Confederate States of America

The Confederate States of America was a secessionist confederation of eleven Southern U.S. states that existed from 1861 to 1865 during the American Civil War. Its government defended slavery and fought to establish independence from the United States.

Secession in the United States: The withdrawal of a state or region from a political union. Eleven states used secession to form the Confederacy.
Confederate States Congress: The legislature of the Confederate States of America. It enacted laws, raised revenue, and authorized measures for the war effort.
Emancipation Proclamation: An 1863 order by Abraham Lincoln declaring enslaved people free in areas rebelling against the United States. It recast the Union war effort and weakened the Confederacy's claim to international recognition.
Confederate States of America in 1861: The Confederacy during its founding year, when secession and the opening of war reshaped its territory and government. Four additional states joined after the first seven formed the Confederacy.
Abraham Lincoln's election: The 1860 U.S. presidential election won by Republican Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln's election prompted the first Deep South states to secede.
Confederate States Army: The land forces that fought for the Confederacy during the American Civil War. Its armies carried out the Confederacy's bid for independence on the battlefield.
Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution: The 1865 constitutional amendment that abolished slavery in the United States. Its ratification made permanent the destruction of the slave system the Confederacy had defended.
Fort Sumter: A U.S. military installation in Charleston Harbor attacked by Confederate forces in April 1861. The attack began the Civil War and drew four more states into secession.
Republican Party (United States): A U.S. political party founded in 1854 that opposed the expansion of slavery into western territories. Confederate leaders cited Republican opposition to slavery's expansion as a threat to their political interests.
Confederate States Navy: The naval forces of the Confederate States during the American Civil War. It used commerce raiders, coastal defenses, and innovative vessels against the Union blockade.

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