Confederate States of America Timeline

(February 8, 1861 – May 5, 1865)

The Confederate States of America (CSA) was an unrecognized republic formed in February 1861 by eleven Southern slaveholding states that seceded from the United States. Its existence was defined by the American Civil War, ending with its collapse and dissolution in 1865. More Less

Go to: Timeline | Event List | Key Facts | Directory

Secession and Formation

Publication of Uncle Tom's Cabin intensifies sectional tensions

Mar 20, 1852

Harriet Beecher Stowe's anti-slavery novel became a massive bestseller in the North and enraged the South. It hardened sectional attitudes over slavery, contributing to the polarization that led to secession nearly a decade later.

Image source: Uncle Tom's Cabin

Publication of Uncle Tom's Cabin intensifies sectional tensions

John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry

Oct 16, 1859 - Oct 18, 1859

Abolitionist John Brown attempted to spark a slave uprising by seizing the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia. His capture, trial, and execution made him a martyr in the North and deepened Southern fears of abolitionist violence, accelerating secession sentiment.

Image source: John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry

Election of Abraham Lincoln as president

Nov 6, 1860

Republican Abraham Lincoln won the presidency without carrying a single Deep South state. His platform opposing slavery's expansion convinced Southern leaders that their interests were no longer safe within the Union, triggering immediate moves toward secession.

Image source: 1860 United States presidential election

Election of Abraham Lincoln as president

South Carolina becomes first state to secede

Dec 20, 1860

Following Lincoln's election, a convention in Charleston voted unanimously for secession. South Carolina's departure set off a chain reaction among the slaveholding states of the Lower South.

Image source: South Carolina in the American Civil War

Deep South states secede from the Union

Jan 9, 1861 - Feb 1, 1861

Mississippi (Jan 9), Florida (Jan 10), Alabama (Jan 11), Georgia (Jan 19), Louisiana (Jan 26), and Texas (Feb 1) passed ordinances of secession, dissolving their ties to the United States and moving toward forming a new nation dedicated to protecting slavery.

Image source: Ordinance of Secession

Confederate States of America founded in Montgomery

Feb 8, 1861

Delegates from the seceded states met at Montgomery, Alabama, and adopted a provisional constitution establishing the Confederate States of America, with its government explicitly committed to the protection of chattel slavery.

Image source: Confederate States of America

Upper South states join the Confederacy

Apr 17, 1861 - May 20, 1861

In response to Lincoln's call for troops, Virginia (Apr 17), Arkansas (May 6), North Carolina (May 20), and Tennessee seceded and joined the Confederacy, bringing its population, industry, and most importantly Robert E. Lee into the new nation.

Image source: Virginia in the American Civil War

Politics and Government

Dred Scott decision declares slaves property under Constitution

Mar 6, 1857

The Supreme Court ruled that enslaved people were not citizens and that Congress could not bar slavery from territories. The decision delighted Southern slaveholders and further inflamed Northern opposition to the expansion of slavery.

Image source: Dred Scott v. Sandford

Jefferson Davis elected provisional president

Feb 9, 1861

The Montgomery convention selected Jefferson Davis, former U.S. Senator and Secretary of War from Mississippi, as provisional president, with Alexander Stephens of Georgia as vice president. Davis would lead the Confederacy throughout its existence.

Image source: Jefferson Davis

Jefferson Davis elected provisional president

Permanent Confederate constitution adopted

Mar 11, 1861

The Confederate constitutional convention adopted a permanent constitution closely modeled on the U.S. document but with explicit protections for slavery, stronger states' rights provisions, and restrictions on tariffs and internal improvements.

Image source: Constitution of the Confederate States

Richmond named Confederate capital

May 29, 1861

The Confederate government relocated from Montgomery to Richmond, Virginia, placing the capital just 100 miles from Washington, D.C. Richmond's industrial capacity, including the Tredegar Iron Works, made it vital to the war effort.

