Written by the World's leading experts, The American Civil War story is the definitive account of this landmark conflict.This special edition of BBC History Magazine commemorates 150 years since the battle of Gettysburg – for many a decisive turning point in the American Civil War.

As well as examining the causes and early stages of the war, The American Civil War Story analyses the tactical phases on which the war was won and lost and discusses the war’s legacy today.

WELCOME

On the eve of war • The American states in 1861

PART ONE THE STORY OF THE WAR • With the Declaration of Independence in 1776, 13 former British colonies became the United States of America, but by the 1830s it was clear the new nation was divided. Adam IP Smith explains how the issue of slavery, above all, created discord between north and south, and forced political tension to rise

WITH GOD ON THEIR SIDE • Slavery divided north and south, but it was only when evangelical politics elevated the issue into a religious crusade that each side saw a moral obligation to go to war, argues David Goldfield

A LIFE IN CHAINS HUNGRY, RAGGED AND ILL-USED • There were four million enslaved people in America when the civil war broke out and their plight was the primary cause of the conflict. What was life like for these descendants of people abducted from their African homes?

WHY PEOPLE FOUGHT: THE SOUTH • Whatever their individual motivations, Confederates were united in their wish to protect a slave-based society, as Richard Carwardine explains

WHY PEOPLE FOUGHT: THE NORTH • Northerners saw American mass democracy as a system of government that had to be defended from secessionists, writes Richard Carwardine

LINCOLN man on a mission • Why was the 16th president ready to engage in a civil war to preserve the Union, asks Richard Carwardine, and what was the fervent ideology that sustained him as he led the country through its moral and military crisis?

The life of Abraham Lincoln

PART TWO THE STORY OF THE WAR • By 1861, the United States had been launched into a vicious civil war that would last four years – the next stage would be characterised by ferocious battles, with heavy defeats and hard-won victories for both sides

WHEN WAR CAME CALLING • Fought largely on southern soil, the civil war deeply affected civilian life in the Confederacy, says David Anderson. It tore families apart, left children destitute, meant new roles for women and brought challenges for black and white alike

DRAWN TO AMERICA Foreign volunteers in the civil war • Armies in both north and south attracted thousands of recruits from overseas, says Amanda Foreman. Whether driven by idealism or attracted by large cash bounties, these immigrants made the fight their own and altered their lives forever

The civil war in photos • That this most bloody of wars still seems vivid and familiar is partly thanks to the intrepid photographers who recorded key events and people – it was arguably the first major conflict to be extensively photographed. Mike Musick explores the significance of nine of the most enduring images

WOMEN & THE CIVIL WAR • Nurses, spies, gravediggers and even, masquerading as men, soldiers, women’s roles during the civil war were far more varied than the fictional Scarlett O’Hara might suggest, says Catherine Clinton

Five women of the American Civil War

The battle of GETTYSBURG • In 1863, Robert E Lee led the Army of Northern Virginia in an invasion of the north. It was, says Brian Holden Reid, the last chance for Confederate victory. But the Union Army of the Potomac was waiting in the town of Gettysburg. It would take over 7,000 fatalities to decide the pivotal battle of the war...

GENERALS IN COMMAND • When conflict tore apart the United States,...