CiNii 図書 - Crossroads of freedom : Antietam

The Battle of Antietam was the bloodiest day in American history, and the turning point of the whole Civil War. At the point where Confederate troops invaded Maryland, poised to take Washington, the morale of the Union was at an all time low. It had suffered a series of defeats, it seemed that foreign governments were on the verge of recognizing the Confederacy and legitimizing its cause, and the Emancipation Proclamation had been shelved indefinitely. McPherson argues that the Union victory at Antietam sharply reversed all this, and gave the Union a new raison d'etre in the form of Emancipation. McPherson combines a compelling narrative of the battle itself with a clear analysis of the political situation surrounding it. The final chapters discuss the aftermath of the battle, and its reputation as a pivotal moment in American history.

EDITOR'S NOTE
PREFACE
DEATH IN SEPTEMBER
NOTES
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL ESSAY
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
INDEX

巻冊次: : signed ed ISBN 9780195158571

内容説明

The Battle of Antietam, fought on September 17, 1862, was the bloodiest single day in American history, with more than 6,000 soldiers killed--four times the number lost on D-Day, and twice the number killed in the September 11th terrorist attacks. In Crossroads of Freedom, America's most eminent Civil War historian, James M. McPherson, paints a masterful account of this pivotal battle, the events that led up to it, and its aftermath. As McPherson shows, by September 1862 the survival of the United States was in doubt. The Union had suffered a string of defeats, and Robert E. Lee's army was in Maryland, poised to threaten Washington. The British government was openly talking of recognizing the Confederacy and brokering a peace between North and South. Northern armies and voters were demoralized. And Lincoln had shelved his proposed edict of emancipation months before, waiting for a victory that had not come--that some thought would never come. Both Confederate and Union troops knew the war was at a crossroads, that they were marching toward a decisive battle. It came along the ridges and in the woods and cornfields between Antietam Creek and the Potomac River. Valor, misjudgment, and astonishing coincidence all played a role in the outcome. McPherson vividly describes a day of savage fighting in locales that became forever famous--The Cornfield, the Dunkard Church, the West Woods, and Bloody Lane. Lee's battered army escaped to fight another day, but Antietam was a critical victory for the Union. It restored morale in the North and kept Lincoln's party in control of Congress. It crushed Confederate hopes of British intervention. And it freed Lincoln to deliver the Emancipation Proclamation, which instantly changed the character of the war. McPherson brilliantly weaves these strands of diplomatic, political, and military history into a compact, swift-moving narrative that shows why America's bloodiest day is, indeed, a turning point in our history.

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Crossroads of freedom : Antietam

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