5621–5625 AM · 1861 CE — 1865 CE · world history
The American Civil War and the End of Slavery
The bloodiest war in American history ends with the emancipation of four million people.
Southern states secede to preserve slavery, and the war that follows kills some 600,000 people — more than all other American wars combined. In 1863 Lincoln issues the Emancipation Proclamation, and after victory the Thirteenth Amendment abolishes slavery for good. Real equality would take another century.