All donations do help the museum. We are nonprofit, so we do rely on memberships and donations to bring you programs. Also, consider being a member. We have information at the house. So, the structure you are sitting in was built around 1844. That is when the house was built. Farmers lived and worked here prior to the battle of antietam. The union army took over their property. This structure was a Field Hospital where hundreds of Wounded Soldiers were treated by surgeons in the days and weeks following the battle. With us, Daniel Vermilya to discuss his new book. I will have to read from this because i could not memorize all this. Dan is a civil war historian and the author of several books including the battle of kennesaw mountainand james a. Garfield and the civil war. He previously worked as a park ranger at Antietam National battlefield and he currently works at the Eisenhower National Historic Site in gettysburg, pennsylvania. Before i hand it over to dan, cspan is here today. We will have a question and answer session. Please wait for a member of cspan to ask the question. We will also have a book signing in the house following the question and answer session. You can buy a copy of dans book. If you have a copy, he will sign it there. All right. Here is dan. [applause] mr. Vermilya thank you very much. Thank you, rachel. Thank you to you folks for coming out on this beautiful saturday in western maryland. Thank you to the cspan folks for coming up and being your today. Its really a treat for me to be here with all of you. As rachel said, i currently work at the Eisenhower National Historic Site in gettysburg. That is my day job. However, years ago i used to work at antietam battlefield. Its nice to be back in familiar environment and surroundings and a place i love very much and see familiar faces here as well. It is great to be here today to talk about my book on the battle of antietam. It came out last year as part of the emerging civil war series. The idea of the series is these books are providing introductions, perhaps a gateway to these stories of the american civil war. For all of the books that have been written on antietam, there are not many great books that point to an introduction to the battle and thats what i hope to provide with this volume here not just an introduction to the battle, but a fresh look to antietam. A new look at antietam. A battle and a name so many are familiar with, but we may not understand it all that well. We may not understand its complexity. We may not understand its full weight and importance in the story of our country. That is what we will do, take a look at that field of blood, take a new look. And if you are one hoping to dive deeper into the history of antietam, hopefully this will help. I would like to start with a quotation from robert kennedy, a soldier in the ohio 23rd volunteer infantry. When a lotantietam of ohio monuments were being dedicated. 1903. In i, myself, am from ohio, originally. Typically in my books i quote a lot of ohioans. I want to tell everybody that upfront. I love featuring the boys from my buckeye state. Kennedys quote is a beautiful one because it helps introduce us to this story of antietam. Upon this field of antietam was brought one of the most desperate battles of the word the rebellion, upon which the outcome hung the destinies of many humans beings. You can make a case for it and that it dramatically changed not only the course of these civil war, but American History is itself. To dive deeper into this, we need to begin in july of 1862. In washington, d. C. , president Abraham Lincoln holds a meeting telling his cabinet members that he has decided it is time to issue an emancipation proclamation, freeing slaves. He was open to their input as to how they would issue this document. The measure was discussed somewhat and it was secretary of state William Seward who advised president lincoln to wait for a victory before issuing this document so he would be issuing it from a position of strength, not a position of desperation. Lincoln took that advice and decided to wait. That will provide a lot of the background, a lot of drama for this upcoming campaign. With lincoln having decided to wait to issue the proclamation, that victory did not come right away. By august of 1862, the war was on the doorstep of washington, d. C. Itself, with robert ely and the Confederate Army of virginia fighting and winning the second battle of manassas, one of the finest battles of the civil war. As august turned to september with this proclamation still awaiting the eyes of millions, leah realized that for he and the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia and opportunity had presented itself. In Early September, lee would famously note it was the most propitious time to move north of the Potomac River and bring his Confederate Army into the state of maryland. This whole campaign is being driven by robert e lee and the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. With lee and his army fresh off of victory and momentum on their side, yes, they were tired. Pushing north of the union soil, they have many things they hope to accomplish in the state of maryland. If i have to sum it up in one potentially war winning victory over union forces on union soil. Greatest traits is a sense of timing. The longer the war goes on, the greater the north has a chance of victory. Coming into maryland has advantages for lee and his army, but overall he is hoping to defeat union forces on union soil. In a moment when the north has suffered several setbacks. What about the other commander in this campaign . It is fitting we will talk a little bit more about George Mcclellan in our talk today, with mcclellan spending the night in the house. In Early September with confederate momentum on their side, it is the exact opposite for the union army of the potomac, which in a september of 1862 did not really exist especially as constituted here , at antietam. With the union forces in washington in