Image source: Richmond, Virginia

Emancipation Proclamation takes effect

Jan 1, 1863

Lincoln declared all slaves in rebelling areas 'forever free,' transforming the war into a crusade against slavery, opening the door to Black enlistment in the Union army, and effectively foreclosing any negotiated peace preserving slavery.

Image source: Emancipation Proclamation

Lee appointed general-in-chief; Hampton Roads peace talks fail

Jan 31, 1865 - Feb 3, 1865

Desperate measures marked the Confederacy's final months: Lee was made general-in-chief on January 31, but the February 3 Hampton Roads conference between Davis's envoys and Lincoln collapsed because Lincoln insisted on reunion and emancipation.

Image source: Hampton Roads Conference

Military Campaigns

Confederate attack on Fort Sumter begins the Civil War

Apr 12, 1861 - Apr 13, 1861

After Lincoln announced plans to resupply the federal garrison at Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor, Confederate batteries opened fire. The fort surrendered after two days, prompting Lincoln to call up 75,000 volunteers and beginning four years of civil war.

Image source: Battle of Fort Sumter

Union blockade of Southern ports established

Apr 19, 1861

Lincoln proclaimed a naval blockade of Confederate coasts, part of the Anaconda Plan to strangle Southern trade. Over time the blockade crippled the Confederate economy, cutting off cotton exports and vital imports of weapons and supplies.

Image source: Union blockade

Union blockade of Southern ports established

First Battle of Bull Run

Jul 21, 1861

Near Manassas Junction, Confederate forces under Beauregard and Joseph Johnston routed Union troops, shattering Northern hopes of a quick war. Thomas Jackson earned the nickname 'Stonewall' for his steadfast defensive stand.

Image source: First Battle of Bull Run

Battle of Shiloh

Apr 6, 1862 - Apr 7, 1862

Confederate forces under Albert Sidney Johnston launched a surprise attack at Pittsburg Landing, Tennessee, but Union reinforcements turned the tide. With roughly 23,000 total casualties, Shiloh revealed the war's staggering human cost; Johnston was killed on the first day.

Image source: Battle of Shiloh

Seven Days Battles save Richmond from McClellan

Jun 25, 1862 - Jul 1, 1862

Robert E. Lee, newly commanding the Army of Northern Virginia, aggressively counterattacked George McClellan's Army of the Potomac during the Peninsula Campaign, driving it back from the gates of Richmond and securing the Confederate capital.

Image source: Seven Days Battles

Seven Days Battles save Richmond from McClellan

Second Battle of Bull Run

Aug 28, 1862 - Aug 30, 1862

Lee and Stonewall Jackson decisively defeated John Pope's Union army on the same ground as the first battle, clearing the way for Lee's first invasion of the North.

Image source: Second Battle of Bull Run

Battle of Antietam halts Lee's invasion of Maryland

Sep 17, 1862

The bloodiest single day in American history, Antietam saw McClellan fight Lee to a tactical standstill near Sharpsburg. Lee retreated to Virginia, giving Lincoln the opportunity to issue the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation and deterring European recognition of the Confederacy.

Image source: Battle of Antietam

Battle of Fredericksburg

Dec 11, 1862 - Dec 15, 1862

Lee's army inflicted a lopsided defeat on Ambrose Burnside's Union forces, who made futile assaults against entrenched positions on Marye's Heights behind the city of Fredericksburg, Virginia.

Image source: Battle of Fredericksburg

Battle of Chancellorsville

Apr 30, 1863 - May 6, 1863

Lee achieved his 'perfect battle,' defeating Hooker's larger army through audacious flanking maneuvers, but Stonewall Jackson was mortally wounded by friendly fire, depriving the Confederacy of one of its greatest generals.

Image source: Battle of Chancellorsville

Siege of Vicksburg surrenders to Grant

May 18, 1863 - Jul 4, 1863

Ulysses S. Grant's capture of Vicksburg split the Confederacy along the Mississippi River, fulfilling a key goal of the Anaconda Plan. Combined with Gettysburg the same day, it marked an irreversible turning point against the Confederacy.

