The Civil War. Episode 1, 1861--the cause

United States, 1989

TV show
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Episode number 1 of Series “The Civil War”.
In this introductory episode the background of the war is dramatically evoked and the commanders and ordinary soldiers march on stage - along with the diarists and letter writers who will put it in perspective. In 1861 the nation witnesses the inauguration of two rival presidents and the first shots are fired at Fort Sumter and Bull Run. Subtitled “At the crossroads of our being”, this episode is summed up in the words of Mary Boykin Chesnut of Charleston, “We are divorced now, North from South, because we hated each other so”.

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Credits

co-producer

Ken Burns

Ric Burns

director

Ken Burns

production company

Florentine Films

WETA-TV

Duration

01:40:00:00

Production places
United States
Production dates
1989

Appears in

The Civil War

Group of items

The Civil War

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