total disarray, president lincoln was looking for a commander who could revive this army and do it very quickly. Despite the wishes of many in his cabinet and many officers, lincoln turned to mcclellan to reorganize this army, to give him a Second Chance at command, George Mcclellan having attempted to seize richmond earlier that summer in an unsuccessful peninsula campaign. Mcclellan is getting a Second Chance. But before he can confront lee in the field in maryland, he has to build an army he can use in the field. If these two armies are opposing vehicles, robert e lee has a pickup truck that has some miles on the tires and is a little worse for wear but he knows it , will run. And George Mcclellan is a beaten up car, the foot is up, steam coming out of the engine, and it is up on cinderblocks. The first thing you have to do is get a car that is capable of moving. Build something out of this disassembled mess and washington, d. C. Mcclellan referred to this week as the crisis of our fate. Confederate forces moving north, mcclellan is rebuilding his army, picking up the shattered pieces of several different forces and what we have here is mcclellan in the center, some of his army remnants from the peninsula campaign. Some of his army will be constituted of the remnants of john popes army and the second is built out of divisions commanded by this general here, ambriz burnside. This general, jacob cox, and this general down here, isaac stevens. This is a brandnew amalgamation of the army of the potomac in 1862 and this is the army that would carry through and fight a famous battle. It was really built in Early September at the outset of this campaign and there are a lot of myths about George Mcclellan as a commander. His is a name that is met with scorn and derision by many, especially historians. We label him slow moving. A great organizer, but not a great field general. Lets look at the army he built. The weedstoo far into on this subject, but it is important to understand the tools mcclellan is operating with this campaign. Compare these two armies at the onset of the campaign. For the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, about 60 of the confederate soldiers at antietam had fought and three or more major battles. This is a veteran about force. It does not look like the union army is very close and that statistic. Lets go to the bottom. No combat experience. At least 20 of the Union Soldiers would fight in this campaign had never been in battle before. You can say that almost every single confederate soldier had been in one or more major engagement. What about command experience . These two armies had differing levels of committing experience. In the Confederate Army, significantly more experience among the highranking officers. Simply put if you are an officer , leading a brigade, a division, or a wing, which we will call army corps for the purposes of comparison, odds are you have led that unit or a unit of that size in battle before. In combat in the american civil war, a lot of decisions that drive the ebb and flow of battle are made of the brigade command level. Three out of every four confederate per day commanders at antietam had led a brigade in combat before. You can say that for less than 30 of Union Brigade commanders. What does this all mean . What am i getting at . I am saying when these armies are moving into the state of maryland, they are two very different forces. Two very different forces. They are each going to have issues during the campaign. Each army will lose thousands of men to straggling on the roads of maryland. They are going to lose men to battles before antietam. This is not an easy campaign for either force and sometimes suggest theended to union army was too big to fail or a force that was so strong, so well the together that any other general besides mcclellan could have ended the war here. Thats not necessarily the case, as we will see and talk about further. By the second week of both september, armies are in the field and advancing into maryland. There is frederick on a map. The union army catching up with them by september 12, september 13. Federal forces are entering into frederick, maryland. They are finding the confederates moved west. As lee came into maryland, he had a problem at Harpers Ferry. At the confluence of the shenandoah and Potomac Rivers. There was a large Union Garrison there. With Harpers Ferry at the northern end of the shenandoah valley, lee could not have a Confederate Army operating north in maryland with the union force sitting right behind him. That was kind of a problem. So lee decided he would divvy up his forces, split them across maryland to try to get rid of the Union Garrison there and he did that with what is known as special orders 191. Union forces arrived in frederick september 12, september 14. The come across a copy of the orders on september 13. How many people have heard about these before . The lost orders. A great many of you have. Typically this is described as the intelligence coup of the war and mcclellan has this High Definition picture of where the Confederate Forces are and knows exactly how to smash the Confederate Army. One of the reasons it is known as that is if you read mcclellans own writings, he says, aha, i have the rebel plans. I can beat them in detail. Orders has with special 191, the claim that this is the intelligence find of the war, that is not exactly what they really were. At the reality of these orders known as the lost orders first of all, it was not a rarity that a copy of enemy marching orders would fall into your hands during the american civil war. This is not the only time in the campaign that marching orders for one army would fall into the other armies hands. Hasntially what mcclellan is a copy of lees marching orders from one day earlier, which indicated they were expired, or at least out of date, the operation to remove union forces from Harpers Ferry should have been wrapped up. They said nothing of confederate troops