Battles of the Civil War

The climate in the North (the Union) is colder and more harsh with rocky soil and a short growing season. By contrast, the climate in the South (the Confederacy) is warmer with fertile soil and a longer growing season. The climate in the South suited a cash crop economy, in particular cotton and encouraged the establishment of a labor system based on slavery and large plantations. In the north, the climate did not support substantial plantations, making slavery become obsolete there. The slavery problem emerged directly from differences in geographic conditions which in turn generated political and economic aggravation, so much so that after Lincoln’s election, Southerners felt that their way of life was under attack. Starting with South Carolina in 1860, Southern states began to secede.

An essential attribute of the South’s landscape is its lengthy coastline. Its landscape extends from Virginia around Florida to Texas, and is marked with coves and harbors. The Appalachian Mountains are another characteristic that stand out. The mountains successfully split the Confederacy into two parts: the east and the west. Another striking physical trademark is the Mississippi River, which separates the Confederacy further. The northern strategists were concerned with the length of the southern coastline. They knew it would be vital to keep the South from getting necessary supplies. Most of America’s manufacturing was located in the North, which was a benefit to the Northerns. The Confederacy would have to depend on imports brought by ship to restock their supplies. The Union choose to blockade the South’s entire coastline. Union naval ships guarded the offshore waters, seizing Confederate merchant ships bound for Europe for supplies or returning with them. The blockade, which stretched for over 3,000 miles, became progressively victorious. Initially, the Union navy could not effectively block the mile upon mile of coastline because Confederate ships were too many.

As more and more ships were added to the Union’s navy and lost from the Confederate’s, the blockade grew more productive. The South’s landscape was a key influence on both war strategy and the war’s end result. Practically all the battles of the Civil War were fought on Confederate land. Therefore, the geography of the South held imperative significance to both sides. Much of the war happened in the South. Although, the Confederacy fired the first shots that began the war, the South’s strategy was not an aggressive one. To rebuild the Union, the Northern armies had to conquer and beat the Confederacy. The intention of the Confederacy, on the other hand, was to protect itself until the Union became too worn out to fight. The South did not invade the North because it did not desire any Union territory. The North planned to fight the war on the South’s land because of its properties. Knowing their armies must pervade, the North’s military mentors concocted a plan to separate the South. The South was already physically divided by the Appalachian Mountains and Mississippi River system. Control of both, the mountains and river system, would diverge Southern armies and block supply dispatches. It would also entail the outnumbered Confederate army to fight on two fronts, extending their restricted manpower thin in particular regions. In the West, reign of the Mississippi River and then its extensive tributaries, the Tennessee and Cumberland rivers, would additionally split the South.

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