Confederate States of America

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Stone Mountain, Georgia

Confederate States of America

Confederate Battle Flag

George Washington; slavery

reward for returning a fugitive slave

Auction of enslaved persons

Missouri Compromise

United States: Missouri Compromise, Compromise of 1850, and Kansas-Nebraska Act

Martin Van Buren: 1848 U.S. presidential campaign poster

For Students

"The Fifteenth Amendment. Celebrated May 19th, 1870" color lithograph created by Thomas Kelly, 1870. (Reconstruction) At center, a depiction of a parade in celebration of the passing of the 15th Amendment. Framing it are portraits and vignettes...

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Surrender of General Robert E. Lee (right) at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, April 9, 1865, to end the American Civil War (Ulysses S. Grant on the left); hand-colored lithograph by Currier and Ives, c. 1865. Ulysses Grant, Robert E Lee.

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Confederate States of America: Facts & Related Content

Written and fact-checked by The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

The Confederate States of America was the government of 11 Southern states that seceded from the Union in 1860–61, carrying on all the affairs of a separate government and conducting a major war (the American Civil War) until defeated in the spring of 1865.

Facts

Also Known As	Confederacy • C.S.A.
Date	1860 - 1865

Top Questions

How did the Confederate States of America form?

After Abraham Lincoln's election, many states carried out their threats to secede from the United States. By February 1861, seven Southern states had seceded. On February 4, 1861, representatives from South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia and Louisiana met in Montgomery, Alabama (with representatives from Texas arriving later) to form the Confederate States of America.

Photos and Videos

Stone Mountain, Georgia

Confederate States of America

Confederate Battle Flag

George Washington; slavery

reward for returning a fugitive slave

Auction of enslaved persons

Missouri Compromise

United States: Missouri Compromise, Compromise of 1850, and Kansas-Nebraska Act

Martin Van Buren: 1848 U.S. presidential campaign poster

Learn how prisoners of war were treated during the American Civil War

Explore the differences between the Union and the Confederate armies that fought in the American Civil War

Learn about the personal and political life of Jefferson Davis from his great-great-grandson Bertram Hayes-Davis

Learn about North Carolina's contribution to the Confederate causes during the American Civil War

Learn why railroads were so important during the American Civil War

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Topics

slavery Balloon Corps Fort Sumter National Monument secession flag of the Confederate States of America Reconstruction Acts H.L. Hunley United Daughters of the Confederacy Kenner mission Appomattox Court House ancient Egypt East Germany Yugoslavia German Empire Czechoslovakia West Germany Dutch Republic Urartu Chu Katanga

Major Events

Battle of Gettysburg

American Civil War

Stone Mountain (Georgia) carving

Lost Cause

American Civil War: Battle of Gettysburg

Battle of Gettysburg

American Civil War: Second Battle of Bull Run

Second Battle of Bull Run

Battle of Antietam: Confederate dead

Battle of Antietam

African American male suffrage

Reconstruction

ruins of an Atlanta depot

Battle of Atlanta

Emancipation Proclamation

Emancipation Proclamation

Wood engraving depicting the Fort Pillow Massacre.

Fort Pillow Massacre

First Battle of Bull Run

First Battle of Bull Run

Fort Sumter

Battle of Fort Sumter

Nashville, Tennessee

Battle of Nashville

Appomattox Court House surrender

Battle of Appomattox Court House

Battle of Fredericksburg

Battle of Fredericksburg

Early, Jubal A.

Battle of Monocacy

Richmond Bread Riot

Battle of the Monitor and Merrimack

Battle of the Monitor and Merrimack

Grant at Cold Harbor

Battle of Cold Harbor

Vicksburg, Mississippi

Vicksburg Campaign

Storming Fort Wagner

Second Battle of Fort Wagner

Key People

Robert E. Lee

Robert E. Lee

Confederate general

Jefferson Davis

Jefferson Davis

president of Confederate States of America

Nathan Bedford Forrest

Nathan Bedford Forrest

Confederate general

Stonewall Jackson

Stonewall Jackson

Confederate general

Albert Sidney Johnston

Albert Sidney Johnston

Confederate general

Jubal Early

Jubal A. Early

Confederate general

Jeb Stuart

Jeb Stuart

Confederate officer

Wade Hampton

Wade Hampton

Confederate general

Belle Boyd.

Belle Boyd

Confederate spy

William Lowndes Yancey

William Lowndes Yancey

American politician

Robert Augustus Toombs

Robert A. Toombs

American politician

John C. Breckinridge

John C. Breckinridge

vice president of United States

John Singleton Mosby

John Singleton Mosby

Confederate military officer and statesman

Mary Boykin Chesnut

Mary Boykin Chesnut

American writer

Joseph E. Johnston

Joseph E. Johnston

Confederate general

Elizabeth L. Van Lew

American Civil War agent

Matthew Fontaine Maury

Matthew Fontaine Maury

American hydrographer

John Hunt Morgan

John Hunt Morgan

Confederate general

Christopher Memminger

Christopher Memminger

Confederate treasurer

Judah Benjamin

Judah P. Benjamin

American politician

Quiz

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"The Fifteenth Amendment. Celebrated May 19th, 1870" color lithograph created by Thomas Kelly, 1870. (Reconstruction) At center, a depiction of a parade in celebration of the passing of the 15th Amendment. Framing it are portraits and vignettes...

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54th Massachusetts Regiment. "Storming Fort Wagner," by Kurz & Allison, c. 1890. Depicts the assault on the S.C. fort on 7/18/1863. American Civil War, 54th Regiment Massachusetts Infantry, 1st all African-American regiment, black soldiers, black history

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