3 4 The American Civil Wararmies of volunteers with no previous
military experience. The North initially kept
the regular units together rather than
parcelling out veterans among volunteer
units, thus limiting the nation's soldiering
expertise to a handful of regiments.
The United States navy began the conflict
with only 42 ships in commission, most of
which patrolled waters far from the
American coast. In the spring of 1861,
when Lincoln declared a blockade of the
Confederacy, only three vessels were
available for immediate service along the
southern coast. Moreover, the United States
navy was a deep-water force with little
expertise in the type of coastal and offshore
operations that would be required to
suppress the southern rebellion. Still, the
navy must be reckoned a northern advantage
because the Confederacy possessed no naval
force at the opening of the conflict and
lacked the industrial base to construct
modern warships.Strengths of the South
The Confederacy also entered the war with
decided advantages. Perhaps the greatest lay
in requisite conditions for victory. The
Confederacy had only to defend itself to
achieve independence, whereas the North
faced the prospect of invading the South,
destroying its capacity to wage war and
crushing the Confederate people's will to
resist. The Confederacy could win by default
if the northern people chose not to expend
the human and material resources necessary
to fight a modern war. If the North did
commit to a major conflict, the Confederacy
could triumph by prolonging the contest to
a point where the northern populace
considered the effort too costly in lives and
national treasure. The American Revolution
offered an obvious example of how the
colonies (with vital assistance from France)
had faced daunting material disadvantages
against Great Britain, but had won by
dragging the war out and exhausting the
British commitment to win.
Defending home soil conveyed other
advantages to the Confederates. Soldiers
protecting hearth and family typically
exhibit higher morale than invaders, and
Confederates often had a better grasp of
topography and local roads. Friendly
civilians provided information to southern
officers, as when a local man helped Thomas
J. 'Stonewall' Jackson find a route that would
allow his command to launch its famous
flank attack at the Battle of Chancellorsville
on 2 May 1863.
Geography promised an overall military
advantage to the South. The Confederacy
spread over more than 750,000 square miles
(1,942,500 square kilometres), much of it
beyond the reach of good roads or rail lines.
A 3,500-mile (5,630km) coastline contained
nearly 200 harbors and navigable river
mouths, and Texas shared an open border
with Mexico - features that rendered a truly
crippling Union blockade nearly impossible.General Pierre Gustave Toutant Beauregard
commanded the bombardment of Fort Sumter and
became an early Confederate military idol. A native
of Louisiana whose first language was French, he
graduated second in the West Point class of 1838
and served with distinction in the war with Mexico.
Somewhat given to grandiose strategic planning, he
held a succession of important commands in various
theaters during the Civil War (Author's collection)