Following a union Victory on the bloodiest day of the civil war, president Lincoln issued the emancipation proclamation.
The Early civil war
Starting in 1861, America was engaged in a terrible civil war. the country had split over the question of extending black slavery into new western lands. When Abraham Lincoln,who opposed this extension,was elected president in 1860, 13 southern states seceded from,or left, the United States. they formed a new nation, called the confederate States of America. The northern states fought to force the confederate states back into the Union.
September 1862 was an important month in that war.both sides needed to win a battle. The South hoped a victory would persuade England and France to give it aid. In the North, Lincoln had decided that the bloody conflict needed a nobler cause than maintaining the Union. He planned to declare the end of slavery in confederate territory, but he needed a victory before making his announce -ment.
The Bloodiest Day
The commander's plans. the brilliant confederate general Robert E. Lee had decided to invade the North to win the needed victory. he slipped north behind a screen of mountains. Then Union general George McClellan had a stroke of luck. A Union soldier found a copy of Lee's orders to his generals. Knowing where Lee was, McClellan made his move. At Sharpsburg, Maryland, just west of Antietam Creek, Lee positioned his troops. thier line stretched for a mile and a half. McClellan approached. his army outnumbered Lee's but McClellan thought Lee's army was larger. that mistake made him cautious. Still, McClellan had a good plan of attack. Three generals would attack Lee's army on its left, right, and center.another large force would be held in reserve. It would stay ready to enter the battle to make a final crushing blow.
September 17,1862. The Battle began at drawn. on the left, Union troops moved against Lee's favorite commander, General Stonewall Jackson. The battle raged in a cornfield. fighting seesawed back and forth as each army charged and counter charged.within two hours,over 5,000 men were killed or wounded. Later in the morning, the Union army advanced with new troops,but the confederate held their line.losses again were massive,but Jackson's troops stood firm. In the confederate center, the attack got under way later in the day. The Union troops met fierce resistance in a sunken road.so many troops fell there that it became known as "bloody lane" finally the southern line in the center was broken; the Union army had a chance to achieve a smashing victory.but McClellan still believed that Lee had a larger army than he. Afraid of a counterattack,he failed to use the reserve troops. On the confederate right, the attack was delayed even longer. Union general Ambrose Burnside had to move his troops across a bridge over the Antietam. Southern sharpshooters on the opposite shore kept the Union soldiers from crossing for hours.when they finally did cross in mid-afternoon,they threatened to overwhelm Lee's army.it was a second chance for the union to win the battle decisively.but Burnside's men were surprised by confederate reinforcements and beaten back.
September 18,1862 the next day, Lee's army held its original position.he was sure that another attack would come.but McClellan again proved reluctant to fight. The invasion had failed. McClellan, however,had failed to smash Lee's army. The casualties on both sides totaled about 22,000. This was the bloodiest single day of the entire war.
