The Civil War



The Civil War is the common American term for the conflict dividing the United States of America into the Union (the North primarily) and the Confederate States of America (the South), springing primarily from longstanding issues over slavery and its advancement into new territories. Also known as the War Between the States, the Civil War lasted from 1861 to 1864, during the presidency of Abraham Lincoln. Other prominent Civil War figures include Ulysses S. Grant, Robert E. Lee, and Harriet Tubman.

The end of the Civil War permanently altered American life: slavery was abolished, the stage was set for changes in civil rights (which would take decades), and elements of the divisional differences and lingering loyalties continue to linger (in public monuments, iconography of the Confederate flag, and in popular culture).In popular memory, the Civil War has often been romanticized in such works as Gone with the Wind, while the novel The Red Badge of Courage took a more realistic approach to the fears and dangers of the battlefield.

Over the years, the Muppets have periodically invoked Civil War imagery, figures, or events. In keeping with a common comedy trope, exaggerated Southern characters are apt to express loyalty to the Confederacy or scorn towards the North.