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The Baltimore riot of 1861 was an incident that took place on April 19, 1861 in Baltimore, Maryland between Confederate sympathisers and infantrymen of the United States Army. It is regarded by historians as the first bloodshed of the American Civil War.1 Causes of the riot
On April 12, one week prior to the riot, the battle of Fort Sumter started, signalling the beginning of the American Civil War. At the time, Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Arkansas were supportive of the Confederacy but were not sure about seceding from the U.S. In addition, four " border statesThe term "Border states" (in the United States) can refer to the following: : Border states (Civil War) : International Border states In a European context, the term Border states policy and Border states in a specific sense, refer to attempts during the" ( MissouriMissouri named after the Missouri Siouan Indian tribe meaning "canoe", is a Midwestern state of the United States with Jefferson City as its capital. The state's nickname is the State the U. Post Office abbreviation for Missouri is MO and the state public, DelawareDelaware is a state of the United States. It is known as the "First State" because it was the first of the 13 colonies to ratify the United States Constitution. Ratification occurred on December 7, 1787. History Europeans first settled in a Dutch trading, Maryland, and KentuckyCommonwealth of Kentucky ( In Detail) (Full size) State nickname: Bluegrass State Other U. States Capital Frankfort Largest City Louisville Governor Ernie Fletcher Area Total Land Water % water Ranked 37th 104,749 kmē 102,989 kmē 1,760 kmē 1. 7% Populatio) were pro-slavery, pro-Confederate, but were very uneasy about the idea of incurring the wrath of the American military. However, when Fort SumterFort Sumter located in Charleston, South Carolina harbor, was named after General Thomas Sumter. However, the fort is perhaps best known as the site where, according to tradition, the first shots of the United States Civil War were fired. In fact, Souther fell on April 13April 13 is the 103rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (104th in leap years). There are 262 days remaining. It is also the Ides of April. Events 1055 Victor II is consecrated pope 1111 Henry V is crowned Holy Roman Emperor 1180 Frederick Barbaros without a single man lost, the Virginia legislatureThe Virginia General Assembly is the state legislature of the U. state of Virginia. Its existence dates from the establishment of the House of Burgesses at Jamestown in 1619. It became the General Assembly in 1776 with the ratification of the Virginia Con took up a measure on secession. After little debate, the measure passed on April 17. The other southern states waited to see what would happen, as the secession of Virginia was important because of the state's industrial value. Marylanders, who had been supportive of secession ever since John C. Calhoun spoke of " nullification", agitated to join Virginia in leaving the Union. Their discontent increased in the days afterward and peaked on April 19.
2 April 19, 1861
On April 19, the Union's Sixth Massachusetts Regiment was travelling south to Washington, D.C. through Baltimore. However, they had to travel by horse drawn cart, as the rail lines they were using did not pass through the city and going around would have taken longer. As they travelled from one end of the city to the other (where the train station was), their convoy began drawing a crowd of people who began heckling the soldiers. As they travelled further, the crowd grew larger and began blocking the route. When it became apparent that they could travel by horse no further, the troops got out of the carts and began marching through the city. However, the crowd, which had now become an unruly mob, followed the soldiers, breaking store windows and causing damage until they finally blocked off the soldiers' way through the city. The mob began throwing stones and bricks at the troops, who were inexperienced and did not know how to handle the situation. Panicked by the situation confronting them, several soldiers fired into the mob, and chaos immediately ensued as a giant brawl began between soldiers running towards the train station, the violent mob, and the police who tried to suppress the violence. In the end, the soldiers got to the train station, and the police were able to block the crowd from them. Four soldiers and twelve civilians were killed, and dozens were injured. The soldiers had left behind much of their equipment, including their marching band.
