More Americans died in this war than all other wars combined—more than 600,000 soldiers.

From the first shots at Fort Sumter to the South’s surrender at Appomattox, young readers move chronologically through 20 crucial battles, covering all four years of the Civil War. They’ll discover which strategies, tactics, and weapons were used, and which military leaders won victory—or suffered defeat.

• Battle of the Ironclads: One of America’s deadliest naval battles, right off the coast of Virginia
• Vicksburg: Ulysses S. Grant bombs, terrorizes, and starves a southern city into surrender.
• Antietam: Robert E. Lee invades the North, and pays a terrible price
• Petersburg: The North literally blows a hole in the South—and still loses the battle.
• Why was Robert E. Lee considered a military genius, even after he lost the war?
• What made Ulysses S. Grant such a powerful general—and a difficult man?
• Sherman’s March—who, what, when, where, and why.