Slaves, Contrabands, and Freedmen

Union Policy in the Civil War

von Michelle J. Howard

156 Seiten, Taschenbuch

Kurzbeschreibung des Verlags

This study examines Union slave policy in the Civil War. Prior to the initiation of hostilities, President Abraham Lincoln stated that the conflict between the states was over the preservation of the Union, and not over slavery. The administration was concerned that a war policy centered on slavery would result in the loss of the Border States. The war started without a slave policy promulgated from the administration to the War Department. By May of 1861, fugitive slaves had entered Union lines and were retained by military commanders as "Contraband of War." The Union employed over 200,000 fugitive slaves before the war ended. Military commanders were forced to create the slave policy to handle the overwhelming numbers of runaway slaves. Local military policy impacted the administration's agenda. In response, the administration would variously support, dismiss, or ignore the commanders. As the war progressed, Union slave policy caused conflict within and outside the military chain of command. As the conflict became publicized, President Lincoln created or agreed to slavery policies that conformed to the changing congressional and public opinion. The administration had been forced to deal with the issue it had sought to avoid. Military decisions in the field had impacted national goals.This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work.This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

• Reihe: BiblioScholar
• ISBN: 9781249274261
• Sprache: Englisch
• Erscheinungsdatum: 22.08.2012
• Größe: 234 x 156 mm
• Verlag: Legare Street Press