strength, the orders were no longer 100 accurate. Different confederate commands had adjusted their marching routes. Essentially, rather than a High Definition picture, it gives mcclellan a blurry portrait, telling him that the confederates are divided. With these orders in mind, mcclellan takes about seven hours to do some reconnaissance. Many formulate the battle plan for the next day. That leads to the battle of south mountain, where mcclellan attacked part of lees army. South mountain was an important battle during the campaign. It was a turning point in this campaign. There is a great book on that battle but a good friend of mine. I would encourage you to check that out if you want to learn more about it. On september 14, union forces attacked several mountain gaps trying to push these boutinrates back off the to push west of the mountain and , it results in a Union Victory. By the evening of september 14, lees army is divided and lee thinks, i have to head back into virginia. I cant necessarily keep my army divided here in maryland. So on the morning of september 15, 1862, confederates in the army of Northern Virginia come marching down the Boones Borough pike, but they go a little past the pry farm. The copastor antietam creek and set up in sharpsburg. Lee, before he withdraws to virginia, he was to wait and hear what happened to the Confederate Forces at Harpers Ferry. It is there that he hears from his trusted subordinate Stonewall Jackson that the union forces at Harpers Ferry have surrendered. It tells lee, you know what . The campaign is not over yet. I can stay in maryland. I can reunite my army and i can fight the battle i came here looking to fight. So on september 15, in the fields around sharpsburg, maryland, this is where we are right now. The Confederate Army of Northern Virginia begins to set up on these ridges, on these hills, on this high ground so lee can reunite his force and fight the union army in battle. Is this a risk for robert e. Lee . Absolutely. He is a risk taker. It is a key characteristic of who he was as a commander. He is fighting with his back to a major river. This is a risk for him. However, he does not want to abandon this campaign entirely just yet. If he can reunite his army and fight a battle in maryland, that is the goal he came here for. He is going to give it a try. For lee, what i think we will find as we talk more about the battle of antietam, when we talk about his west battles of the war, typically we talk about chancellorsville or second leessas, but i would argue makes some big mistakes. On september 17, i would argue that lee has one of his finest days as a tactical commander. As lee and his forces are gathering and reuniting outside of sharpsburg, union forces as well are gathering on the eastern side of antietam creek. Union forces begin arriving on the eastern side of the creek later on the day on september 15 and they begin setting up on the fields around us. Near antietam creek itself. Questions emerge as to why did not the union army attack . Morning, as often is the case this time of year, i heavy fog had come off the creek, making it impossible to see ridges outside of sharpsburg. If you are mcclellan looking out to the fields, it is hard to formulate a battle plan when you cannot see where the enemy is. On september 16, mcclellan will formulate his plan and the battle will soon begin. As for the battle of antietam itself, the typical narrative of antietam is it is a battle fought in three separate phases. Have you folks are that before . Three separate phases . I want you to erase that from your mind. It was not fought in three separate phases. It was a battle fought in two phases. There was a northern phase and a southern phase to the battle. Afternoon of september 16, 1862, from these fields around us, union forces began to move into place. The federal army corps crossed first into antietam creek. Later that night, the 12th army corps would cross over into antietam creek and the battle would begin with attacks and to the left flank of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. If these are two boxers, the union army is opening the battle with right wing jabs. That is how this battle will begin. Mcclellan wants to begin the battle by testing lees left, knowing all the while, mcclellan wants to launch a left hook into the right flank. While these attacks are underway with the confederates diverging their attention northward, mcclellan wants to send an attack across on the southern end of the field hoping a hopefully weekend confederate right flank. It is a battle fought in two phases. Everything north of the turnpike, the cornfield, the sunken road or bloody lynn, that is all the northern phase of the battle. Everything south of the turnpike is the southern phase of the battle. I think if we look at it that way, it makes more sense to discern what mcclellans thinking was during the battle of antietam itself. On september 16, union forces start moving into place. Confederate cavalry and forces in the east woods outside of sharpsburg. A few casualties fall. As dusk settles, both armies are in close proximity and each one has a pretty clear sense that on the morning of tomorrow there is going to be a major engagement fought. Sometimes major battles corrupt without either army knowing full well they are about to erupt. I think if you asked robert e. Lee and George Gordon meade if the largest, bloodiest battle of the civil war was going to start that day, i think each of them would have said, absolutely not. On the morning of the 17th, both armies are pretty well understanding that a major battle is about to begin. That sense of imposing dread, of something that was about to come permeated the ranks of both armies on the night of the 16th. A wellknown officer in the union army wrote of that evening, there was a drizzling rain and with the prospect of deadly conflict on the morrow, the night was dismal. Nothing can be more solemn than waiting for the summons to battle impending. Sergeant