The Battle of Antietam and the Emancipation Proclamation

The battle of Antietam (September 16-18, 1862, Sharpsburg, Maryland) was one of the few times that the South, under General Robert E. Lee, went on the offensive, directly attacking the northern lands. Antietam should have been an easy victory for the North, as General McClellan had twice as many troops as Lee, and he knew Lee's battle plans, which he had found in a cigar box at an abandoned battlefield. Antietam, sometimes referred to as Sharpsburg, could have been a pivotal moment in the war had the South won. Among many things on the line for the Confederacy was the trust of the major European powers, who would only enter the war on the side of the Confederacy if they could successfully attack the North, which did not really happen. A very slim win at Antietam was also enough to boost morale in the North and give Lincoln the support he needed to pass the Emancipation proclamation. The casualties at Antietam totaled 22,000, making it the bloodiest day of the war. Many events lead up to Antietam, including the many victories from the south that made Lee feel invincible, and it led to passing the Emancipation Proclamation.



 The Emancipation Proclamation is the document which Lincoln drafted that freed all of the slaves in the southern states which were rebelling. A win at Antietam (although it is considered a draw) allowed Lincoln, who was struggling with political support, to rally some more supporters in the senate and pass the revolutionary bill. The Emancipation Proclamation was not valid in slave states on the border of north and south which had not rebelled against the Union, so it by no means destroyed slavery completely. It also allowed for black soldiers to join the Union army who turned the Confederacy on its ear, acting as the difference between success and defeat. The issue was that the southern states did not honor it because they felt that they were their own country. The Emancipation Proclamation was passed because of the battle of Antietam's morale boost, and it led to the freedom of many slaves and a boost for the Union army.




 To read the Emancipation Proclamation, click right HERE!





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