April 12, 1861 Civil War Begins

On this day in history, April 12, 1861, the Civil War began.  The bloodiest four years in American history began when Confederate shore batteries under General P.G.T. Beauregard open fired on Union held Fort Sumter in South Carolina's Charleston Bay.  During the next 34 hours, 50 Confederate guns and mortars launched more than 4,000 rounds at the poorly supplied fort.  On April 13, U.S. Major Robert Anderson surrendered the fort.  Two days later President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation calling for 75,000 volunteer soldiers to quell the Southern "insurrection".