General Scott's Anaconda Plan

Paper Summary:

The paper relates that the Anaconda Plan was proposed by Union General Winfield Scott after President Lincoln asked him to devise a strategy to take the South with a minimal loss of life. The paper explains how the plan called for the use of naval blockades and indirect methods of controlling the Southern ability to restock military weapons and supplies. The paper discusses the difficulties and opposition to the Anaconda Plan, but asserts that history has proven that it was not only an effective method of warfare, but essential to the victory of the North.

From the Paper:

"The breakout of the American Civil War represented many challenges for the Union army and especially president Lincoln. At the heart of the conflict is with what degree and how exactly to reclaim the South. While the north had superior arms, manufacturing and man power, one of the biggest difficulties to surmount is Lincoln's belief that in order to rejoin the two divided parts, massive destruction must be avoided. In 1861, Union general and commander in chief of the Union forces devised a strategy called the Anaconda Plan, one of the greatest feats of modern naval strategy and essential to the success of the American fleets. The plan called for the use of naval blockades and indirect methods of controlling the Southern ability to maneuver and resupply them. General Scott argued that by limiting the Southern army's mobility and taking away their internal economic support, there would be no way for the South to fight a sustained war and would eventually lose through attrition."

Sample of Sources Used:

• McPherson, James (1988). Battle Cry of Freedom. New York: Oxford University Press.

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