What did the Emancipation Proclamation do? Who wrote it?

One of the more famous documents in American history is the Emancipation Proclamation. Abraham Lincoln wrote it and issued it on January 1, 1863.

This document stated that the slaves were freed in the Confederacy. While it had no immediate effect on the states in the Confederacy since they didn’t recognize actions by Abraham Lincoln, it was a very symbolic action. It showed the world that the United States was committed to ending slavery. This was important because European countries were ending slavery or had ended slavery. It gave Europe another reason to support the United States and not to support the Confederacy. The Emancipation Proclamation didn’t affect those states in the Union that had slavery. Since slaves were considered property, President Lincoln was not able to free them. He was able to free them in the South, at least in theory, because the Emancipation Proclamation was considered a military action against the South that would weaken the South.

The issuing of the Emancipation Proclamation made it clear that the United States was committed to ending slavery after the Civil War had ended. Eventually, the 13th amendment to the Constitution was ratified, ending slavery.