America Civil War topic question?

Question

What is a great topic of research revolving around the american civil war... I want to focus more on the military aspect more than anything else... any ideas??

Answer 1

Could the North have won the war without Sherman's March to the Sea. Lincoln hired and fired many military heads before settling on Grant, who was ruthless. Grant won the war for him by being brutal and ignoring the fate of women and children. Had Lincoln picked another General, the war might have ended differently. You could use his selection of Grant, or even how Grant differed from the other ones Lincoln chose.

Very interesting.

Answer 2

The weapons were ahead of the defensive tactics, which explains the enormous casualties.
The South had very few forges and foundries, and very little iron.
The North had all the resources it needed and the wealth to borrow money for a very expensive war. As the cotton market collapsed, the South had practically nothing to secure its currency. In addition the South was terrible at supplying footware for soldiers, a serious fault.
Both sides got inventive with weapons. Both sides invented vessels that were largely sub-surface - the Monitor and the Merrimac. The Gatling Gun was also invented. Oddly, it would have been a simple matter to manufacture repeating rifles, as repeating revolvers already existed. That would be a good topic.

Answer 3

The number of Irish immigrants who joined the North for a few measly dollars. The Civil War happened at the same time in history as the Irish potato famine in Ireland. Because of that, many Irish left their homeland to come to this country. On arriving, they needed money to survive so many joined the Northern Army. So the topic question would be - What effects did European immigration have on the American Civil War?

Answer 4

One topic that isn't often talked about, but what actually won the war, was the War in the West. Grant tried and honed his tactics at Ft. Donaldson and Henry; he learned a lot from the mistakes at Shiloh; the seige of Vicksburg was a lesson in persistance (and don't forget the brilliant cavalry raid through MS at that time!) The war in the West under Grant gained the first real victory and pointed to the real key to winning the war--defeating and disbanding armies rather than holding ground.

Hope these ideas help you.

Answer 5

Here is little known fact that might fun for you. Before the Civil War the U.S. Army had the U.S. Camel Corp in the southwest. At the outbreak of the Civil War it fell under Confedrate control. I will let you do any further reearch, but it is fun reading.

Answer 6

The importance of The Iron Brigade in the success of the Army of the Potomac. The Iron Brigade consisted of the 2nd - 6th - 7th Wisconsin Volunteers and the 19th Indiana Volunteers and later the 24th Michigan Volunteers.

Answer 7

I think a story on Shermans march to the sea would be very interesting. Find out what Shermans marching orders were. What was the amount of property damage done. Also the effect on civilians: Homes destroyed, rapes, murders, etc. Lastly how Sherman and Lincoln felt about the job that was done.

Answer 8

First use of ironclad warships.

First use of submarine in warfare

First occurrence of trench warfare during the last phases of the war.