History,n lectures in William Harris teaches a class about abraham lincoln, the civil war battle of antietam, and the issuing of the emancipation proclamation in 1862. His classes about an hour and 15 minutes. Today, we have pivotd in some ways the point of the war and the pivot point of the entire class. The months when a war to save the union also became a war to end slavery. That took lots of politics and it also took lots of fighting, including the bloodiest single day war, which was the battle of antietam. We will look at that in some depth, but also starting with what happenedof in the first year of the war. July 1861, lincoln and congress both say they are fighting a war for the union. We are not trying to revolutionize the south or end slavery. We want to restore the constitutional relationship between the states. And this is a conservative way to prevent the breakup of a country. Things happened. Contraband as they were called started running away. Here is a whole family that
In the first year of the war. July 1861, lincoln and congress both say we are fighting a war for the union. We are not trying to revolutionize the south or end slavery. We want to restore the constitutional relationship between the states. And the union as they should be. And this is a conservative way to prevent the breakup of a country. But things happened. Contraband as they were called started running away. Here is a whole family that stole a wagon. Some were put to work. Contraband was still property, but it was property the union decided they would keep because it might be useful to the enemy. The runaway slaves had a lot to do with the movement of the war toward emancipation because they presented a really practical problem. What do we do with these people . By the spring of 1862, the antislavery people in congress had gotten to the point of being able to pass significant legislation. One was ending slavery in washington dc. And in the same period of time, lincoln was meeting wi