Emancipation Proclamation and Gettysburg

The first thing that comes to mind when you think about the Civil War is the abolishment of slavery. However, many people don't know that slavery wasn't even related to the war until it was almost over. President Lincoln did not address the controversial topic of slavery for so long because of 3 reasons: border states, rights in the Constitution, and Lincoln's re-election. The border states were the states that separated the Union from the Confederacy. Even tough they were slave states, they supported the Union. If Lincoln would have freed slaves early, the border states of Kentucky, Delaware, Missouri, and Maryland would have most likely seceded. This would have given the Confederacy the upper hand because most of these states were industrial. Additionally, the Constitution of the United States mentions the right to own slaves in it. Northerners would be upset if they were denied that right. Lincoln had to another election looming over his head, and he wants to win it. Therefore, he has to make smart choices concerning slavery - otherwise, it might cost him the election.

After a long wait, Lincoln decides that the topic of slavery has been cast aside for too long. He writes a speech called The Emancipation Proclamation; that frees all slaves in the "rebelling states" or the Confederacy. Lincoln was very specific about the slaves that he freed because the border states were still allowed to have slavery. Also, the proclamation requested that all able-bodied black men should join the Union army. Many men joined to show thanks and appreciation for freeing them. One example is the Massachusetts 54th Infantry. It was made up completely of free black me. "Those men fought harder than some of the white men,"stated one Union general.

This was not Lincoln's only famous speech that year. On November 19, 1863, the Gettysburg Address dedicated  the National Cemetery to the fallen Union soldiers. No Confederate troops were allowed to be buried there. This address also mentions how the men died for their country and its success.

Although these speeches were given for completely different reasons, they both had significant purposes that effected the Civil War and everyone that lived through it.

Slaves in the Cotton Fields