Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation

Paper Summary:

The paper discusses President Lincoln's failed attempts to pass legislation against slavery through traditional methods. The paper then shows how during the Civil War, while the nation was in a complete state of emergency and Lincoln was allowed to have supreme control over the army and navy, he used the opportunity to issue the Emancipation Proclamation and effectively end slavery. The paper explains that aside from achieving his dreams of morality, Lincoln used this Proclamation as a military strategy to weaken the Southern war machine so they would be forced to surrender to Union forces. The paper discusses how Lincoln caused an uproar of criticism and controversy in the Southern Confederacy with his bold move.

From the Paper:

""Slavery is in conflict with Democracy," many players within the American political scene of the Civil War were strong opponents of the institution of slavery. In 1863, then president Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, effectively freeing the slaves currently held in the rebellious Confederate States. Lincoln had initially met much resistance in his goal to rid the nation of the institution of slavery based on the allocation of such decisions left to the states. However, the inevitable Civil War provided Lincoln with his opportunity to reach his goals through morphing it into an effective military strategy aimed at solidifying the Union while going for the Achilles' heel of the Southern economy and military might. Under martial law, Lincoln ensured himself complete power to make such controversial executive decisions over such heated institutions."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Andrus, Albert, "The Emancipation Proclamation: Speeches of the Hon. Albert Andrus of Franklin and Hon. William H. Brand of Madison, delivered in the Assembly, on the evening of March 4th, 1863, on the Hon. James Redington's resolutions in favor of a vigorous prosecution of the war, of the proclamation of freedom, and the administration of Abraham Lincoln." Library of Congress. (accessed 13 June 1008 from http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/rbaapc:@field(DOCID+@lit(rbaapc01900div0)), 1863.
• Davis, Jefferson, Journal of the Confederate Congress. Volume 6. A Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation: U.S. Congressional Documents and Debates, 1774-1875. (accessed 13 June 2008 from http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collId=llcc&fileName=006/llcc006.db&recNum=18), 1862.
• Lincoln, Abraham, "Emancipation Proclamation." Library of Congress. (accessed 13 June 2008 from http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/treasures/trt026.html), 1863.
• The Abraham Lincoln Papers at the Library of Congress, "U.S. Citizens to Abraham Lincoln, September 1862 (Petition supporting Emancipation Proclamation)" Series 1. General Correspondence. 1833-1816. (accessed 13 June 2008 from http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collId=mal&fileName=mal1/187/1877600/malpage.db&recNum=0&tempFile=./temp/~ammem_kzrn&filecode=mal&next_filecode=mal&prev_filecode=mal&itemnum=5&ndocs=100(, 1862.
• Wellin, James C. 1880. "The Emancipation Proclamation." The North American Review. Vol. 130. Issue 279. Feb. 1880. www.log.gov

More papers on Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation:

• Analytical Essay # 116182 : "The Emancipation Proclamation: A Political Statement"
• Essay # 19372 : "Emancipation Proclamation"
• Essay # 14234 : "Lincoln On Slavery"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: