Civil War Events Quiz
Instructions: Test your recall of the key events and figures of the American Civil War!
- 1.
Which battle is considered the turning point of the American Civil War?
ABattle of VicksburgBBattle of Bull RunCBattle of GettysburgDBattle of Antietam - 2.
What document did President Lincoln issue on January 1, 1863, freeing enslaved people in Confederate states?
AEmancipation ProclamationBMissouri CompromiseCGettysburg AddressD13th Amendment - 3.
Where was the first shot of the Civil War fired in April 1861?
AFort SumterBHarper's FerryCFort McHenryDManassas - 4.
Who was the President of the Confederate States of America?
AStonewall JacksonBAlexander StephensCRobert E. LeeDJefferson Davis - 5.
Which Union general's 'March to the Sea' devastated Georgia in 1864?
AGeorge McClellanBPhilip SheridanCWilliam Tecumseh ShermanDUlysses S. Grant - 6.
Where did Robert E. Lee surrender to Ulysses S. Grant, effectively ending the Civil War?
AGettysburg, PennsylvaniaBRichmond, VirginiaCWashington, D.C.DAppomattox Court House - 7.
Which battle was the bloodiest single-day battle in American history?
ABattle of AntietamBBattle of GettysburgCBattle of ShilohDBattle of Fredericksburg - 8.
Which Confederate general was accidentally shot by his own troops at the Battle of Chancellorsville?
AStonewall JacksonBA.P. HillCJames LongstreetDJ.E.B. Stuart - 9.
What famous speech did Lincoln deliver at the dedication of a military cemetery in 1863?
AEmancipation ProclamationBSecond Inaugural AddressCCooper Union AddressDGettysburg Address - 10.
Which ironclad warships fought the first battle between armored ships in 1862?
AUSS Monitor and CSS VirginiaBUSS Hartford and CSS TennesseeCUSS Kearsarge and CSS AlabamaDUSS Constitution and HMS Guerriere - 11.
Where was Abraham Lincoln assassinated?
AThe White HouseBLincoln MemorialCFord's TheatreDCapitol Building - 12.
Which amendment to the Constitution formally abolished slavery?
A15th AmendmentB13th AmendmentC14th AmendmentD12th Amendment - 13.
What was the name of the 54th Massachusetts Infantry, one of the first African American regiments?
AUnited States Colored TroopsBBuffalo SoldiersCHarlem HellfightersD54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry - 14.
Which Union victory in 1863 gave the North control of the Mississippi River?
ABattle of MemphisBBattle of New OrleansCBattle of ShilohDSiege of Vicksburg - 15.
How many states seceded from the Union to form the Confederacy?
A15B13C11D9
Answer Key
The Battle of Gettysburg (July 1-3, 1863) was a decisive Union victory that ended Confederate General Lee's invasion of the North.
The Emancipation Proclamation declared all enslaved people in Confederate territory to be free, transforming the war into a fight for freedom.
Confederate forces fired on Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina on April 12, 1861, beginning the American Civil War.
Jefferson Davis served as the President of the Confederate States of America from 1861 until the end of the war in 1865.
General William Tecumseh Sherman led his famous March to the Sea from Atlanta to Savannah in November-December 1864, destroying Confederate resources.
Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia on April 9, 1865, effectively ending the American Civil War.
The Battle of Antietam (Sharpsburg) on September 17, 1862, resulted in approximately 23,000 casualties, making it the bloodiest single day in American military history.
General Thomas 'Stonewall' Jackson was accidentally shot by Confederate soldiers at Chancellorsville in May 1863 and died eight days later.
Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address on November 19, 1863, a brief but powerful speech redefining the war as a struggle for equality.
The USS Monitor and CSS Virginia (formerly USS Merrimack) fought at Hampton Roads on March 9, 1862, the first battle between ironclad warships.
President Lincoln was shot by John Wilkes Booth at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C. on April 14, 1865, and died the following morning.
The 13th Amendment, ratified on December 6, 1865, formally abolished slavery throughout the United States.
The 54th Massachusetts was one of the first African American regiments in the Union Army, famous for their courageous assault on Fort Wagner in July 1863.
The Siege of Vicksburg ended on July 4, 1863, giving the Union complete control of the Mississippi River and splitting the Confederacy in two.
Eleven states seceded from the Union between December 1860 and June 1861 to form the Confederate States of America.