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Timeline: Significant Civil War Battles

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For four straight years, Union and Confederate soldiers battled during the bloodiest war in American history. Both sides suffered unprecedented casualties, and the severe lack of infrastructure made accurate accounting of those soldiers near impossible.

By definition, military "casualties" include not only the dead, but also the injured, ill, captured, and missing. To this day, exact numbers are impossible to determine, and scholars dispute even the most well-researched estimates. However, these staggering numbers still offer profound insight into the immense tragedy experienced by the American people throughout the Civil War.

Battle of Fort Sumter
Library of Congress

Interior view of Fort Sumter, 1863
April 12, 1861: Battle of Fort Sumter

Casualties: none


June 30, 1861: Battle of Philippi

Casualties: 30

4 Union
26 Confederate


Ruins of a house in Bull Run, VA, 1862
Library of Congress

Ruins of a house in Bull Run, VA, 1862
July 21, 1861: First Battle of Bull Run/First Battle of Manassas

Casualties: 4,700

2,950 Union
1,750 Confederate


August 28-29, 1861: Battle of Hatteras Inlet Batteries

Casualties: 773

3 Union
770 Confederate


October 21, 1861: Battle of Ball's Bluff

Casualties: 1,070

921 Union
149 Confederate


November 7, 1861: Battle of Belmont

Casualties: 1,464

498 Union
966 Confederate


January 19, 1862: Battle of Mill Springs

Casualties: 671

232 Union
439 Confederate


February 6, 1862: Battle of Fort Henry

Casualties: 119

40 Union
79 Confederate


February 11, 1862: Battle of Fort Donelson

Casualties: 17,398

2,331 Union
15,067 Confederate


March 8, 1862: Battle of Hampton Roads

Casualties: 433

409 Union
24 Confederate


March 23, 1862: First Battle of Kernstown

Casualties: 1,308

590 Union
718 Confederate


Soldiers with 13-inch mortars
Library of Congress

Soldiers with 13-inch mortars
April 5, 1862: Siege of Yorktown

Casualties: 320


April 6-7, 1862: Battle of Shiloh

Casualties: 23,741

13,047 Union
10,694 Confederate


Fort Pulaski, April 1862
Library of Congress

Fort Pulaski, April 1862
April 10-11, 1862: Battle of Fort Pulaski

Casualties: 365

1 Union
364 Confederate


April 25, 1862: Capture of New Orleans

Casualties: None


House next to the Seven Pines battlefield
Library of Congress

House next to the Seven Pines battlefield
May 31, 1862: Battle of Seven Pines

Casualties: 13,736

5,739 Union
7,997 Confederate


June 6, 1862: Battle of Memphis

Casualties: 181

1 Union
180 Confederate


June 26, 1862: Battle of Beaver Dam Creek

Casualties: 1,700

400 Union
1,300 Confederate


Unburied dead at Gaines' Mill
Library of Congress

Unburied dead at Gaines' Mill
June 27, 1862: Battle of Gaines' Mill

Casualties: 15,500

6,800 Union
8,700 Confederate


June 30, 1862: Battle of Glendale

Casualties: Undetermined


July 1, 1862: Battle of Malvern Hill

Casualties: 8,500


Cannonball holes in a house near the battlefield, August 1862
Library of Congress

Cannonball holes in a house near the battlefield, August 1862
August 9, 1862: Battle of Cedar Mountain

Casualties: 2,707

1,400 Union
1,307 Confederate


C company, 41st NY Infantry, before the battle of Manassas
Library of Congress

C company, 41st NY Infantry, before the battle of Manassas
August 28-30, 1862: Second Battle of Bull Run/Second Battle of Manassas

Casualties: 22,180

13,830 Union
8,350 Confederate


September 1, 1862: Battle of Chantilly

Casualties: 2,100

1,300 Union
800 Confederate


September 14, 1862: Battle of South Mountain

Casualties: 4,500


President Lincoln and General McClellan in Antietam, MD. October 3, 1862
Library of Congress

President Lincoln and General McClellan in Antietam, MD, October 3, 1862
September 17, 1862: Battle of Antietam

