This book explores the political, historical, and cultural significance of the Civil War, AKA the War Between the States, examining its impact on the civilians and military personnel caught up in it. From the Civil War's outbreak at Fort Sumter, South Carolina in April 1861 until its conclusion at the Appomattox Court House, more than 10,000 battles, engagements and skirmishes were recorded across the length and breadth of America. Undoubtedly the most cataclysmic military struggle of the late nineteenth century, this war spanned four bloody years of fighting in which over 620,000 American soldiers and sailors lost their lives.