Did President Lincoln issue the Emancipation Proclamation on

OUSD 8 th Grade U.S. History Writing Assessment- Spring, 2012

Introduction

On this assessment you will be asked to write a response to the following historical question:

Did President Lincoln issue the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1,

1863 primarily for humanitarian reasons or primarily for military necessity?

To assist you in developing your answer to this question you will learn about the historical period that brought about the Civil War and the

Proclamation. You will also learn about President Lincoln, his beliefs on slavery, his actions as president of the United States, and what other people said about Lincoln and his actions. In addition, you will learn about the Emancipation Proclamation itself – what it did and did not accomplish, and who it and did not affect.

In addition to learning this background information and in order to develop a thoughtful response you will have to decide whether Lincoln’s primary

(most important) reason for issuing the Emancipation Proclamation was a

humanitarian concern for those held in slavery, or whether his primary

(most important) reason was a military necessity.

What is the question asking you to consider?

If you argue that the primary reason was humanitarian you need to include evidence that supports the position that Lincoln was primarily motivated by his opposition to slavery and a goal of improving the lives of those held as slaves.

If you argue that the primary reason was military necessity you need to include evidence that supports the position that Lincoln was primarily motivated by his desire to win the Civil War and preserve the United States as one country.

OUSD 8th Grade U.S. History Asseesment / Spring Semester, 2012 / page # 1

Part I– Identifying and Representing Multiple Reasons for Actions

Introduction

What motivates people to take an action or make a decision? Often, this is not an easy question to answer, especially when the question involves an historical figure who you can’t ask in person.

This lesson is the first step towards developing your response to this spring’s 8 th grade

U.S. History writing assessment. On this assessment you will be asked to identify the primary reason President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1,

1863. In asking “what was the primary reason,” this question tells us that when we explain why Lincoln issued the Proclamation we will need to consider more than one reason and then identify the most important one.

1. An Example

Having more than one reason for our actions is very common. We do it all the time.

Consider the following explanation of why one person, Anita, chose to become a doctor.

“Although I chose to become a doctor because it is a profession in which I can earn a

good income, the primary reason I chose to become a doctor is to help people.”

One way to represent her reasons for becoming a doctor graphically is to create a two section circle graph – one section representing “helping people” as the primary reason

(taking up more than half the circle) and one section representing “earning a good income” and as a secondary reason (taking up less than half the circle).

A circle graph that represents Anita’s answer to why she became a doctor might look like this.

To earn a good income

To help

People


2. Identifying your own multiple reasons– consider the two following situations

1. It is test day in history class and you studied hard the night before. When you get to class the student sitting next to you asks if he could copy your paper during the test because he didn’t study. There are two good reasons to say “no.” One is that you think it is wrong to help someone cheat. A second reason is that you fear getting caught by your teacher and having your paper taken away.

For you, what would be the primary reason? Complete the following sentence and then divide up the circle into two parts – the larger part representing the primary reason and the smaller part representing the secondary reason.

1.

Although I reason I would not help my classroom cheat is

(secondary reason), the primary

.

2. This spring you are in the process of identifying what high school you will attend next fall. There are many reasons to consider in making this choice. These include:

 I will choose the school that will provide me the best education.

 I will choose the school where most of my closest friends are going.

 I will choose the school that is closest to home.

For you, what would be the primary reason? Complete the following sentence and then divide up the circle into three parts – the largest part representing the primary reason and the smaller parts representing the secondary reasons.


2.

Although and (secondary reasons) are important reasons for choosing a school, my primary reason for choosing a high school is .

Conclusion

As mentioned previously, understanding what motivates people to take an action is not easy, especially when the question involves an historical figure. This lesson was designed to help you better understand the question you will investigate and answer on this assessment:

Did President Lincoln issue the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863 primarily for humanitarian reasons or primarily for military necessity?


Part II – Background Essay

“President Lincoln and the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863”

Read the following account of how President Abraham Lincoln decided to issue the

Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863. Answer the questions following each of the paragraphs.

