Summary
On September 17, 1862, Generals Robert E. Lee and George McClellan faced off near Antietam creek in Sharpsburg, Maryland, in the first battle of the American Civil War to be fought on northern soil. Though McClellan failed to utilize his numerical superiority to crush Lee’s army, he was able to check the Confederate advance into the north. After a string of Union defeats, this tactical victory provided Abraham Lincoln the political cover he needed to issue his Emancipation Proclamation.
Generals
Union |
Confederacy |
How did the battle affect the war?
The Battle of Antietam was a decisive battle of the Civil War. Five days after the battle, armed with pen and paper, Abraham Lincoln changed the war when he issued the Emancipation Proclamation. If the Confederate Army had won this battle, England would have aided the South. It is likely that the South would have won the Civil War, and “one nation under God” would have been split. The North’s victory at the Battle of Antietam secured the unity of the states and paved the way for the abolition of slavery.