Free Essay. the Role of the Commanders of the Union Military in Freeing Slaves

The role played by the commanders of the Union military in freeing slaves during the civil war cannot be overlooked. At the forefront of the Union Military Command, was Abraham Lincoln, the president and the commander-in-chief (Masur, 2012). The southern states were opposed to the idea of abolition of slavery due to the benefits they got from slave labor; the northern states vigorously championed slave abolition because they felt that free labor was more effective than slave labor. This paper outlines the various ways through which the Union Military commanders aided the abolition of slavery during and after the civil war. Declarations by President Lincoln and the majority support by Congress also played a significant role in freeing slaves during and after the civil war. A significant turning point was on September 22, 1862, when Abraham Lincoln made the final slavery abolition proclamation. By this time, Lincoln had the confidence that the Union forces could enforce the proclamation command, was Abraham Lincoln, the president and the commander in chief of the Union military (Masur, 2012). Another specific example of the role played by Union Military commanders in freeing slaves was the instance where the general in charge of fort Mchenry refused to hand over John, a legislator from Maryland who was arrested for hindering the movement of the Union forces from Baltimore to DC (Foner, 2013). The Supreme Court ruled that Abraham Lincoln did not have the right to suspend Habeas Corpus (President Lincoln suspends the writ of Habeas Corpus during the Civil War, 2013). This is significant in that it made it unlawful for slaves to be held and tried in military courts.

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The events that transpired in Fort Monroe in Virginia in 1861 were a clear indication that the Union commanders were willing to let escaping slaves have their freedom. As three escapee slaves were trying to get through the Union lines, the Union commander in charge of the base, Benjamin Butler did not bother returning them to their captors even though it was the required policy to do so in the southern states.

It is safe, to sum up by reiterating the statement that the union military commanders played a crucial role in freeing slaves during and after the American civil war. Declarations by the president and commander-in-chief Abraham Lincoln, acts of ignorance by base commanders, aiding and abetting by some generals, and constitutional amendments supported by a majority of the congress were all ways through which the Union Military Commanders helped the abolition of slavery during the civil war.

References

Foner, E., (2013). Give Me Liberty! An American History: Seagull Fourth Edition (Vol. 1). WW Norton & Company.

Glass, A. S. (1934). Historical Aspects of Habeas Corpus. John's Law Review, 9, 55.

Masur, L. P., (2012). Lincolns Hundred Days: The emancipation proclamation and the war for the Union. Cambridge, MA: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press

President Lincoln suspends the writ of habeas corpus during the Civil War. (2009, November 13). Retrieved from https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/president-lincoln-suspends-the-writ-of-habeas-corpus-during-the-civil-war

The Declaration of Causes of Seceding States | American Battlefield Trust. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.civilwar.org/learn/primary-sources/declaration-causes-seceding-states