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Blake's Works
The Battle of Antietam
On September 17, 1862 the battle of Antietam took place in Sharpsburg, Maryland (Antietam). The Confederate forces were lead by Robert E. Lee's forces, which were up agaisnt the Union Commander General George B. McClellan(Battle of Antietam). Lee's reasoning for invading the North was to take the fight out of the South so they could harvest crops, demoralize the North, and most importantly attempt to get Maryland to succede. General McClellans reasoning for the fight was to simply stop the Confederate advancement North (Antietam: America's Bloodiest Day). The battle started with McClellan attacking Lee's left flank, but the attack failed to destory his left flank. The attack then shifted to the left and middle where Union success was made with the right flank being punchured and the middle being pushed back as well. Succes for the Union did not come easy with constant Confederate counter attacks. The Union finally saw victory with Lee's withdraw across the Potomac on September 18th which ended the battle of Antietam and solidified the Union Victory (Battle Of Antietam).
The Importance and Consequences of The Battle of Antietam
One of the major consequences after the Battle of Antietam was that it gave Abraham Lincoln the Union victory he was looking for the annoncement of the Emacipation Proclimation, which freed all the slaves in the Confederacy, to be popular. Another importance to the battle was that it stopped the Confederates' attempt to have Maryland succede, which would then put Washington D.C. in danger. The battle was also the single most destructive event in American history, claiming more Americans' lives than other event up to today (The Antietam Campaign).
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