andrews of the first georgia wrote, at night we stretch ourselves on the ground to sleep off the pangs of hunger. No one knows what a day may bring forth, but from the appearance of everything tonight, thousands of poor soldiers will have no use for rations by tomorrow night. One of the more eloquent writers that his written on the american of septemberte, 16, and what ever it meant to die for a flag or a phrase or a man or an inexpressible dream was dressing with them, the n. Ldiers, waiting for the daw we must also think back to washington, d. C. Where lincoln is awaiting news of what is to come in the field. Lincoln would note that when the Confederate Army crossed into maryland he resolved that if the confederate were pushed back from marilyn, that would be the victory he needed to issue his emancipation proclamation. The fate of the campaign was at stake but the fate of liberty in the United States, the fate of freedom for millions of individuals. For what a lot in play would happen the following morning. Private Frederick Krause noted that the morning had a stillness or a calm that precedes a terrible storm. He opened his bible that morning and read from the 91st psalm, which reads 1000 may fall at your side, 10,000 at your right hand, but it will not come near you. He would be wounded later that day but he survived that wound. The opening salvos of antietam were the bloodiest, not just of the civil war, but in American Military history. The fighting began early that morning with artillery fire back and forth from confederate positions outside sharpsburg, from union guns in the cornfields and the first several hours of the battle were the most confusing, the most chaotic, and the bloodiest. They took place in and around david millers cornfield. The northwoods, the east woods, the west woods. It was a perfect killing field. It was elevated ground with artillery from each side zeroed in on. Infantry advancing through this ground was subject not only to going up against other infantry units in close range, in some instances, but crossfire from artillery, oncoming fire from artillery. It was devastating fighting. Of all the maps in this book that were really well done, this one gives some sense of the confusing nature. This is the first hour and a half or so of fighting in the cornfield. There are a lot of arrows moving through the cornfield in the first hour and a its very half. Instructive to how confusing this was. Sometimes people ask, how many times did the cornfield change hands . I have so many different answers. I do not have a precise number. It opens with general joseph hookers army advancing to the south into the cornfield and along the hagerstown turnpike. Bloody combat is breaking out early. In the first hour, there was roughly one casualty per second on the morning of september 17. One of my favorite quotes about the battle, one of my favorite stories comes from the cornfield on the morning of september 17. It has to do with this soldier here from the 12th massachusetts infantry. The 12th massachusetts was moving south into the cornfield very early on. They would go on to lose 224 out of 334 men. About a two thirds casualty rate. He was moving south through the cornfield and he was hit in the leg. Almost immobilized. He had to crawl over toward a tree in the east woods and found himself caught between two enemy lines of fire with union and forces firing at each other and he was in between. The way he put it in his remembrance, he said he was exposed to the fire of slavery and freedom in the cornfield. Which given the circumstances and the importance of this battle and everything hanging in the balance, its a very fitting quote describing quite literally the conflicting goals of the the conflicting goals of the two sides of the civil war, its a very fitting quote. I should note that despite a harrowing expense of being wounded in the cornfield, julius not only survived but lived to the age of 97 and died in 1926 in massachusetts. He was an immigrant, fighting in his adopted countrys army. He was born in france in 1833. His quote is one of my favorites from the battle of antietam because i think it highlights everything at stake. By 7 30 with the fighting still raging in and around the corn field, the union 12 deployed into the battle. Commanded by Joseph Mansfield who was 59 years old, he was mortally wounded after leading his troops onto the field that morning. The casualties continuing to mount. By 8 30, union forces were able to finally clear of confederate clear the cornfield of confederate for the final time. This painting depicts union forces pushing south. The lighting is a little off but you can see the church. This is union forces moving across the plateau near the church, pushing confederates for the final time. By 9 00 a. M. , the Division Commander of the union 12 corps was taking a position near the church. He is another of my favorites. He was born in 1801 and died in 1899. His life literally spanned the 19th century. A fascinating guy, one of the Unsung Heroes of the civil war, i think. In these several hours of , thereg in the cornfield had been about 8000 casualties. This is the corn field alone versus other major battles, is eclipsing other major battles of the war and this is only a few hours old. The sites were horrific. Antietam was one of the first to be photographed before the dead were buried. Just a couple days afterwards, by alexander gardner. The after action report noted that every stock of corn was cut as closely as could have been done with a knife. A soldier in the hundred seven pennsylvania infantry wrote to his parents noting that the cornfield looks like buckets of blood had been emptied after the battle. And essentially it would take several heavy rains to wash the stains away from the land. By about 9 00, there is another union wave entering the fray. Another rightwing jab being sent into the battle, the second corps, men who had camped here the night before. The federal second corps was the most