The American Civil War was fought in thousands of different places. Among these many battles, James McPherson identifies the Battle of Antietam near Sharpsburg, Maryland on September 17, 1862, as the “battle that changed the course of the war.” This battle was the bloodiest day in American history, and the number of casualties made it significant itself. More American soldiers died in the Battle of Antietam than in combat in all the other wars fought by this country in the nineteenth century combined. The Battle of Antietam was considered a major “turning point” of the American Civil War. The significance of this battle was that the reason for fighting this war changed because of this battle, and it gave the Union both political and military …show more content…
Neither the Union nor Confederacy at first included the emancipation of four million slaves in its definition of the freedom for which each side fought. As the battle continued, the meaning of fighting the war changed. It became a war over slaves. There was more opposition to having slavery than keeping the United States together. Where the south wanted to keep slaves, the north wanted to get rid of it altogether. Abolitionism was the main problem of the war. It may not have been the priority in the beginning, but it was the focus of the battle. The Emancipation Proclamation was written by Abraham Lincoln. For two months, Lincoln’s order proclaiming the freedom of slaves in the southern states was not announced because he was waiting for good news from the battlefield. The president declared, five days after the battle on September 22, 1863, the Emancipation Proclamation. He said that although the battle did not go the way he would have liked, the Confederates were driven out of Maryland, and Pennsylvania was no longer in danger. It stated that the slaves that the Confederate states had can be kept if the Confederate states agree to rejoin the country before January 1, …show more content…
This battle gave the Union lots of both political and military momentum in the war. The political momentum included restoring the morale that the Union had lost in the beginning of the battle, and it kept Lincoln’s party in control of Congress. It also included keeping European involvement away from the war. Both France and Great Britain were close to intervening in the Civil War to mediate the end of it. They were willing to recognize the Confederate States of America (CSA). They were affected by the war after suffering from the shortage of cotton that grew in the south. This shortage caused unemployment or reduced work hours to grow. Europe backed away and refused to recognize the CSA once the news of the Emancipation Proclamation came to them because although England and France needed the South for their cotton, they both have abolished slavery, and the citizens would not have agreed to the decision of supporting the Confederates. The battle also lifted the morale of the Union. Before the battle, the Union had low hopes of defeating the Confederacy after losing to them so much. After Antietam, the Emancipation Proclamation helped preserve the Union and gave it a new birth of
It also gave the Union control of the Mississippi River. The Battle of Vicksburg was one of the most important Battles of the Civil War, and it helped speed up the end of the long fought war. It also let the north go into the deep south so they could eradicate the “Rebels”. It split the Confederacy in half. It made it easier to defeat the “Rebels” when they were not able to communicate with their other half.
Introduction The Battle of Antietam (Battle of Sharpsburg) was a battle of the American Civil War, battled on September 17, 1862, in the Southern United States between the Potomac army led by Union General George McClellan and Northern Virginia army led by Confederate General Robert Lee near Sharpsburg, Maryland, and Antietam (McPherson, 2003). September 17th, 1862, has been termed as one of the bloodiest day in the U.S. History, with more than 23,000 men becoming causalities of the war. The research paper will then highlight the forces engaged, assets, and liabilities of both side, the battle overview, and significance of the Battle of Antietam to American History. The Battle of Antietam is one of the most significant battles of the American Civil War.
This battle ended the war and slavery in the United states. Although many battles were successful they did lose and tie but in all battles lives were lost on both
The Battle of Antietam had great significance to both sides due to its record high number of deaths in a single-day battle. It marked the end of Lee’s first attempt at invading the Northern states. And, it was considered a victory by the Union giving President Lincoln cover to issue the Emancipation Proclamation. The heavy losses on both sides were due to a lack of Confederate soldiers and poor planning on the Union general’s part. On September 17, 1862, at around 5 A.M., Confederate troops led by General Robert E. Lee and Union troops led by General George McClellan.
everything went down but if gives you the big picture and overall what happened with all the facts to support it. Hickman, K. (2015). “American Civil War: Battle of Antietam.” Retrieved from http://militaryhistory.about.com/od/civilwarintheeast/p/antietam.htm
Many battles during the Civil War took place on Confederate grounds, making it an advantage to the Confederates. After the battle took place, three long-lasting days later, the amount of damage done to the Confederates put them at a major setback for the
Proclamation. The Battle of Antietam was a turning point for the Union in the Revolutionary war; it also had a great impact on the future of our nation. The reason it was such an important battle was because it gave Abraham Lincoln the opportunity to issue the emancipation proclamation. The battle of Antietam was a conflict between the Confederate General Robert E. Lee of Northern Virginia and Union General George Mclellan Army of the Potomac. This battle lasted for one day.
