Civil War

Mary Edwards Walker was the first woman to receive the Medal of Honor, but her fight for recognition extended well beyond the war.

Learn how blacks serving in WWII helped forward the Civil Rights Movement.

Abraham Lincoln issues the Emancipation Proclamation in this scene from "The March to War."

President Abraham Lincoln delivers one of the most moving and infamous speeches in U.S. History in this scene from "Bloodbath."

After the carnage at the Battle of Gettysburg, Lincoln reaffirms his commitment to achieving freedom for all.

For three days in July 1863, Union and Confederate forces clash at Gettysburg in one of the most pivotal battles of the Civil War.

Before beer, barbecues and parking lots, the earliest tailgate took place somewhere very different? A Civil War battlefield.

The incredible story of the Nations' first all-Black peacetime regiments who fought to expand America's presence in the West, protect the National Parks and defend the U.S. on foreign soil.

Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address is regarded as one of the most powerful and poignant speeches in American history.

Grant surrounds and sieges Vicksburg, leading to a crucial victory for the Union.

As a fugitive on the run, John Wilkes Booth recorded his version of the Lincoln assassination in a diary, but some of his secrets are lost to history.

Voting by mail is nothing new, and its origins lie in part in Abraham Lincoln's vision during the Civil War.

One hundred and fifty years after it began, the Civil War is still an important component of our national character.

Original or facsimile? The original Gettysburg Address bears creases in it it from when Abraham Lincoln placed it in his pocket.

Two unlikely leaders, Ulysses S. Grant and William Tecumseh Sherman become the most essential Union commanders in the Civil War.

During the infamous 285-mile "March to the Sea," General William Tecumseh Sherman burns buildings, twists train tracks, and tramples the Georgian countryside in this scene from "Bloodbath."

The assassination of President Lincoln was just one part of a larger plot to decapitate the federal government of the U.S. after the Civil War.

Find out what divided the men of the Civil War, and how in many ways they were more alike than different.

A closer look at why John Wilkes Booth assassinated President Abraham Lincoln.

Union General William T. Sherman was reviled throughout the South as a monster, but his real legacy contradicted his myth.

Most Confederate monuments were built long after the Civil War ended. What were they built to honor? How many still exist?

If you had just one word to describe the Civil War, what would it be?

In march of 1865, Confederate forces made a valiant last stand against General Sherman's advancing troops, but were undone by the most unlikely of errors

Historian Matthew Pinsker presents a quick rundown of the battles at South Carolina's Fort Sumter and the start of the U.S. Civil War.

1863 "Wallpaper Edition" of the Daily Citizen newspaper is created as resources is scarce during the Civil War.

Historian Matthew Pinsker presents a quick rundown of women's involvement in the U.S. Civil War.

The general leads to Confederate forces in the Civil War, and in the process gains mythic status.

At Shiloh, Tennessee in April of 1862, a Confederate surprise attack backfires when the Union holds firm at the "Hornet's Nest."

Learn more about the Missouri Compromise of 1820, a temporary solution to the brewing controversy over slavery in the United States.

Despite gaining their freedom, African-Americans face struggles in the years after the Civil War.

Historians and experts look at the role of slavery in the Civil War and its effect on the U.S. from Reconstruction through the present day.

General Sherman cuts the rail lines around Atlanta and captures the key Southern city, bolstering public opinion in the North as Lincoln prepares for re-election.

Union forces assault Fort McCallister, the key to Savannah and the final obstacle along General Sherman's march to the sea.

Historian Matthew Pinsker explains the Homestead Act in the context of the Civil War, when it was passed.

The unexperienced Union Army faces 30,000 Confederate troops in the first land battle of the Civil War. A Decisive Confederate victory signals that a long conflict lay ahead.

Find out what event turned the tide of the Civil War.

The Medal of Honor is given to America's bravest heroes, and the first people to receive it certainly proved their courage.

Biographer Liz Pryor reveals Robert E. Lee's greatest regret about his military career.

Find out how the actions of a former Maine professor helped the Union win at Gettysburg, the deadliest battle of the Civil War.

Although poorly planned and executed, John Brown's raid helped lead the nation into Civil War and made him one of the most controversial men of his day.

The Civil War was a long and gruesome conflict that claimed more than 620,000 lives and had lasting effects on military and civilian survivors.

In the small Pennsylvania town of Gettysburg, 3,000 Union soldiers prepare to face the onslaught of 60,000 advancing Confederate soldiers.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar shows off some photographs and illustrations from the civil war.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar explores the contributions of courageous African Americans during the Civil War.

The 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment was one of the first official Black units in the U.S. armed forces.