experienced in George Mcclellans army. Strong, theymen crossed antietam creek come onto moving onto the field of battle, three different divisions, about 5000 men each. They did not arrive all at once. The lead division of John Sedgwick was the first on the sumner beingh impetuous and eager to get into the fray, led sedgwicks men into battle without waiting for the other two divisions in his command, which were delayed a little bit coming over the creek. Sumner bringing his lead division, plunging them into a part of the field known as the west woods. Essentially he realized when he arrived at 9 00 a. M. That the confederates had been driven back and he had an opportunity to exploit the gains made thus far during the battle. As we see from our map, as soon as the men entered the west woods, a major confederate counterattack moves north into the lot. For sedgwicks division, it was a slaughter in the woods. They lost about 2300 casualties in under an hour in the wwest in the west woods. It was one of the most intense slaughters of the war. They said it sounded like the forest around them was on fire. One of the regiments caught in this was the 15th massachusetts. Which lost 318 of its 606 men. This is their monument at the antietam battlefield. Recalledrank bullard the bullets came whizzing by my face, poor fellows falling sick thick and fast around me. You cannot realize the horrors of the battlefield, some with arms and legs off, cut up in every conceivable way. The 15th regiment is now a more corporal guard compared to what it was before the battle. With the division being repulsed, other union units were caught up in the melee. Among them the second massachusetts, with its falling mortally , wounded. That morning, he had begun a letter to his mother back home and paused as he went into battle. He continued writing the letter as he was mortally wounded along the hagerstown turnpike. Writing, i am wounded as to be helpless, goodbye as i think it must be i will die. God defend our country, i trust in god and love you all to the last. Dearest love to father and all my dear brothers. Our troops have left the part of the field where i lay. He would die a few days later. As the division was being routed in the west woods, the rest of the federal second corps was turning and launching attacks on the part of the field now known throughout history as bloody lane. These were the divisions of William French and israel richardson, parts of the second corps going against remnants of the confederate division of general dh hill. This is frequently described as the midday phase of the battle, but it was about 9 30 in the morning. Not quite midday in my book. It featured five successive waves of federal attackers hitting confederates on this old, sunken farm road. Thousands more casualties falling as the battle raged onward. By about 12 00, 1 00 in the afternoon, union forces were able to seize the road from the confederates. But they were too exhausted and depleted of men to continue forward. That ends the northern phase of the battle. Between the cornfield, west woods, and bloody lane, there were about 19,000 casualties at antietam. In the sunken road in bloody , lane, this is a view of the road itself. Among the stories from there if the slide advancer will continue. How about this there we go. All right. We have colonel john gordon. I live in gettysburg, so i keep thinking general, colonel john gordon of the sixth alabama. Wounded five times in the road itself. The fifth went through his cheek and exited the back of his neck, leaving him laying and bleeding into his own hat. He would survive these wounds and go on to achieve the rank of general later in the war. We have a colonel from the second carolina, he was found holding a prized sword he had been given. It was recently returned to cadets from the citadel, where he had studied early in his life, in a ceremony a few years ago. Confederates were losing a lot of officers on the road and it destabilized their position. The union ranks, the soldiers attacking the road itself, that is their monument, they describe the battle as systematic killing. Afterward, the road was littered with bodies, mainly confederates fighting in that position. A northern newspaper correspondent wrote that the confederate dead in the lane were lying in rows like ties of a railroad and in heaps like cordwood. Mingled with the splintered and shattered entrails. Words are inadequate to portray the scene. That is the northern phase of the battle, some 19,000 casualties. The southern phase would feature just one union command, that of the union ninth army corps. They had the task of getting across antietam creek and launching a leftwing hook into the confederate right flank. The southern phase does not get as much attention as the northern phase. Save for this one iconic structure on the battlefield, this aimed the famed lower as the burnside bridge. This is described as the afternoon phase but the fighting took place primarily on the morning of the 17th, thats why we are getting rid of the three phases thing. Thats why i am on the soapbox about that. Burnside bridge has a number of myths. Its not the afternoon phase it , was a necessary crossing point for burnside, there was no way to wade across the creek, especially with confederates on the heights overlooking the bridge firing at them. He tried several attacks as well as a flanking maneuver to get past the confederate defenders, and his command had a difficult task. Once his men were across the bridge, the true task was launching a final attack toward the town of sharpsburg and the Confederate Army itself. This takes place in the Late Afternoon hours of september 17, the most overlooked part of the battle even though it takes place in some of the most daunting terrain and sees thousands of casualties for union and Confederate Forces. As union forces are launching their attacks towards the depleted confederate right flank, all day long, lee had been shifting men northward as the attacks