The American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States , or simply the Civil War in the United States ( see naming ) , was a civil war fought from 1861 to 1865 in the United States of America after seven Southern slave states declared their secession and formed the Confederate States of America ( the `` Confederacy '' or the `` South '' ) .
The American Civil War ( 1861-1865 ) was a civil war in the United States of America .