What was the anaconda plan?
The Anaconda Plan was drawn up during the Civil War by Union General-In-Chief Winfield Scott. Scott thought that if the Union Army sent gunboats down the Mississippi River and surrounded the Confederate states with troops to form a blockade, that the people of the south would turn on their governors until they surrendered to the north. It was called The Anaconda Plan because it constricted the south into submission. However, this plan seemed too passive and the country went to war instead. For more information see here: http://www.civilwarhome.com/anacondaplan.