(paragraph 1) During the Civil War the states that joined the Confederacy fought for southern independence from the Union. The Southern motivation for independence was to protect their states’ rights to maintain slavery. Many in the south feared that the Union wanted to take states’ rights away in regard to slavery, especially following the election of

Lincoln who opposed the expansion of slavery into new states and territories. Interestingly,

President Abraham Lincoln had begun his inaugural address of 1861, by stating, “I have no purpose, directly or indirectly, to interfere with the institution of slavery in the states where it exists…I believe I have no lawful right to do so, and I have no inclination to do so.” In addition,

Lincoln stated that he would enforce the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850. Nonetheless, Southern states could not get over their distrust of Lincoln and decided to secede.

 Why were the southern states afraid of Lincoln becoming President? Explain.

(paragraph 2) At the beginning of the Civil War in 1861, both the Union and the

Confederacy felt confident that they would win a swift victory. However, by the summer of

1862, the war caused its participants costly victories and brutal defeats in battle. The North lost most of the battles in these initial chapters of the war. It became evident that the conflict would continue for a long time and cost many more lives. The popularity of the war began to decrease in the North and it seemed that the Confederacy might actually win if they could hold out long enough. Lincoln was concerned that France and Britain might come to the aid of the

Confederacy.

 Why were Northerners discouraged about the war in the summer of 1862?

__________________________________________________________________

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(paragraph 3) Leading up to the Civil War, many slaves had been able to gain their freedom through the Underground Railroad. However, with the outbreak of the Civil War, even more slaves began to free themselves by escaping to Union camps, forts and to the North.

Union troops also freed slaves as they marched through the South. Southern slaveholders demanded the return of their slaves. However, Northerner officers called these newly freed slaves contraband. Why? The term stuck because as “property” these escaped slaves were no longer helping the southern war effort. Many contraband worked with Union forces in the


camps and on the march. Some Northerners began to suggest that contraband be allowed to serve as Union soldiers.

 Would allowing newly freed slaves and contraband to fight for the Union give them a major advantage? Why or why not? Explain.

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

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(paragraph 4) President Lincoln was personally opposed to slavery but initially did not want to make emancipation a goal for fighting the Confederacy. He stated that the purpose of the war, “is to save the Union, and is not either to save or destroy slavery.” As the Civil War dragged on, President Lincoln seemed to change his mind on the slavery issue. After the Union victory at the Battle of Antietam, where thousands of soldiers died on both sides, in

September 1862, Lincoln introduced his draft for a document that is now known as the

Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation. In this document, he declared a warning to the rebellious Confederate states: return to the Union by New Year’s Day or all slaves in

Confederate borders would be freed.

The Confederacy ignored his warning. On January 1, 1863, President Lincoln issued the

Emancipation Proclamation. It declared "that all persons held as slaves" within the rebellious states "are, and henceforward shall be free." The document also authorized African Americans to participate in military service in the Union army. By the end of the war, nearly 200,000

African Americans fought as soldiers and sailors.

 (a) How did the Emancipation Proclamation affect the war efforts of the North?

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

(b) How did the Emancipation Proclamation affect the war efforts of the South?

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

____________________

(paragraph 5) The proclamation did not immediately affect slavery in the South because the Union could not enforce the law until they defeated the Confederacy. However many more slaves ran away when the Union troops marched through the South. In addition, the proclamation did not end slavery in the slave states that were still loyal to the Union

(Border States). But the Emancipation Proclamation was important because it shifted the original goal of the war from a fight to solely preserve the Union. Now the Civil War was also being fought to free African American slaves.


Historians today argue about Lincoln’s motivation to issue the Emancipation

Proclamation. Lincoln himself considered the Emancipation Proclamation as the greatest of his accomplishments. He called it, “the central act of my administration and the great event of the nineteenth century".

 Did Lincoln have a genuine change of heart (Humanitarian) about African Americans or was he solely playing the part of a master military planner (Military necessity)?

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

Source Materials: http://edsitement.neh.gov/lesson-plan/emancipation-proclamation-freedoms-first-steps#sectbackground

Goodheart, Adam, How Slavery Really Ended in America, April 1, 2011 http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/03/magazine/mag-03CivilWart.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all


Part III - Evidence:

Seven Primary Sources - What was said by Lincoln and others about the Slavery and the Emancipation Proclamation

To Do: Read the six primary source documents on the following pages and then answer the questions that follow each source. Each questions asks you to think about the source in a very specific way. Below are explanations of what each question is asking.