came his way and he was some play hoping his right flank could hold on for dear life again the union assaults. Private David Tompkins of the ninth new york noted that the mental strain was so great that i saw at that moment the whole landscape for an instant turned slightly red. With union forces closing in on the town of sharpsburg, coming within sight of the town, it looked like the end of the confederacy may be insights. Lees right flank depleted to a few brigades on the southern end of town, union forces closing on sharpsburg. Lee knew he had troops heading his way from Harpers Ferry. The last of his forces to reunite with them at sharpsburg, he just did not know when precisely they would arrive. Hill arrived at the right place and right time, it could not have been scripted any better for lee and the confederates. As hill arrived on the battlefield, he did so justintime to hit the flank of the union forces advancing on sharpsburg, bringing the final attack to a close. At the end of the day, federal forces had made significant gains but failed to deliver a knockout blow against the confederates. The fields around sharpsburg were littered with dead, wounded and dying. As private Frank Bullard of the 15th massachusetts would write, this ended the most desperate battle of the war where thousands yielded their lives that this government must and shall live. The question we now ask ourselves is was this a stalemate or victory . Antietam is frequently described as a military draw. On september 18, both armies were still on the field, but on the ninth of the 18th and morning of the 19th, confederates drew back across the potomac and virginia. Union forces did operate pursuit, the battle of shepherdstown fault september 19 and 20th and confederates were able to slip back away and successfully live to fight another day. I would argue that despite neither army was destroyed, antietam was a Union Victory. Each army suffered major losses on the field, the confederates withdrew back into virginia. The confederates had come north seeking a victory on union soil and were unable to achieve that objective. In that sense, antietam is very similar to the battle that took place in the town where i live, gettysburg. I will describe a battle for you and you tell me which i am describing. Confederate army comes north looking for a war winning victory, the union army in disarray catches up with them, a major battle is fought, the confederates retreat to fight another day. Describing each campaign. Gettysburg is a Union Victory and thus i would argue that antietam is as well. There were opportunities for both armies to do things differently, as there always are, but George Mcclellan had achieved his goal of keeping lees army away from the federal capital, ending lees invasion of maryland annalee was unable to achieve his objectives. Despite mcclellan achieving his goals, it was not enough for him to earn himself longterm job security. After the battle, Abraham Lincoln met with George Mcclellan, was here on this very farm. Ultimately mcclellan was not long for command and was relieved quite simple he because he and Abraham Lincoln had divergent views of the war itself. They did not share the same principles, the same agreement on why the war was being fought, and a president and his commanding general need to be on the same page when it comes to that. Lincoln favored a more aggressive war against the confederacy and mcclellan, a moderate, wanted things to say the way they had been before the war. The thing that made it impossible for these two men to continue working together, the thing that ultimately led to mcclellans dismissal was the fact that five days after the battle, lincoln had the victory for which he had been waiting. On september 22 of 1862, Abraham Lincoln issued his preliminary emancipation proclamation, declaring that all of the slaves in the Southern States and in rebellion would be thenceforward and forever free. It was a military measure, a war order, it did not have a lasting solution for what happens once the war itself is over. It was a major step, though, toward freedom for millions of people in this country. It was a major step toward a future for this country, a future definition of freedom that was more inclusive in the United States of america. Lincoln himself said that these individuals would be thenceforward and forever free. This painting, the depiction of lincoln presenting the First Reading of the emancipation proclamation. It is antietams direct link to emancipation that makes this battle significant in American History. This was a horribly horrific battle with thousands of casualties, but in the words of horace greeley, he said of antietam, the emancipation proclamation itself, he said, it is the beginning of the end of rebellion, the beginning of the new life of the nation. The United States that existed prior to the civil war perished at antietam and the new birth of freedom that lincoln spoke to at gettysburg in 1863, part of that took place here around us. It was the death of antietam that led to the birth of freedom. In the death on many other battlefield as well. Antietam stands out because it was the Bloodiest Day in American History, over 23,000 casualties in a 1213 hour time span. Jacob bauer of the 16th connecticut wrote afterward, i found war is a terrible thing to even think of but when you are engaged in it, it is worse yet. Thousands of bodies are buried across this battlefield, thousands more treated in Field Hospitals such as the barn where we are standing. The union dead were many of them removed to the cemetery outside of sharpsburg. In the Antietam National cemetery there are union dead from antietam, south mountain, from another battle. Nearly 5000 Union Soldiers from the civil war buried there as well as hundreds more soldiers who served in a later conflict like world war i, world war ii. In walking through the gravestones of antietam, it all comes together the significance of this place, the significance of this