The Civil War to WWI Quiz

Black Americans made up about 10% of Union troops, but they were restricted to segregated regiments and earned less pay than their white counterparts. They also weren't permitted to hold positions of authority.

On April 12, 1861, Confederate leaders commanded an attack at Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina, just before sunrise. The fort sparked collision between the Union and Confederacy after the state seceded in the months prior. Both sides wanted to seize it.

For a short time, the RMS Lusitania was the world's largest passenger ship. and held the title of the fastest Atlantic crossing—that is, until the German U-boat torpedoed it off the southern coast of Ireland. More than 1,000 people drowned in the incident, which served to accelerate the U.S. entry of the war.

Years of battle between Americans left somewhere between 620,000 to 750,000 troops dead during the Civil War, which is more than the total of all U.S. military deaths in every other war combined. By comparison, about 117,000 Americans died in World War I.

Near the start of the war, British author H.G. Wells called World War I "The war to end all wars," and the phrase quickly caught on. Woodrow Wilson even used it once. Of course, it was not the war to end all wars, and now the phrase is used mostly sarcastically.

On October 16, John Brown recruited 22 armed slaves to attempt to take over the U.S. arsenal at Harpers Ferry. While Brown asked abolitionist movement leaders Harriet Tubman and Frederick Douglass to join his raid, neither did. His team was ultimately defeated by U.S. Marines.

Also called the First Battle of Manassas, the Confederates won the first major event of the war on July 21, 1861 in the north of Prince William County, Virginia. Both sides had ill-equipped, poorly-trained troops, but the Union ultimately retreated.

The battle between these two ships on March 8 and 9, 1862 marked the first between two ironclad navy vessels in world history. Although neither ship sank, both sides attempted to claim victory afterward.

John J. Pershing is most famous for serving as the commander of the American Expeditionary Forces from 1917 to 1918. He staunchly believed in the Woodrow Wilson's wish for the U.S. to fight under a unified army, and was nicknamed "Black Jack" by troops for his strict, rigid approach.

After the war, the controversial Paris Peace Conference and the Treaty of Versailles took place in Versailles. The treaty stipulated the planned creation of the League of Nations and other measures, including strict punishments against Germany.

The Battle of Antietam took place during the U.S. Civil War. The Battle of Amiens, First Battle of the Marne and the Battle of the Somme were all central to World War I.

After South Carolina, Mississippi seceded from the Union on January 9, 1861. Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Texas, Virginia, Arkansas, North Carolina and Tennessee would soon follow suit.

On June 28, 1914, Serbian terrorists shot and killed Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg in Sarajevo, Bosnia. The assassins wanted to take down Austria-Hungary's South Slavic provinces in order to combine them with Yugoslavia. The event ultimately led to an angry Austria-Hungary declaring war on Serbia with Germany's support on July 28 of the same year.

In 1857, the Supreme Court stripped African Americans, whether free or in slavery, of their right to citizenship. The Court also deemed slaveowners' rights as constitutionally protected by the Fifth Amendment and that Congress lacked the power to ban slavery.

After four years of fighting, the Civil War concluded on May 9, 1865 at the Battle of Appomattox Court House with a Union victory. The Confederacy crumbled and four million African American slaves were freed.

Pickett's Charge marked the end of the Battle of Gettysburg, which took place from July 1 to July 3, 1863. The Charge involved an assault of about 15,000 Confederate soldiers on Union Major General George Meade's roughly 6,500 troops. The poorly planned canon attack led to over 6,000 Confederate deaths.

On January 31, 1865, Congress passed the 13th Amendment of the United States, which formally granted slaves emancipation. The motion outlawed both slavery and "involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted."

French, British, Australian, New Zealand and Indian troops landed on the Gallipoli peninsula in attempt to coerce Turkey out of the war. The Allies hoped to provoke Constantinople in order to forge a path to Russia. The effort resulted in a stalemate and was abandoned a year later.

The the U.K., Italy and France fought together as Allied Powers during World War I; the U.S. then joined in 1917 as an Associated Power. Although there were representatives from over two dozen nations at the Treaty of Versailles, what was known as the "Big Four" largely dominated the proceedings.

The Dutch exotic dancer Margaretha Geertruida "Margreet" MacLeod, more commonly known as Mata Hari, was convicted of being a spy for Germany in 1917. A French firing squad killed her in response to accusals that she was a double agent.

The five-month battle that unfolded between the Germans against the British and French armies from From July 1 to November 18, 1916, became one of the war's bloodiest. The British employed a tank against the Germans, a novel act that would soon lead to the demise of trench warfare.

In January 1917, German foreign secretary Arthur Zimmerman sent a coded message to Mexico's German ambassador proposing an alliance. However, the British intercepted and decrypted the message and revealed the content to the U.S. This event ultimately compelled the Americans to enter the war.

In 1915, the two groups formed the Australia and New Zealand Army Corps in Egypt. The corps disbanded in 1917 when the Australians built their own military unit.

While estimates vary, experts think that about 18 million people died in World War I, including about 7 million civilians. It remains one of the bloodiest wars in history. Still, World War II remains the most deadly with an estimated 70 million casualties.

Lincoln gave the famous speech at the Soldier's National Cemetery of Gettysburg, where Union soldiers who died in the Battle of Gettysburg were buried. The speech is commemorated in particular for Lincoln's assertion of the U.S. possessing "a government of the people, by the people, for the people."

Although the conflict spanned far and wide, Spain managed to remain neutral throughout the war. The Spanish military dictator Francisco Franco did permit volunteers to join the German army if they agreed to combat Bolshevism and not oppose Western allies.

On September 17, 1862, the Battle of Antietam resulted in 22,717 dead and wounded persons. The combat between Confederate General Robert E. Lee of the Army of North Virginia and Union General George B. McClellan's Army of the Potomac remains the deadliest in U.S. history.

In March 1915, Churchill coordinated a naval attack with British and French forces in attempt to seize the Dardanelles Straits from Turkish forces. The disorganized effort ultimately failed, which tarnished Churchill's reputation.

Maneuver warfare involves the use of abrupt movement to shock and confuse the enemy, thereby impeding their decision-making abilities. It is a common tactic still utilized in wars today.

On August 1, 1914, Germany declared war on Russia, partly in response to the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria. Soon after, Germany would also declare war on France and invade Belgium.

On August 4, 1914, the German military invaded Belgium. Prior to the invasion, the Belgian government maintained that if war arrived it would hold its longstanding neutrality. However, Germany's fierce attack forced Belgium to mobilize.

In May 1916, Sir Mark Sykes and Francois Georges-Picot created the Sykes-Picot Agreement, which would grant Britain control over areas in Jordan, modern Israel and southern Iraq and France control over Syria, Lebanon, northern Iraq and modern southeast Turkey. Much to the embarrassment of the two nations, Russia's government published the details of the plan to the world.

On May 20, 1882, Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy formed the Triple Alliance; the nations then renewed the agreement regularly until 1915 Italy took part in the Treaty of London. Italy then sided with the Allied Powers during the war (rather than the Central Powers of Germany and Austria-Hungary).

On August 31, 1907, France, Britain, and Russia formed an alliance that likely contributed to their decision to enter the war as Allied Powers. The agreement was named after the French word entente, which means friendship and understanding.

On June 12, 1917, King Constantine of Greece, who advocated for neutrality in World War I, abdicated his throne. Britain, France and those within Greece, including Prime Minister Eleutherios Venizelos, pressured him to enter the war which ultimately lead to his renunciation of his title.