1. Chapter 17 The Tide of War Turns (1863-1865)

2. Chapter 17 “The Tide of War Turns, 1863-1865” Section 1 “The Emancipation Proclamation”
Main Idea: In 1863, President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which helped to change the war’s course.
Terms and Names:
1. Emancipation Proclamation
2. 54th Massachusetts Regiment

3. I. Why was Lincoln slow to end slavery?
A. During the war, abolitionists urged President Lincoln to call for an end to slavery. Some even said Lincoln helped the Confederate cause by not ending slavery.
B. Even so, Lincoln felt he didn’t have the power to abolish slavery.

4. C. Also, Lincoln did not want to anger pro-Union groups in the South and the border states, which were slave states. He knew many white Northerners opposed emancipation as well. D. Lincoln felt his most important task was to bring the Union back together, and he didn’t want the issue of slavery to divide the Union even more than it already had. E. At the same time, he knew how important slave labor was to the South. Without it, the South would be weaker and easier to defeat. F. By the summer of 1862, the president had decided to emancipate, or free, enslaved African Americans.

5. II. Why was the Emancipation Proclamation important?
A. On January 1, 1863, President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. B. This proclamation freed all the slaves in the rebellious Confederate states.

6. C. Union troops in the South could not enforce the proclamation there, so Lincoln’s act actually freed few slaves. D. But it was an important symbolic measure. For the North, the Civil War was now a war of liberation.

7. III. How did Americans react to the Emancipation Proclamation?
A. In the North, abolitionists rejoiced, although many thought the law did not go far enough. They thought the president should have freed all enslaved persons, including those in the border states. B. Many Northern Democrats were against the president’s act. They thought it would prolong the war by angering the South. C. Even so, most Union soldiers welcomed emancipation. They believed it would weaken the South.

8. D. In the South, whites reacted to the proclamation with rage
D. In the South, whites reacted to the proclamation with rage. Although the proclamation had little effect in areas outside the reach of Northern armies, many slaves began to run away to Union lines.

9. IV. How many African Americans fought?
A. The Emancipation Proclamation allowed African Americans to join in the Union army. Before the proclamation, the government had discouraged black enlistment. After emancipation, African Americans rushed to join the army. By the end of the war, 180,000 black soldiers had fought for the Union army.
B. African American soldiers fought in all-black units. White officers usually led these units. African Americans often were assigned the worst jobs and paid less than white soldiers. Even so, African American soldiers showed great courage on the battlefield.

10. V. How did the 54th Massachusetts become famous?
A. The most famous African American regiment of the Civil War was the 54th Massachusetts regiment. B. The unit earned its greatest fame in July 1863, when it led a heroic attack on Fort Wagner in South Carolina. The regiment’s bravery at Fort Wagner made it popular in the North. It also increased African American enlistment.

11. C. African Americans faced greater danger than whites if captured
C. African Americans faced greater danger than whites if captured. Southerners rarely took African Americans as prisoners. Instead, they shot black soldiers or returned them to slavery.