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The Civil War
McClellan Takes Command
Five days after the disaster at Bull Run, 34-year-old George McClellan took command of the demoralized Union forces around Washington. He drilled 100,000 volunteers into the Army of the Potomac, and the press hailed him as the Young Napoleon. With Lincoln, he planned a war along a thousand-mile front. "I can do it all," McClellan said. But he did nothing. From Ken Burns's The Civil War.
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2:14:38
Richmond falls to Grant's army, Lee surrenders, Lincoln is assassinated, and the war ends.
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2:18:35
While causalities mount, Lincoln’s re-election chances dim.
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2:34:49
Follow the Battle of Gettysburg, draft riots, and the first African-American troops.
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2:21:25
Lincoln’s war to preserve the Union transforms to a war to emancipate the slaves.
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Find out what caused the war, examining slavery and questions of union and states’ rights.