---
title: "American Civil War Ends"
year: 1865
country: "United States"
canonical: "https://recap.at/1865/lee-surrenders-appomattox"
slug: "lee-surrenders-appomattox"
recapType: "global_event"
startDate: "1865-01-01"
---

# American Civil War Ends

> American Civil War Ends

The American Civil War ended in April 1865 when Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered to Union General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia. The four-year conflict killed roughly 620,000 soldiers and destroyed the institution of slavery, fundamentally reshaping the political and social order of the United States.

## Summary

During the American Civil War, sexual behavior, gender roles, and attitudes were affected by the conflict, especially by the absence of menfolk at home and the emergence of new roles for women such as nursing. Clothing adapted to these new roles, becoming more practical and functional as women took on additional responsibilities. The advent of photography and easier media distribution, for example, allowed for greater access to sexual material for the common soldier, while the changes in women's clothing reflected broader societal adjustments to the war's demands.

## Key facts

- **Estimated total deaths**: 620,000 soldiers
- **Duration of conflict**: 4 years, April 1861 to April 1865
- **Surrender location**: Appomattox Court House, Virginia
- **Surrender date**: April 9, 1865
- **Union general accepting surrender**: Ulysses S. Grant
- **Confederate general surrendering**: Robert E. Lee
- **States that seceded**: 11 Confederate states
- **13th Amendment ratified**: December 18, 1865

## Timeline

- **1861-04-12** - Fort Sumter attacked
  Confederate forces fire on Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor, beginning the American Civil War.
- **1862-09-22** - Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation
  President Abraham Lincoln issues the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, declaring slaves in rebellious states will be freed.
- **1863-01-01** - Emancipation Proclamation takes effect
  Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation officially frees enslaved people in Confederate states.
- **1863-07-03** - Battle of Gettysburg ends
  The three-day Battle of Gettysburg concludes with a Union victory, marking a turning point in the war.
- **1864-11-08** - Lincoln re-elected
  Abraham Lincoln defeats General George B. McClellan in the presidential election, securing continued Union war effort.
- **1865-03-04** - Lincoln's second inaugural address
  Lincoln delivers his second inaugural address, calling for reconciliation: 'With malice toward none, with charity for all.'
- **1865-04-09** - Lee surrenders at Appomattox
  Robert E. Lee surrenders the Army of Northern Virginia to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House, effectively ending the Civil War.
- **1865-04-14** - Lincoln assassinated
  John Wilkes Booth shoots President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre; Lincoln dies the following morning.
- **1865-12-18** - 13th Amendment ratified
  The 13th Amendment, abolishing slavery throughout the United States, is ratified and becomes part of the Constitution.

## Consequences

- **1865 - 13th Amendment abolishes slavery**: Ratified December 18, 1865, the amendment permanently ended slavery throughout the United States and its territories, though it included an exception for punishment of crime
- **1867 - Reconstruction Acts reshape Southern governance**: Congress imposed military occupation and required Southern states to ratify the 14th Amendment, establishing Black male suffrage and establishing provisional military governments in ten Southern states
- **1868 - 14th Amendment grants citizenship and equal protection**: Ratified July 9, 1868, the amendment granted citizenship to formerly enslaved people and established equal protection under the law, though enforcement remained contested for generations
- **1869 - Transcontinental Railroad completed**: Central Pacific and Union Pacific railroads met at Promontory Summit on May 10, 1869, connecting East and West coasts and accelerating westward industrial expansion enabled by Union victory
- **1870 - 15th Amendment prohibits race-based voting discrimination**: Ratified February 3, 1870, the amendment prohibited states from denying voting rights based on race, though Southern states implemented literacy tests and poll taxes to circumvent it
- **1876 - Jim Crow era solidifies racial segregation**: With Reconstruction's end following the Compromise of 1877, Southern states rapidly enacted segregation laws, effectively nullifying many postwar civil rights gains for the next century

## Then vs now

- **Percentage of U.S. population enslaved**: 1860: ~13% → 2024: <0.01% - Legal slavery abolished by 13th Amendment in 1865
- **Women in U.S. workforce**: 1865: ~15% → 2023: 47% - Civil War accelerated female labor force participation
- **U.S. military casualties**: 1865: ~620,000 → 2024: No comparable conflict - Civil War deadliest American conflict by far
- **U.S. GDP as percentage of world GDP**: 1865: ~20% → 2023: ~26% - Industrial capacity expanded dramatically post-war

## Impact

The Civil War's conclusion abolished slavery across the United States and established federal authority over the states, but left the country fractured and facing the immense challenge of Reconstruction. The war's end triggered massive demographic shifts, economic reorganization, and a century-long struggle over civil rights that would define American politics.

## Sources

- [American Civil War and women](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gender_issues_in_the_American_Civil_War) - Wikipedia

---
Canonical: https://recap.at/1865/lee-surrenders-appomattox