battle. The title of the book i wrote about this, that field of blood, comes from a chaplain from ohio. Reverend William Wallace lyle of the 11th ohio wrote that for the terror and agony on the battlefield, it was not limited to the battlefield itself, but extended to thousands of homes north and south across the country. Antietam really was a terrible human tragedy for thousands and thousands of families. He wrote there was untold agony and thousands of homes far from that field of blood to close, i would like to tell you a story about just one soldier and just one family. For those that have read the book, it is a story you will be familiar with. For those who have heard me talk on antietam before, you will be familiar with it as well. It is about private elwood from the 116th pennsylvania volunteer infantry. He was from canton, pennsylvania, a shoemaker prior to the civil war, and my great great grandfather. He was killed at the battle of antietam. His story is what got me interested in history at a young age and led me to want to work at antietam nearly a decade ago at the National Parks service. His story inspires a lot of what i have done in studying the past and writing about it. He served in company d of the 106 pennsylvania. His last night alive, he went over antietam creek, into the westwood on the morning of the 17th. Thats where he was last seen according to those he served with. He was last seen doing his duty with unflinching bravery. We dont know ultimately what became of him, although we know he was killed in action. We dont know where he was buried, i should perhaps say. He was killed in action and buried as an unknown soldier because he had shaved off the heavy beard of whiskers just before the battle so they could not identify his remains. Perhaps he is still in an unmarked grave on the battlefield. Perhaps he is at an unknown grave in Antietam National cemetery. He and thousands of others fought here in september of 1862, helping to lead to the new birth of freedom in our country, and i think perhaps the best words to describe the importance of antietam in American History i would give to general Oliver Howard with the philadelphia brigade in the west woods. In his after action report he wrote, my men have poured out blood like water and we must look to god and our country for a just reward. We are the ones who inherited this battlefield and country, and we should ask ourselves if we are providing the just reward the soldiers fought for in how we are taking care of the gifts we have been given. I want to thank you for joining us today and coming out to the farm on this beautiful summer afternoon. Thank you to the folks with the pride farm medical museum. Thank you to cspan. It has been a treat for me to be here and i think we have time for a few questions. Thank you. [applause] a quick reminder that cspan is here, and if you have a question, raise your hand and wait for the microphone. Daniel any questions . In the back. What do you think about tom clemenss discovery that this was not mcclellans headquarters . Daniel i thought somebody might ask about that. [laughter] daniel i agree with tom. I think mcclellan use this as a used this as a Forward Operating post. Whether it was his actual headquarters i dont know. It was published an article, i dont remember which magazine or journal, but i am pretty sure he published it. It is likely mcclellan used this, he slept here the night of the 16th, it was a Forward Operating post for him, and he did not really command the battle from here so much. He moved around a little bit, down by the middle bridge, to the east was for a little while. You could say his headquarters was back in katies bill in katies bill. Another hand up here. I was at a recent lecture in which they say the shadow of john pope influenced this battle to this extent. John pope was pretty much in a whipped was pretty much whipped in a move when the confederates decimated troops at manassas. In the afternoon battle when the ninth corps is coming toward sharpsburg, they had 7000 or 8000 men. They have a substantial group. The theory is the union army had enough men to dispose of ap hill but because of the fear of a left flank movement, they did not want to suffer a loss, and the commanders in the left field, whoever they were, had the troops withdraw and not dispute ap hills left flank move. Daniel i would disagree with that simply because i dont think they had any clue hill was coming. After he came . I think by that time, the left flank had sustained serious losses and lack of cohesion. Units are dissolving like the 16th connecticut, harlans brigade is suffering serious losses. Hills attack was wellplaced. I dont see how they couldve reformed and repulsed him given the element of surprise, the terrain they were facing, the way some of the regiments fell apart in the face of hills attack. The left flank had overwhelming Union Numbers and they could have disposed of hill even though he came in on the left flank. Because the generals involved, one of them was under suspicion of being courtmartialed and he did not want to experience another loss for his own reputation. Daniel i have never read anything to give that validation. I dont think it was any sort of calculated decision about protecting their own selves from further flank attacks. I dont think it was a calculated decision, i think they were very close to sharpsburg. Hills attack came with an unexpected flank assault and he was able to exploit the gaps in the union line in the final attack. If we are talking about simply this taking place on a flat piece of paper on a map, potentially, but the terrain, the experience issues, the struggling issues, i really dont see how they could have done that. Mr. Lincoln said mcclellan had he is exulting after he gets 191. Five minutes later he gets back to staff and says, that old man has so many people, he has them all over the country and still wants to fight me. Lets proceed with a little caution. Daniel when we think about mcclellan