Final answer:
Option 1: Crippling the Southern economy and infrastructure was among the primary goals of General Sherman's 'March to the Sea', which aimed to demoralize the Confederacy and hasten the Civil War's end through the strategic destruction of military and civilian resources.
Step-by-step explanation:
The primary goals of General William T. Sherman's "March to the Sea" were to cripple the Southern economy and infrastructure, with the broad objective of demoralizing the Confederacy to hasten the end of the Civil War. This is represented by Option 1: Crippling the Southern economy and infrastructure, and the details provided make it clear that Sherman's march was not intended for diplomacy, establishing a new Confederate capital, or expanding slavery, but rather for destroying military and civilian resources to break the Confederate will to fight.
The march was characterized by the widespread destruction of railways, plantations, and farms, and by the burning of homes and looting of food. This tactic was part of a larger strategy of total war aimed at destroying the South's ability to sustain its military forces. As his forces advanced from Atlanta to Savannah, General Sherman believed that the psychological impact on the Southern population would be immense and would contribute to a quicker end to the war. Indeed, by the time Savannah fell to Union forces in December 1864, the march had greatly undermined Confederate morale and contributed significantly to the ultimate Union victory.