Was the emancipation proclamation more a military tactic rather than based-feelings towards the slaves?
Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 during the civil war, as main goal to win the war. Some historians argued that it was based on feelings towards slaves because not only it freed slaves in the South; it was also a huge step for the real abolition of slavery in the United States. While other historians argued that it was a military tactic because it strengthened the Union army, because the emancipated slaves were joining the Union thus providing a larger manpower than the Confederacy . The Emancipation Proclamation emancipated slaves only in the Confederacy and did not apply to the Border-states and the Union states.
Why did Lincoln issue the Emancipation Proclamation when so many Americans opposed the dismantlement of slavery? Lincoln felt that slavery was morally wrong and, more importantly to him, that freeing the slaves was a military move that would help better the Union. By the early 1800’s two unambiguously different societies had emerged in the United States due to their different ways of life. The North and the South had been brought together during the American Revolution to fight against a common enemy, but later began to drift as each region prospered regardless of the other. The North’s economy was based primarily on commerce and taxes whereas the South became known as a plantation society reliant on the use of slave labor. Slavery was always met with new compromises and laws to regulate it, until the mid 1800’s when it became more of a moral issue rather than a political issue. When the government could no longer appease the South, they seceded and almost managed to destroy the Union.
Rachel Doherty Period 8
1863 Essay- Rough Draft
Battle of Gettysburg, Emancipation Proclamation, and Abraham Lincoln. You may wonder, what do these all have in common? They all happened in an important year in American history, 1863. I chose to study the year 1863 because I like to study the Civil War and I’ve been to Gettysburg, where the Battle of Gettysburg was fought in 1863.
Emancipation Proclamation came the hope of freedom for slaves. The only thing that Lincoln did
The Civil War is one of the most important wars ever fought by the United States of America. The North wanted all men free, while the South declared that slavery was a way of life. It essentially determined the future of our free country. During this time our divided nation was led by Abraham Lincoln. There are many different ways to assess Abraham Lincoln in regards to slavery. Many consider him as a "Great Emancipator" and humanitarian while others may consider him a "Great Racist" who eliminated slavery for political gains. Lincolns own views in regards to slavery tell us a great deal about our nation leading up to and including the War Between the States. Even to this day, many are still fascinated by the Civil War and the events that
The Civil war was a very large part of American history because it served to end slavery, and to reunite the Northern Union states with the seceded southern states. The Civil war was a much necessary part of history as most historians would agree because after such a long history of conflict between the Northern and Southern ideals and lifestyles, they were destined to clash, and the shock of violence helped to reconcile their intentions quickly. Without the Civil War, bloodshed may or may not have been spared, but it was inevitable that the tension between North and South would eventually peak and conflict would be soon to follow.
The final reason people think the Emancipation Proclamation was about saving the Union is because originally it only applied for the confederate slaves. Only the slaves on the rebellious on side would be freed. It was for political gain (or to save the Union) he did not have the slaves emancipated from the North only the South because he wanted to weaken the Confederacy. This proves that the Emancipation Proclamation was to save the Union because It only applied to slaves that would benefit the Union by being
Lincoln declared that “all persons held as slaves” in areas in rebellion “shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free.” Not only liberate slaves in the border slave states, but the President has purposely made the proclamation in all places in the South where the slaves were existed. While the Emancipation Proclamation was an important turning point in the war. It transformed the fight to preserve the nation into a battle for human freedom. According the history book “A People and a Nation”, the Emancipation Proclamation was legally an ambiguous document, but as a moral and political document it had great meaning. It was a delicate balancing act because it defined the war as a war against slavery, not the war from northern and southern people, and at the same time, it protected Lincoln’s position with conservatives, and there was no turning
...n history. The fact that both sides had very different views on what caused the war, what they wanted out of the war, and what the war meant resulted in a conflict that would change the course of American history and cause us to become a even stronger nation. Fortunately, for us today, the North won the war and saved the Union. Our current government along with our Nation could be drastically different or not even exist at all today if the South had successfully seceded. As for the issue of slavery, if the South had won slavery may have been preserved for a while but I don’t believe it would have lasted forever. The Civil War was more than just a conflict over rights and slavery. It was the war that proved America had successfully created a powerful democratic government that was a force to be reckoned with whether you were a citizen, a state, or a foreign nation.
The soldiers and any volunteers fought for their own version of liberty and freedom that originally did not include the slaves. It was not true liberty and freedom for everyone until the North fought for a new form of freedom that did include any slaves. President Lincoln believed that everyone wished to end it but hearing that people were willing to fight just to continue it he started to show his true colors of wanting to end it peacefully. Lincoln wanted to end such bloodshed and war over the people he wished to protect and allow rights they should have been entitled to. Fighting over rights would have continued war and separated the states worse than just different beliefs. Both have people coming together working but the difference between