THE CONFEDERACY WITHOUT AN ARMY, NAVY, OR GOVERNMENT, 600,000 VOLUNTEERS SUSTAINED THE ASSAULT OF 2,778,304 MEN, SUPPORTED BY THE STRONGEST GEVERNMENT IN THE WORLD FOR FOUR YEARS. ITS DESTRUCTION RENDERED NECESSARY A PUBLIC DEBT OF $2,708.393,885, THE SACRIFICE OF 349,944 LIVES AND OF 1,366,443 PRISONERS.
(Note: bad comma splices are as they appear in my source)
Incidentally, I'm sitting about a mile from this monument as I type this.
Given the correlation of forces in 1861, the wonder is that the South lasted as long as it did or came as close to victory as it did.
If the war had happened 20 years earlier (especially) or 20 years later, the South have been much more advantageously placed to win its independence. The 1860's presented all the benefits of industrialization to the North while denying the defensive firepower of repeating rifles and rifled artilery in any real quantity to the South.
Think of how would it have ended if the South had an industrial base and/or was able to eliminate the Union blockade of Southern ports.