and handling of 191, it has been alleged that mcclellan sits on it for an inordinate amount of time, waiting for waitings sake, cautious for cautious sake. In this campaign i would say a little caution is always good for a commander operating under the circumstances mcclellan was operating under here. Of all the possible outcomes in this campaign, win, draw, or lose, the one he cannot do under any circumstances is lose, because that is game over. I would say taking about six hours to issue orders, do some reconnaissance, determine the veracity of the orders, i would say that and launching a major battle the next day at south mountain, i dont see that as waiting too long or being overly cautious considering the circumstances. I think that throughout the campaign, mcclellan is not creating on his own, he is being given estimates of confederate strength from 80120,000. Lee does not have that many men in his campaign but he is getting these data points in trying to process them, mcclellan is not creating them on his own. With 191, he waits a little while before launching an attack. I dont know of any general who would receive that and then right away launch an attack the next minute. I think a little caution was good there and i dont get was too long. Yes . [indiscernible] if i remember correctly, he said lee really did not want to go to come here, that he rather was going to go in a roundabout way north and into washington. Did you ever hear that . That lee did not want to come here, that he really wanted to go as far north as he could and then come down into washington to get washington. Daniel i havent heard denniss talk on that so i could not comment too much, but with the state of lees army, i dont know that washington wouldve been a great target for him. I think the reason he wanted to move into the field here in maryland was specifically to get union forces out of washington. Lees writing suggests he has some concept about how much the union army was in disarray in Early September. I see lees goal very much as not necessarily being here in sharpsburg, but getting the federal army out of washington, dispersing some of the federal strength that is concentrating in the capital. Get some of the army into the field where it is easier for him to operate. Did he, lee, ever declare a specific objective like harrisburg . Daniel it depends on who you listen to and which account you read. Some accounts suggest he declared harrisburg and objective but i dont think he actually did. I think his objective is a victory in the field over union forces. Folks, thank you for coming out today, thank you for joining us. I will be happy to sign copies of my book afterward. It is so nice to see all of you. Again, thank you for being here today. We have books for sale up in the house and dan will be signing copies and we have a basket for donations. Thank you again, everybody. Thank you for coming out and thank you cspan. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. Visit ncicap. Org] American History tv is on social media, follow us at cspan history. American history tv on cspan three, looks at the impeachment of President Trump president nixon and clinton, today starting at 6 00 p. M. On oral histories, former representatives trend loss trent and elizabeth reflect on ther experience serving on in the house during the impeachment of nixon. Helpful in my winning and that i looked up to as the president , and i wound up having to sit in judgment on him, and even having to say that i would vote for an article of impeachment. Then at 8 00 we look at the impeachment of president clinton with a portion of the debate. You denigrate the role of the senate, which has the thedicatory role to waive evidence and study what it wants, and our Founding Fathers made it extraordinarily difficult to eliminate a president from office by requiring a two thirds votes. Thats what i have always that unless this is done bipartisan , and bipartisan lay tragically theres no bipartisanship here, but im gets tohat it if he the senate it would be bipartisan, but explore our nations past on American History tv. Our cspan campaign 2020 bus team is traveling across the country asking voters what issues should president ial candidates address . My top issue is the National Debt. I feel like its not talked i think it needs ande addressed, it does our Foreign Policy in the nave what we can do as a nation. And what we can do for future generations. I think the National Debt should be curtailed. I like to see washington address some of the Foreign Policy issues with an analytical approach. Im currently pleased with President Trumps choices and his actions in that area, but i dont want to follow him blindly and i hope that politicians would approach it more and politically more analytically. I think candidates should on ins the crises going the United States, mainly , imate change, gun violence think right now the united overall, humanity, we are at a crossroads between a potential disaster, and the resulting gout for everyone at the end. I want candidates that push forward with results to make everything better with everyone, not just the few. Voices from the road on cspan. [captions Copyright National cable satellite corp. 2019] the author of when the war came home next discusses his book, which looks at the impact of world war i on ordinary ottomans. And details the factors leading to the fall of empires the empire and the wars aftermath. The National World war i museum and memorial in kansas city, missouri host of the talk as part of their annual symposium. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome back to the National World war i museum and memorial in kansas city, missouri. Were so pleased youre joining us for our symposium, 1919 peace . That should have sounded there is a question mark at the end of it in case it didnt. We are thrilled to have you here on site and thrilled to have you all join us either online or via tv, because we know that these conversations are essential to