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The '''Confederate States of America''' (informally, the ''Confederacy'') was a [[conservative]] government created from an alliance of eleven southern states which had seceded from the [[United States]] between December 1860 and April 1861.  The [[American Civil War]] that was begun by the Confederate shelling of Fort Sumter proved disastrous; four years of savage fighting ended with the fledgling government defeated and dissolved, and left the southern states a financial and industrial wreck.  The main reason for secession was to preserve slavery—but all the slaves were emancipated with no compensation to the owners. After the war, the states were later readmitted during [[Reconstruction]].

The '''Confederate States of America''' (informally, the ''Confederacy'') was a government created from an alliance of eleven southern states which had seceded from the [[United States]] between December 1860 and April 1861.  The [[American Civil War]] that was begun by the Confederate shelling of Fort Sumter proved disastrous; four years of savage fighting ended with the fledgling government defeated and dissolved, and left the southern states a financial and industrial wreck.  The main reason for secession was to preserve slavery—but all the slaves were emancipated with no compensation to the owners. After the war, the states were later readmitted during [[Reconstruction]].

For the social, political, economic and diplomatic history see [[American Civil War homefront]].

For the social, political, economic and diplomatic history see [[American Civil War homefront]].