Image source: Siege of Vicksburg

Battle of Gettysburg ends Lee's second invasion of the North

Jul 1, 1863 - Jul 3, 1863

Lee's invasion of Pennsylvania culminated in three days of ferocious fighting ending with the repulse of Pickett's Charge. The Army of Northern Virginia suffered irreplaceable casualties and never again mounted a major offensive into Northern territory.

Image source: Battle of Gettysburg

Chickamauga victory and Chattanooga defeat in the West

Sep 19, 1863 - Nov 25, 1863

Braxton Bragg won the Confederacy's last major Western offensive victory at Chickamauga, but Grant's relief of besieged Chattanooga in November drove Bragg's army back into Georgia, opening the gateway to the Deep South.

Image source: Battle of Chickamauga

Chickamauga victory and Chattanooga defeat in the West

Atlanta falls to Sherman's forces

May 7, 1864 - Sep 2, 1864

William Tecumseh Sherman's relentless campaign captured Atlanta, a crucial rail hub and industrial center. The fall of the city devastated Southern morale, bolstered Lincoln's reelection prospects, and set the stage for Sherman's March to the Sea.

Image source: Atlanta campaign

Sherman's March to the Sea devastates Georgia

Nov 15, 1864 - Dec 21, 1864

Sherman led 62,000 troops on a scorched-earth march from Atlanta to Savannah, destroying railroads, crops, and infrastructure. The campaign demonstrated the impotence of Confederate forces in the interior and broke the South's remaining economic capacity to resist.

Image source: Sherman's March to the Sea

Collapse and Aftermath

Fall of Richmond and Lee's retreat westward

Apr 2, 1865 - Apr 3, 1865

Grant's breakthrough at Petersburg forced Lee to abandon Richmond and Petersburg. The Confederate government fled south, and Union troops occupied the burning capital on April 3, signaling the imminent end of the Confederacy.

Image source: Third Battle of Petersburg

Lee surrenders at Appomattox Court House

Apr 9, 1865

Cut off and surrounded, Lee surrendered the Army of Northern Virginia to Grant. Grant's generous terms allowed paroled soldiers to return home, and the surrender effectively ended organized Confederate resistance, though other armies held out briefly.

Image source: Battle of Appomattox Court House

Joseph E. Johnston surrenders to Sherman in North Carolina

Apr 26, 1865

The largest remaining Confederate force, Johnston's army in North Carolina, capitulated to Sherman near Durham Station following the news of Lee's surrender and Lincoln's assassination.

Image source: Battle of Bentonville

Jefferson Davis captured in Georgia

May 10, 1865

Fleeing toward hoped-for escape abroad, President Jefferson Davis was captured by Union cavalry at Irwinville, Georgia. His imprisonment ended any prospect of a government-in-exile and symbolized the definitive collapse of the Confederate state.

Last Confederate forces surrender, Trans-Mississippi dissolved

May 26, 1865 - Jun 23, 1865

General Kirby Smith signed the surrender of the Trans-Mississippi Department on May 26, and the final land force under Cherokee leader Stand Watie surrendered June 23, formally extinguishing all Confederate military resistance.

Image source: Edmund Kirby Smith

Key Facts

The Confederate States of America was formed on February 8, 1861, when seven Southern states seceded from the United States following Abraham Lincoln's election.
Jefferson Davis served as the first and only President of the Confederacy throughout its existence.
Eleven states ultimately joined the Confederacy, with the capital located first in Montgomery, Alabama, then moved to Richmond, Virginia.
The attack on Fort Sumter in April 1861 marked the beginning of the American Civil War between the Union and the Confederacy.
The Confederacy collapsed in April–May 1865 after Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox Court House, effectively ending slavery and the secession movement.

Source

This Confederate States of America timeline was generated with the help of AI, using information found on the internet.

We work hard to keep these timelines accurate, but mistakes do get through. If you spot one, email us at [email protected] and we'll fix it for future visitors.

Want a timeline like this one?

Generate yours with AI or build it from scratch, for free.

Try It for Free