1860-65

• 1860, 11 southern states tried to secede from the USA
• They formed their own government system called the Confederacy , giving each state same independence but provided a combined military force
• Civil War lasted for 4 years
• President Lincoln issues the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, giving freedom to slaves
• Civil War ended in 1865 , all slaves were formally freed with the passing of 13th Amendment
• Freed 3 and a half million former slaves