*

 When the question asks about “context” it is asking you to think about: o What was going on during the time this was written? o What was it like to be alive during that time? o What things were different from and similar to our time?

 When the question asks about “close reading” it is asking you to think about: o What is the author saying or what claims does the author make? o What evidence is the author using?

 When the question asks about “sourcing” it is asking you to think about: o Who wrote the source and when was it written? o Why was it written and who was the audience? o What is the author’s point of view? o Is the source believable? Why? Why not?

 When the questions asks about “analysis” it is asking you to consider: o Whether it suggests that Lincoln wrote the Emancipation Proclamation for humanitarian reasons or out of military necessity?

For source #1 the questions are already answered so you have a better idea of how to respond to each question.

* Questions and explanations are adapted from Stanford History Education Group, “Reading Like an Historian,” http://sheg.stanford.edu

Source 1 – In 1858 Illinois Republicans nominated Abraham Lincoln for the U.S. Senate.

His opponent was Democrat Stephen Douglas, who had represented Illinois in the Senate since 1847. As part of their campaigns, Lincoln and Douglas engaged in a series of debates.

In the debates, Lincoln stressed that the central issue of the campaign was whether slavery would spread into new territories west of the Mississippi River. He opposed the spread of slavery and said that Democrats were trying to spread slavery across the nation.

(Holt Textbook, US History Independence to 1914, p. 437)

“I should like to know if taking this old Declaration of Independence, which declares the principle that all men are equal, and making exceptions to it – where will it stop? If one man says it does not mean a Negro, why wouldn’t another say it does not mean some other man? If the Declaration is not true, let us tear it out [Cries in the audience of “No,no!”] Let us stick to it then, let us stand firmly by it.”

--Abraham Lincoln, July 10, 1858

- from “Lincoln and Slavery, http://lincolnandslavery.com/lsjom/events/landmarkevents/118-the-lincoln-douglas-debates.html

Questions to consider * :

Context:

1. Was Illinois a free state or a slave state in 1858?

Illinois was a free state, slavey was against the law.

2. What phrase in the Declaration of Independence do you think Lincoln was referring to?

I believe he was referring to the phrase from the Declaration that said “all men are created equal.”

Sourcing:

3. Who was the audience for this statement?

The audience for this statement were people listening to Lincoln and Douglas debate over the spread of slavery. Many in the audience were probably men whose votes Lincoln and

Douglas were trying to win.

Close reading:

4. Summarize Lincoln’s main point in this excerpt.

Lincoln’s main point is that if the idea of equality from the Declaration of Independence can be denied to a “Negro” then it is possible the idea of equality could be denied someone else for a different reason. He is arguing they should stick to the idea of equality from the Declaration of Independence.


Analysis:

5. Does this document suggest that Lincoln wrote the Emancipation Proclamation five years later for humanitarian reasons or out of military necessity? Why?

It could be used to support the view that he issued it for humanitarian reasons.

Why? Although this is five years before Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation and he couldn’t have know he would be President during a Civil War over slavery, the document suggests Lincoln does believe slavery is wrong.

Source 2 -

Written during the heart of the Civil War, this is one of Abraham Lincoln's most famous letters. Horace Greeley, editor of the influential New York Tribune, had just addressed a newspaper editorial to Lincoln called "The Prayer of Twenty Millions," suggesting that Lincoln's administration lacked direction and resolve.

President Lincoln made this reply when a draft of the Emancipation Proclamation already lay in his desk drawer.)

My main goal in this struggle is to save the Union, and not to either save or destroy slavery. If I could save the Union without freeing any slave I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone I would also do that. What I do about the colored race, I do because I believe it helps the Union; and what I tolerate, I tolerate because it would help to save the Union. I shall do less whenever I believe what I might do could hurt the cause, and I shall do more whenever I believe that will help the cause.