Casualties: 23,100


October 8, 1862: Battle of Perryville

Casualties: 7,407

4,211 Union
3,196 Confederate


December 13, 1862: Battle of Fredericksburg

Casualties: 17,929

13,353 Union
4,576 Confederate


December 31, 1862 - January 2, 1863: Battle of Stones River

Casualties: 23,515

13,249 Union
10,266 Confederate


January 9-11, 1863: Battle of Arkansas Post

Casualties: 6,547

1,047 Union
5,500 Confederate


April 30 - May 1, 1863: Battle of Chancellorsville

Casualties: Unknown


May 12, 1863: Battle of Raymond

Casualties: 956

442 Union
514 Confederate


May 18 - July 4, 1863: Siege of Vicksburg

Casualties: 19,233

10,142 Union
9,091 Confederate


May 21 - July 9, 1863: Siege of Port Hudson

Casualties: 12,208

5,000 Union
7,208 Confederate


June 9, 1863: Battle of Brandy Station

Casualties: 1,090


Confederate bodies ready for burial after Gettysburg. July 5, 1863
Library of Congress

Confederate bodies ready for burial after Gettysburg, July 5, 1863
July 1-3, 1863: Battle of Gettysburg

Casualties: 51,000

23,000 Union
28,000 Confederate


July 11, 1863: First Battle of Fort Wagner

Casualties: 351

339 Union
12 Confederate


July 18, 1863: Second Battle of Fort Wagner

Casualties: 1,689

1,515 Union
174 Confederate


September 19-20, 1863: Battle of Chickamauga

Casualties: 34,624

16,170 Union
18,454 Confederate


November 23-25, 1863: Battle of Chattanooga

Casualties: 12,485

5,815 Union
6,670 Confederate


May 5-7, 1864: Battle of the Wilderness

Casualties: 29,800

18,400 Union
11,400 Confederate


Confederate soldier after Ewell's Attack. May 19, 1864
Library of Congress

Confederate soldier after Ewell's Attack, May 19, 1864
May 8-21, 1864: Battle of Spotsylvania Courthouse

Casualties: 30,000

18,000 Union
12,000 Confederate


May 13, 1864: Battle of Resaca

Casualties: 5,547

2,747 Union
2,800 Confederate


May 15, 1864: Battle of New Market

Casualties: 1,380

840 Union
540 Confederate


Major General A.E. Burnside and staff after Cold Harbor
Library of Congress

Major General A.E. Burnside and staff after Cold Harbor
May 31 - June 12, 1864: Battle of Cold Harbor

Casualties: 15,500

13,000 Union
2,500 Confederate


Federal picket post shortly before the battle
Library of Congress

Federal picket post shortly before the battle
July 22, 1864: Battle of Atlanta

Casualties: 12,140

3,641 Union
8,499 Confederate


July 24, 1864: Second Battle of Kernstown

Casualties: 1,800

1,200 Union
600 Confederate


July 30, 1864: Battle of the Crater

Casualties: 5,300


August 5, 1864: Battle of Mobile Bay

Casualties: 1,822

322 Union
1,500 Confederate


August 18-21, 1864: Battle of Globe Tavern

Casualties: 5,879

4,279 Union
1,600 Confederate


August 31 - September 1, 1864: Battle of Jonesborough

Casualties: 3,149

1,149 Union
2,000 Confederate


October 19, 1864: Battle of Cedar Creek

Casualties: 8,575

5,665 Union
2,910 Confederate


Sherman's troops removing ammunition from Ft. McAllister
Library of Congress

Sherman's troops removing ammunition from Ft. McAllister
November - December, 1864: Sherman's March to the Sea

Casualties: Unknown


November 29, 1864: Battle of Spring Hill

Casualties: Unknown


November 30, 1864: Battle of Franklin

Casualties: 8,587

2,326 Union
6,261 Confederate


The wreckage of the Battle of Nashville, December 16, 1864
Library of Congress

The wreckage of the Battle of Nashville, December 16, 1864
December 15-16, 1864: Battle of Nashville

Casualties: 6,602

2,140 Union
4,462 Confederate


Gun with the muzzle shot away. January 1865
Library of Congress

Gun with the muzzle shot away. January 1865
January 13-15, 1865: Second Battle of Fort Fisher

Casualties: 2,000


March 19-21, 1865: Battle of Bentonville

Casualties: 4,738

1,646 Union
3,092 Confederate


April 1, 1865: Battle of Five Forks

Casualties: 3,780

830 Union
2,950 Confederate


April 6, 1865: Battle of Sailor's Creek

Casualties: 9,980


The Appomattox Court House, McLean House, April 1865
Library of Congress

The Appomattox Court House, McLean House, 1865
April 9, 1865: Surrender at Appomattox Court House

Casualties: 700

27,805 Confederate soldiers paroled


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