General Robert E. Lee was almost daring Mr. McClellan to launch another attack on his troops, but when Mr. McClellan refused, General Robert E. Lee ordered his troops to retreat and return to Virginia on September 18, 1862 (www.history.com). Here are some interesting facts about the Civil War. The area on which the battle was fought was designated a national battlefield in 1890 (web.a.ebscohost.com). As a result of the Battle of Antietam, Republicans retained control of the House in November, and five days after the battle, Lincoln issued his preliminary Emancipation Proclamation (www.encyclopedia.com). The primary purpose of the Battle at Antietam was to make the Union give up on the war (http://www.softschools.com).
Up to this point the Battle of Antietam is the bloodiest single day not only in the American Civil War but also in American history. The Civil War is remembered for some of the most horrific tragedies and have echoed through time. Antietam was particularly tragic due to the staggering human cost as well as the mistakes made by the North. The Union Army could have shaped the course of the war with a decisive victory, instead, the lack of adherence to the principles of command and bad leadership led the Union to waste these opportunities.
Since the battle took place in Sharpsburg, Maryland it would be the first attack by the Confederates on Union territory. The Confederates were very hopeful that they would be victorious because this would definitely have a big impact on how the war would turn out because it would give General Robert E. Lee the knowledge that he can attack the Union on their home soil and have a chance of winning. “The action of the army against the rebels has not been quite what I should have best liked. But they have been driven out of Maryland, and Pennsylvania is no longer in danger of invasion.” This quote is by Abraham Lincoln explaining that he was not proud of the battle because of the number of casualties, but regardless they still came out with a victory.
I picture myself in the battle called the antietam battle and we was facing the gettysburg i figure that it was going to be a great and tough one but we the antietam out number them we played smart, we dropped them one by one silently headshots , they didn’t know why there man was leaving so quickly they stopped and said wait a minute why our group is getting small ? One of the leaders said. I was a sniper man taking them out the good thing is they didn’t hear any gunshots all they saw was there man lying on the ground with blood on their skin one of their men was down the war lasted for a couple of weeks this is why the war didn’t last long like the other war did. 1(we had more men than they did) 2.
The Battle of Chancellorsville turned the Civil War in a new direction and gave the Confederates a huge boost in morale. To begin, General Lee was able to defeat
The Battle of Antietam was considered the bloodiest day in American history killing, injuring, and capturing 23,000 men in Sharpsburg, Maryland. The battle was led by Robert E. Lee of the Army of Northern Virginia and General George McClellan of the Potomac. General McClellan was chosen by President Lincoln over John Pope to lead the Union in this battle. McClellan was very pretentious, and most of the cabinet members choose Pope over McClellan, but Lincoln went against them and choose McClellan. He was questioned on his ability to take on General Lee because he took serious risks to maintain his success during the Civil War.
In September 1862, a battle was fought in a small town in Maryland. More lives were lost than any other battle or war that the United States has ever experience before or since. This battle had no true winner but it did have consequeses that changed the course of the Civil War. In James M. McPherson’s book Crossroads of Freedom Antietam The Battle That Changed the Course of the Civil War, he shows how small events added up to lead to the Battle of Antietam and ultimately to the North winning the Civil War.
This including the electing of Abraham Lincoln made the southern states feel like they were going to lose control of the political choices in the southern territories, which would have lead to them not having control over their area in general (American Civil War History). These events are all effects where the underlying problem was the conflict of slavery that was between the north and south states. Showing how much of a factor it was during the civil war era. Making it one of the largest causes of why the civil war broke