Did the South have a chance to win the Civil War 1861-1865? In his book entitled Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era, author James M. McPherson believes that there were three major turning points that concluded a Union victory. 1. The Northern Victory at the Battle of Antietam/Sharpsburg in 1862. 2. Northern victories at Gettysburg and Vicksburg in July 1863. 3. The re-election of President Lincoln, 1864. Why was the Northern victory at Antietam/ Sharpsburg the first major …showed first 75 words of 509 total…

…showed last 75 words of 509 total…happened. Although the North had more resources than the South, what would have happened if the South would have clearly won at Antietam/Sharpsburg and gained foreign support? What if Lincoln wouldn’t have been re-elected? JMM stresses his point to his readers that the South could have won and these major turning points are what yielded a Union victory. What if the CSA would have won? These are questions that will be left unanswered.