Synopsis

The series begins with a stark condemnation of slavery, powerfully recreating the origins of the conflict—from the South’s sprawling cotton plantations to the fervent abolitionists in the North who stood against them. The fundamental issues of Union versus States' rights are brought into sharp focus, alongside the story of John Brown at Harper’s Ferry, Abraham Lincoln’s election in 1860, the bombardment of Fort Sumter, and the eager mobilization of soldiers on both sides. Throughout, we meet the