered two to one, Lee repulsed Hooker at Chancellorsville, though his most talented commander, Stonewall Jackson, was mortally wounded in the fight. Lee soon decided on another invasion of the North, although the rationale for it today remains unknown. His army met and fought Union forces under General George G. Meade at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, the first three days of July. Gettysburg was the largest battle ever in North America; 165,000 troops fought there. A desperate frontal assault led by Major General George E. Pickett failed to break Union lines on July 3, and Lee, having regretted ordering Pickett’s charge, retreated. The “high tide of the Confederacy” had been reached, and Lee’s soldiers never again treaded on northern ground. Simultaneously, Union forces led by Ulysses S. Grant had laid siege to the last Confederate stronghold on the Mississippi River at Vicksburg, Mississippi. On July 4, Confederate forces surrendered, and the entire Mississippi River fell to Union forces. Gettysburg and Vicksburg greatly diminished southern hopes for victory.
Given the command of Union forces in the East, Grant in 1864 initiated a war of attrition against Lee’s army in Virginia. Grant was willing to incur high numbers of casualties with the knowledge that the North could replenish its armies, while the South could not. In May 1864, Grant’s Army of the Potomac began a month of fierce fighting and campaigning. In the Battle of the Wilderness, both sides suffered great casualties, but instead of retreating, as had previous Union commanders, Grant pushed on, fighting Lee again at Spotsylvania and Cold Harbor. After six weeks, Grant lost 60,000 men, an enormous number, but he inflicted 30,000 casualties on Lee’s army. This sustained fighting was a turning point in modern warfare and more resembled the modern trench warfare of World War I than the methods of 1861.
Although Grant maintained the initiative, his strategy led to criticisms that he was a butcher. Victory was elusive. When Grant failed to capture Petersburg, a city that controlled the railways into Richmond, he laid siege to the city. At the same time, General William T. Sherman marched through Georgia, and took Atlanta in September 1864.
With casualties skyrocketing in the spring and summer of 1864, northern morale sank to its lowest point in the war. Lincoln believed he would lose the presidential election in the fall. Radical Republicans nominated an alternative candidate on a radical plank, and General George B. McClellan, the Democratic candidate, called for a peace conference with the Confederacy. Ultimately, Lincoln secured the Republican nomination, and with Sherman’s capture of Atlanta, won a sweeping victory. Lincoln’s reelection guaranteed the war would continue until the Confederacy had been crushed.
The purpose of the focus questions is to help students find larger themes and structures to bring the historical evidence, events, and examples together for a connected thematic purpose.
As we go through each portion of this lecture, you may want to keep in mind how the information relates to this larger thematic question. Here are some suggestions: write the focus question in the left or right margin on your notes and as we go through, either mark areas of your notes for you to come back to later and think about the connection OR as you review your notes later (to fill in anything else you remember from the lecture or your thoughts during the lecture or additional information from the readings), write small phrases from the lecture and readings that connect that information to each focus question AND/OR are examples that work together to answer the focus question.
Federal authorities came to supervise the transition from slavery to freedom as the war came to an end and more southern territory came under Union control. Conflict over access to land, control over labor, and new structures of political power took place in South Carolina, Louisiana, and other parts of the South.
The most well-known of these “rehearsals for Reconstruction” was the experiment on the Sea Islands off the South Carolina coast. In late 1861, the Union navy occupied the islands and whites fled, leaving 10,000 slaves. Northern army officers, cotton plantation investors, and black and white reformers came to reconstruct the island and lift up the islands’ blacks. Northern-born teachers believed education would make the former slaves self-dependent and productive citizens, and started schools. Although the slaves’ most basic demand was for land to farm themselves, some northerners believed free labor for slaves should take the form of wage work, which was more humane than slave labor. When the land was sold by the federal government, it went to northern investors who wanted to show the advantages of free labor and make a profit. By 1865, Sea Island black families were working for wages, gaining an education, and enjoying a better material life than under slavery.
A very different experiment took place in Louisiana and the Mississippi River valley. After Vicksburg, Union authorities tried to resurrect the cotton plantations with wage labor, but they forced the former slaves to sign labor contracts. At Davis Bend, however, freed blacks were given the plantation lands of Jefferson Davis and allowed to divide it among themselves and farm it as they saw fit.
The future political status of African-Americans became a central point of debate as the war continued, and events in Union-occupied Louisiana focused the nation on the question. Lincoln, hoping to establish a civilian government in that state, announced a Ten-Percent Plan of Reconstruction. This offered amnesty and full restoration of rights, including property except for slaves, to almost all white southerners who swore loyalty to the Union and support for emancipation. When 10 percent of the voters of 1860 took the oath, they could elect a new state government, which would have to abolish slavery. Lincoln’s plan offered no role for freed blacks, but he hoped that his plan would appeal to white southerners and hasten the war’s end.
Free blacks in New Orleans, however, used the Union occupation to push for civil, legal, and political equality, and they found sympathy among Radical Republicans in Congress, who in 1864 passed the Wade-Davis Bill. This bill required a majority, not just one-tenth, of white male southerners to pledge loyalty to the Union before Reconstruction could begin in any state, and it gave blacks legal equality, although not the suffrage. Lincoln vetoed the bill, and as the war came to a close, no plan for Reconstruction existed to follow its end.
In November 1864, Sherman started a “March to the Sea” from Atlanta to the Georgia coast. His forces destroyed railroads, buildings, and food and supplies to deny their use by Confederate troops. Sherman’s vision of destroying civilian property and resources as a way to win the war was controversial but very modern. Sherman continued his path of destruction into South Carolina, freeing slaves and ruining plantations.
On January 31, 1865, Congress approved the Thirteenth Amendment, which abolished slavery throughout the entire Union. In his March 1865 inaugural address, Lincoln called for national reconciliation. On April 2, Grant finally pierced Lee’s lines at Petersburg, causing Lee to retreat and abandon Richmond, which was occupied by northern troops the next day. On April 4, Lincoln, ignoring his own safety, walked Richmond’s streets, accompanied by only a dozen troops. Slaves celebrated and praised him everywhere he went. Lee and his army headed west but were soon surrounded by Grant’s army. Lee surrendered at Appomattox Courthouse, Virginia, on April 9, bringing the Civil War to an end. Only five days later, before he could announce plans to reconstruct the South, Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth, a celebrated actor, at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C.
The war reverberated in the rest of the world, particularly in Europe. When Grant toured Europe in 1877 after retiring from the presidency, he was greeted as a hero. In England, nobles hailed him as a military genius. Workers there welcomed him as a the general who saved the world’s leading experiment in democracy on behalf of a president, Abraham Lincoln, who had vindicated free labor by emancipating the slaves. Otto von Bismarck, Germany’s powerful chancellor, welcomed Grant as a nation-builder.
The Civil War truly did build the modern American nation, preserving the Union, destroying slavery, and shifting power in the nation from the South to the North and from slaveowning planters to northern capitalists. It greatly expanded the power of the federal government and quickened the northern economy’s modernization. The war also made central the task of defining and protecting freedom for African-Americans.
But both sides had lost something they had fought the war to protect. The South had fought to protect slavery, which had been destroyed. And the North, which had fought for the world of free labor, the small shop, and the independent farmer, had been transformed into an industrialized nation. A vision of freedom founded in free labor would soon become impossible to realize amid the changes wrought by this great conflict.