- Letter from Abraham Lincoln to Horace Greely, 1862

( http://showcase.netins.net/web/creative/lincoln/speeches/greeley.htm


Context:

1. What made Horace Greeley an influential person?


Sourcing:

2. When was this letter written? What was happening in 1862 in the USA?

3. Why do you think Lincoln wrote the letter?

Close reading:

4. What is Lincoln’s main point in this letter?

Analysis:

5. Does this document suggest that Lincoln wrote the Emancipation Proclamation for humanitarian reasons or out of military necessity? Why?

Source 3 – In mid-1863, after the Emancipation Proclamation had been announced,

President Lincoln called Frederick Douglass to the White House to speak with him.

President Lincoln did me the honor to invite me to discuss the best way to [persuade] the slaves in the rebel states to escape.

Lincoln was alarmed about the increasing opposition to the war in the North, and the mad cry against it being an abolition war.

Lincoln worried that [Northerners who opposed the war would

force him to accept an early peace] which would leave all those who had not escaped in slavery.

I was impressed by this kind consideration because before he had said that his goal was to save the Union, with or without slavery.

What he said on this day showed a deeper moral conviction against slavery than I had ever seen before in anything spoken or written by him. I listened with the deepest interest and profoundest satisfaction, and, at his suggestion, agreed to organize men who would go into the rebel states, and carry the news of emancipation, and urge the slaves to come within our boundaries....I refer to this conversation because I think that, on

Mr. Lincoln's part, it is evidence that the proclamation, so far at least as he was concerned, was not passed merely as a

`necessity.'

- From Frederick Douglass, The Life and Times of Frederick Douglass 1881.


Context:

1. According to Douglas, what was happening in the North in 1863?

2. Why was Lincoln worried?

Sourcing:

3. Who was Frederick Douglass and what were his views on slavery?


4. Douglass wrote about this meeting with Lincoln almost 20 years later. How might the passage of time affect Douglass’s memory of Lincoln and his views on the Emancipation

Proclamation?

Analysis:


Source 4 - Union General Ulysses S. Grant wrote this in a letter to his commander-inchief, President Lincoln, about a month after his victory against the South at Vicksburg, on the Mississippi River. In his letter to Lincoln, General Grant outlined some strategies for the war against the Confederacy.

By arming the Negro we have added a powerful ally. They will make good soldiers, and taking them from the enemy weakens the South in the same proportion that they will strengthen us.

--Letter from General U.S. Grant to President Lincoln, August 23

1863


Sourcing:

1. Why was Grant in a good position to give Lincoln advice about the war?

Close reading:

2. What is Grant’s main point in this excerpt?

Analysis:


Source 5 - The Emancipation Proclamation was issued on September 22, 1862 and went into effect on January 1, 1863. The Proclamation was an order that freed slaves in the


areas controlled by the Confederacy by President Lincoln, the Commander-in-Chief of the

United States armed forces.

That on the first day of January, 1863, all persons held as slaves within any State in rebellion against the United States shall be, thenceforward, free. The government of the United States, including the military, will recognize and maintain the freedom of such persons.

I ask the people declared as free to abstain from all violence, unless in self- defense; and recommend that they labor faithfully for reasonable wages.

I further declare and make known that persons in suitable condition will be received into the armed services of the United

States.

Upon this act which I sincerely believe to be an act of justice, warranted by the Constitution, and of military necessity, I invoke the judgment of mankind and the gracious favor of Almighty God.

- from Emancipation Proclamation, Abraham Lincoln, President

William Seward, Secretary of State

January 1, 1863


Context:

1. The Civil War did not end until 1865. Why do you think Lincoln decided to free the slaves before the war even ended?


2. In the Emancipation Proclamation, Lincoln does not mention Delaware, Kentucky,

Maryland, and Missouri. These states had slaves but were not part of the Confederacy.

What happens to the slaves in these states?

Analysis:

3. Does this excerpt suggest that Lincoln wrote the Emancipation Proclamation for humanitarian reasons or out of military necessity? Why?

Source 6 - From a recruiting poster directed at black men during the Civil War. It was produced by the War Department and issued on July 21, 1863 http://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/blacks-civil-war/

Questions to consider: *

Context:

1. Who is being recruited for military duty?

Sourcing:

2. When and by whom was this document produced?

Close Reading:

3. What is being promised to those who decide to serve in the military?

Analysis:



Source 7 - On March 26, 1864, former Senator Archibald Dixon, Governor Thomas E.

