Confederate States of America Facts for Kids

Jefferson Davis, the President of the Confederacy from 1861 to 1865.

The third and final flag of the Confederate States of America.

The states in dark green were the Confederate States of America. Light green shows their territories.

The Confederate States of America (CSA) was a government that existed in the southern United States for a short time during the American Civil War. It was formed in 1861 by seven southern states where slavery was legal. This happened after Abraham Lincoln was elected president of the U.S., but before he officially took office.

These first seven states were South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas. They announced they were leaving (or "seceding") from the United States. After the war started, four more states joined them: Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina. The first capital city of the Confederacy was Montgomery, Alabama. However, for most of the war, the capital was Richmond, Virginia.

How the Confederacy Was Organized
The Civil War Begins
The End of the Confederacy
Was the Confederacy a Country?
Other Names for the Confederacy
Images for kids
See also

How the Confederacy Was Organized

The government of the Confederacy was very similar to the United States government. The Confederate States Constitution was much like the U.S. Constitution. However, it strongly focused on "states' rights." This meant states had more power than the central government. It also clearly protected the practice of owning black people as slaves.

Jefferson Davis was chosen as the president of the Confederacy. Alexander Stephens became the Vice-President. Just like in the United States, the Confederate president had a group of advisors called a cabinet.

The Civil War Begins

The United States government (also known as the Union) did not agree that states could simply leave and form a new country. Because of this, the Union government refused to give up its forts in the states that wanted to secede.

The war began when the CSA attacked one of these forts, Fort Sumter, in Charleston, South Carolina. This conflict is known as the American Civil War. It lasted from 1861 to 1865.

The End of the Confederacy

After some of the deadliest battles in U.S. history, the Union forces slowly took back control of the southern states. As Confederate forces surrendered, the Confederacy fell apart. The Civil War officially ended in 1865.

After the war, slavery was made illegal everywhere in the United States. The process of bringing the Confederate states back into the Union was called the Reconstruction of the United States. This process continued until 1877.

Was the Confederacy a Country?

It is still debated whether the Confederate States of America was ever truly its own country. The Union never officially said that the Confederacy was a real country. Even though companies from Britain and France sold ships and supplies to the Confederacy, no nation officially recognized the CSA as an independent country.

Other Names for the Confederacy

The CSA was also often called "the South," "the Confederacy," or "Dixie."

Images for kids

Evolution of the Confederate States from 1860 to 1870.
Alexander H. Stephens, the Vice President of the Confederacy.
Elias Cornelius Boudinot, a Cherokee leader who supported the Confederacy.
The William T. Sutherlin mansion in Danville, Virginia. This was a temporary home for Jefferson Davis and was called the "Last Capitol of the Confederacy."
A map showing how counties voted on secession in 1860–1861 in the Appalachian region.
A recruitment poster from 1862, encouraging men to join the Confederate army.
Main railroads in the Confederacy in 1861. Different colors show different track widths.
A $10 Confederate note from 1862.
The Richmond bread riot in 1863.
A Confederate memorial tombstone at Natchez City Cemetery in Natchez, Mississippi.
A map of the states and territories claimed by the Confederate States of America.
A Home on the Mississippi, an artwork from 1871.
St. John's Episcopal Church in Montgomery, Alabama. A convention of Southern Churches was held here in 1861.
General Robert E. Lee, who was the General in Chief of the Confederate armies in 1865.
William Lowndes Yancey, a strong supporter of secession from Alabama.
William Henry Gist, the Governor of South Carolina who called the Secessionist Convention.
Gen. Gabriel J. Rains, who led the Conscription Bureau from April 1862 to May 1863.
Gen. Gideon J. Pillow, a military recruiter.
Joseph E. Brown, the governor of Georgia.
Pendleton Murrah, the governor of Texas.
Potters House in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1864.
Downtown Charleston, South Carolina, after the war.
A ruined rail bridge in Petersburg, Virginia, in April 1865.