The American Civil War, widely known in the United States as simply the Civil War as well as other names, was a civil war fought from 1861 to 1865 to determine the survival of the Union or independence for the Confederacy. Among the 34 states in January 1861, seven Southern slave states individually declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America. The Confederacy, often simply called the South, grew to include eleven states, and although they claimed thirteen states and additional western territories, the Confederacy was never diplomatically recognized by any foreign country. The states that remained loyal and did not declare secession were known as the Union or the North. The war had its origin in the factious issue of slavery, especially the extension of slavery into the western territories. After four years of combat, which had left around 750,000 Americans, Union and Confederate, dead and had destroyed much of the South's infrastructure, the Confederacy collapsed and slavery was abolished. Then began the Reconstruction and the processes of restoring national unity and guaranteeing civil rights to the freed slaves.

A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same state or country, or, less commonly, between two countries created from a formerly united state. The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region or to change government policies. The term is a calque of the Latin bellum civile which was used to refer to the various civil wars of the Roman Republic in the 1st century BC.

A civil war is a high-intensity conflict, often involving regular armed forces, that is sustained, organized and large-scale. Civil wars may result in large numbers of casualties and the consumption of significant resources. Most modern civil wars involve intervention by outside powers. According to Patrick M. Regan in his book Civil Wars and Foreign Powers (2000) about two thirds of the 138 intrastate conflicts between the end of World War II and 2000 saw international intervention, with the United States intervening in 35 of these conflicts.

The Finnish Civil War (27 January – 15 May 1918) concerned leadership and control of Finland during its transition from a Grand Duchy of the Russian Empire to an independent state. The conflict formed a part of the national, political, and social turmoil caused by World War I (Eastern Front) in Europe. The war was fought between the Reds, led by the Social Democratic Party and the Whites, led by the non-socialist, conservative-led Senate. The paramilitary Red Guards, composed of industrial and agrarian workers, controlled the towns and industrial centres of southern Finland. The paramilitary White Guards, composed of peasants and middle- and upper-class factions, controlled rural central and northern Finland.

Finnish society had experienced - by 1917, under the Russian regime - rapid population growth, industrialisation, preurbanization and the rise of a comprehensive labour movement. The country's political and governmental systems were in an unstable phase of democratisation and modernization, while the people's socioeconomic condition and national-cultural status gradually improved. World War I led to the collapse of the Russian Empire and a power struggle, militarization, and escalating crisis between the left-leaning Finnish labor movement and the Finnish conservatives. Finland's declaration of independence on 6 December 1917 failed to halt the disintegration of the society and the push towards war.

A civil war is an armed conflict within a nation.

The term "The Civil War" redirects here. See List of civil wars for a longer list of specific conflicts.

For the 17th century Civil War in England, see English Civil War.

For the 19th century Civil War in the United States, see American Civil War.

Civil war may also refer to:

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