Bramlette, and Albert G. Hodges, editor of the Frankfort, Kentucky, Commonwealth journeyed from Kentucky to meet with Lincoln to discuss the recruitment of slaves as soldiers in Kentucky. They were opposed to the idea that runaway slaves could gain their freedom through military service.

I am naturally anti-slavery. If slavery is not wrong, nothing is wrong. I cannot remember when I did not so think and feel. And yet I understand that the presidency has not given me an unrestricted right to act officially on this feeling.

--Abraham Lincoln, March, 1864.

(from American Treasures of the Library of Congress http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/treasures/trt027.html

)

Questions to consider: *

Sourcing:

1. Who did Lincoln say this to?

Context:

2. Kentucky was a border state. How might that affect Kentucky’s position on enlisting freed slaves in the Union army?

3. Lincoln made this statement after the Emancipation Proclamation. Why might that be important to understanding what he said?

Analysis:



Part IV – Getting Ready to Write

A. Review your answers to the “analysis” questions for sources 1-6 and, using the organizer below, summarize which side of the question each source supports. Did President Lincoln issue the Emancipation Proclamation primarily for humanitarian reasons or primarily for military necessity?

Source Supports Primarily

Humanitarian Reason –

Supports Primarily

Military Necessity –

Why? Why?

1 - Abraham Lincoln, July 10,

1858

2 - Letter from Abraham

Lincoln to Horace Greely, 1862

3 - From Frederick

Douglass, The Life and

Times ofFrederick

Douglass 1881

4 - Letter from General U.S.

Grant to President Lincoln,

August 23 1863

5 - from Emancipation

Proclamation, January 1,

1863

6 – War Department

Poster, July 1, 1863

7 -Abraham Lincoln,

March, 1864.

7.

8.

5.

6.

3.

4.

B. As part of your preparation for this question you’ve also learned from secondary sources about why Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. Before writing review those sources and add information to the following organizer. Use this information to help you develop your answer to the assessment question.

Why did Lincoln issue the Emancipation

Proclamation? I learned that…

(note from what source this information comes from)

This information supports the answer that it was primarily humanitarian – Why?

This information supports the answer that it was primarily military necessity –

Why?

1.

example

I learned that Lincoln, before the start of the Civil War, found emancipation difficult because he didn't believe he had the constitutional power to free the

slaves.

- from Holt textbook, p. 491

2.

This piece of information could be used to support the

“humanitarian” position because it suggest Lincoln was opposed the slavery and would free the slaves if he thought he had the power.

Part V – Writing Assignment

Did President Lincoln issue the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863 primarily for humanitarian reasons or primarily for military necessity?

Remember:

If you argue that the primary reason was humanitarian you need to include evidence that supports the position that Lincoln was primarily motivated by his opposition to slavery and a goal of improving the lives of those held as slaves.

If you argue that the primary reason was military necessity you need to include evidence that supports the position that Lincoln was primarily motivated by his desire to win the Civil War and preserve the United States as one country.

Check the box that represents your judgment:

________I think that President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation primarily for humanitarian reasons.

________I think that President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation primarily for military necessity.

As you learned at the start of this exercise choosing a “primary” reason does not mean other reasons weren’t also important.

With that in mind please divide the circle below into two sections that reflect your thinking. Which would be the largest part – humanitarian reasons or military necessity? You will use the larger section of the circle to help create a thesis [judgment] that answers the assessment question. You will use the small section of the circle to help create your counter argument.

Now that you’ve made your judgment write a multi-paragraph essay that answers the question,

Did President Lincoln issue the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863 primarily for humanitarian reasons or primarily for military necessity?.

Your answer should support your judgment with:

 information learned in class

 evidence from the primary and secondary sources you have read (include important quotations).

 explanations of how the evidence you have chosen supports your thesis (answer) Avoid merely summarizing the sources.

 A counterargument: your response to conflicting evidence that could be used to argue for a different answer.

Begin your essay on the following page.

Title:

Name:

School:

Teacher:

Grade:

Period: _

Date:

Did President Lincoln issue the Emancipation Proclamation on

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