Civil War Week By Week: 2. Battling Baltimore (April 19th - 25th)

Things start to get serious. Casualties happen and they are actually intended this time. Don't know if that makes it better.

Script:
This week the main characters of the Civil War are taking place and we can start to see how it will play out. What is ones plan for war well luckily the north has an answer
First, On the 19th President Lincon will call for a blockade that will later be known as the anaconda plan. I will go into more depth when it is extended to North Carolina and Virginia next week. More excitingly this week a riot in Baltimore leads to the first on purpose deaths of the war. Maryland is a slave state but is crucial for the Union to be kept in the Union. With Virginia's secession if Maryland succeeds the capital will be surrounded and the war quickly over. The mayor of Baltimore, the most populous city in Maryland, is of southern sympathy along with a great portion of the city. And Baltimore, a southern leaning city is already angry at Lincoln, even before his call for volunteers, now their livid. The mayor of Baltimore tried to cool the flames but to no avail. On the 18th some Philadelphia volunteers march out of Baltimore while being harassed through in a nonviolent way. That means when the 6th Massachusetts is being delayed the people of Baltimore will show what they think of the Northern soldiers. All routes were being blocked by the southern sympathizers who had formed a mob. The mob started throwing bricks and firing pistols, prompting the soldiers, without orders, to open fire. After this a brawl of confusion started, and in this brawl four union soldiers will be killed with 12 southern sympathizers also dying. Baltimore’s police would spend the next couple days to control the mob but their violence turned against civilians. Many republicans moved out of baltimore. On this day in response to the brawl Union generals Robert Patterson and Benjamin Franklin Butler tried to find a peaceful way through the state. Also on this day Abrham Linoln calls for the blockade of all major ports belonging to the confederacy.
On April 21st the state militia of North Carolina took control of the mint of Charlotte. This is interesting because North Carolina hasn’t actually left the Union yet. Further south on this day General Earl Van Dorn takes control of the Confederate forces in Texas. This won’t be his first time fighting since he is a veteran of the Mexican-American and Indian wars.
The next day Simon Camermon Secretary of War asks Arkansas Governor Henry Rector for a regiment of 800 men. Governor Henry Rector being in a slave state denies this request, Arkansas will be important being on the left of the Mississippi River. Just to remind you Arkansas hasn’t left the Union yet. In fact it is this request that some speculate pushes Arkansas to join the confederacy.
On the 23rd Arkansas state troopers under the command of Solon Borland, attack and capture Fort Smith. Though this results in zero casualties. More interestingly Robert E. Lee, a decorated veteran is put in charge of Confederate forces in Virginia. This is after he turned down command of the U.S army because of his loyalty to his state.
On the 25th Governor Isham Harris of Tennessee recommended the state to join the confederacy. He calls the president a tyrant and it appears his message got across because shortly after his speech ended Tennessee though not leaving the union allies with the confederacy. The reason they don’t leave is because in February they had already tried but failed due to the efforts of East Tennessee, a strongly Pro-Union party. This is after denying the request for union soldiers I talked about last week.
Things are speeding up and taking place but next week will be a huge slow down. See you next time.