Slavery during the American Civil War Slavery during the American Civil War Slavery played the central role during the American Civil War. The primary catalyst for secession was slavery, especially Southern political leaders' resistance to attempts by Northern antislavery political forces to block the expansion of slavery into the western territories. Slave life went through great changes, as the South saw Union Armies take control of broad areas of land. During and before the war, slaves played an active role in their own emancipation, and thousands of slaves escaped from bondage during the war. On January 1, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln announced the Emancipation Proclamation, making
Washington in the American Civil War would be used by the Confederacy and alerted the Navy, which sent the to patrol the waters near Victoria. "The Southern Association" failed to carry out their intentions to outfit a privateer. Washington in the American Civil War The history of Washington in the American Civil War is atypical, as the territory was the most remote from the battlefields of the American Civil War. The territory raised a small number of volunteers for the Union Army, who did not fight against the Confederate States Army but instead maintained defensive positions against possible foreign naval or land attacks. Although the Indian