Emancipation Dbq

President Lincoln supported emancipation as a critical component of the war. Specifically, his view on abolition of slavery changed from being a war measure towards a war aim. The emancipation of slavery was the forefront issue of the Civil War. Consequently, Lincoln viewed emancipation as a secondary issue aim to preserving the Union. As a war measure, emancipation was effective in politically destabilizing the confederacy, by taking away Southern support from Europe. Furthermore, encouraging a gradual emancipation consolidated the border states and to side with the Union. Border states were strategic territories for the Union. For example, Kentucky determined who controlled the Ohio River, and overall depleted the Southern war capacity.
Conflict erupted due to the point of high tension between the continuous dissension over the critical issue. Lincoln supported emancipation as a war measure for the beginning of the war in order to gather support for the Union. Lincoln declared that he will side with border states who abolish slavery. He hoped that support from these critical states would play a decisive role in the war. Emancipation was still seen as a war measure because there was significant opposition from the conservative supporters. However, Lincoln explains to a religious group that emancipation would actually restore legitimacy for the Union in Europe, as the consensus there was set on an antislavery sentiment. This would prevent European dependence on textiles and undermine King Cotton diplomacy. In order to set a moral framework, Jefferson Davis explains that emancipation would hurt slaves and the basis of his argument was that slavery was a justifiable evil. Lincoln still doesn’t fully oppose Davis by taking the position of abolitionism. Instead, he viewed emancipation only as a war measure and doesn’t extend full rights. Davis views it as an immoral act as it would create revolts and a race war in the South. The issue with compromise positions was that they were mostly ineffective in containing slavery in the South. Instead, they created dissent throughout the congress, making the critical issue worse. A motive
His transition from an anti-slavery position to abolitionism was what allowed for the prevention of further conflict even after the war. For the Confederacy, the main war aim was to maintain slavery and their independance. Moreover, Northern Democrats continued to oppose anti-slavery policies, creating more decent. However, Lincoln's decision of emancipation strongly aided the Union by restoring legitimacy and isolating the Confederacy. It remained an essential war measure, which evolved into a Although Lincoln viewed abolition as a secondary aim, emancipation as a war measure opened the opportunity for a careful solution to the critical