The Civil War at a Glance The Western Theater, 1861

First posted 1998 Last update Apr 29, 2009

Confederate strategy in the early months is mainly defensive in the face of Federal efforts to retain control of the slave-holding Border States of Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky, and Missouri; to tighten a blockade of the Southern coastline; and to regain control of the Mississippi River from Cairo, Illinois, to the Gulf of Mexico. In Missouri, in a lightning-like campaign, Brig. Gen. Nathaniel Lyon crowds the Missouri State Guard into the southwestern part of the State before being killed and his army defeated at Wilson's Creek in August. The Missouri State Guard moves on to besiege and capture Lexington, but retires into southwestern Missouri when threatened by Federal columns converging from the east and west. A Union army is defeated at Belmont, Mo., early in November - the first test of battle for a rising young Brigadier General named Ulysses S. Grant. Along the Southern coasts, Federals cling to several forts and employ their power afloat to seize and establish additional fortified enclaves at Hatteras Inlet, North Carolina, Port Royal Sound, South Carolina, and Ship Island, Mississippi. These enclaves not only provide bases for blockading squadrons but serve as spring boards for future amphibious operations.

Apr 12 - 13	Bombardment and surrender of Fort Sumter, S.C.
Jul 5	Engagement at Carthage, Mo.
Aug 10	Battle of Wilson's Creek, Mo.
Aug 27 - 29	Battle of Hatteras Inlet, N.C.
Aug 12 - 30	Siege and capture of Lexington, Mo.
Nov 7	Battle of Belmont, Mo.
Nov 7	Battle of Port Royal Sound, S.C.
Dec 9	Engagement at Chusto-Talasah, Indian Territory
Dec 26	Engagement at Chustenahlah, Indian Territory

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